Founded in the 9th century, Topoľčany was a regional market centre during the Middle Ages located on the western bank of the Nitra River and on a crossroads of trade routes.

Topoľčany Castle was built in the 13th century 18 km to the NW of the town; this considerable distance was due to the lowland location of Topoľčany.
The castle lies on slopes of Považský Inovec.

During the 12th and 13th centuries, Topoľčany was owned by the Csak family, its best-known member being Matthew III Csák.
In the 15th century, the castle was conquered and held by the Hussites for 3 years, who returned it for a fee of 9000 ducats in 1434.
In 1443 the countryside was pillaged by a rogue noble who had captured the castle, but was later evicted by the king and sent to Moravia.
In the same year, and again in 1444, the town (and much of Carpathia) was struck by an earthquake.

During the 16th and 17th centuries there were a few large-scale fires that destroyed substantial parts of the town.
Because the town was only 60 km north of the border between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg Monarchy, Topoľčany was often raided by the Ottoman Turks during the Ottoman wars in Europe, notably in the years 1599 and 1643, when many citizens were taken into slavery.
The town's population stagnated as a result.
The town's location in a lowland thus proved a disadvantage in times of war as the town never grew big enough to erect city walls.

For most of its history, Topoľčany's population was ethnically mixed.
While the rural population was almost purely Slovak, the urban population consisted of Carpathian Germans, Jews, and Magyars.
Jews immigrated to the town during the 16th-18th centuries.
This ethnic mix came to an end in the first part of the 20th century, as industrialization attracted Slovaks from the surrounding areas and the number of Magyars decreased after the creation of Czechoslovakia following World War I.
The Jewish (about 3,200 people) and German populations substantially decreased during World War II.
The 550-700 Jews from Topoľčany who survived the Holocaust and returned to their homes found themselves strangers in their native town, without property and in many cases without citizenship.
Because most of the Jews in Topoľčany spoke Hungarian or German, they had declared their ethnicity in the last pre-war Czechoslovak census as Magyar or German rather than Jewish or Slovak.
The Beneš decrees after World War II expelled Hungarian and German speakers, both Jews and Christians.
Additionally, most of Topoľčany's pre-war businesses had been owned by Jews, but were taken over by Slovaks during the war.
The Jews that survived the war initially tried to stay and rebuild their lives, even after the Topoľčany pogrom of 24 September 1945, but by 1949 all of the remaining Jewish population emigrated.
Founded in the 9th century, Topoľčany was a regional market centre during the Middle Ages located on the western bank of the Nitra River and on a crossroads of trade routes.
Topoľčany Castle was built in the 13th century 18 km to the NW of the town; this considerable distance was due to the lowland location of Topoľčany. The castle lies on slopes of Považský Inovec.
During the 12th and 13th centuries, Topoľčany was owned by the Csak family, its best-known member being Matthew III Csák. In the 15th century, the castle was conquered and held by the Hussites for 3 years, who returned it for a fee of 9000 ducats in 1434. In 1443 the countryside was pillaged by a rogue noble who had captured the castle, but was later evicted by the king and sent to Moravia. In the same year, and again in 1444, the town (and much of Carpathia) was struck by an earthquake.
During the 16th and 17th centuries there were a few large-scale fires that destroyed substantial parts of the town. Because the town was only 60 km north of the border between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg Monarchy, Topoľčany was often raided by the Ottoman Turks during the Ottoman wars in Europe, notably in the years 1599 and 1643, when many citizens were taken into slavery. The town's population stagnated as a result. The town's location in a lowland thus proved a disadvantage in times of war as the town never grew big enough to erect city walls.
For most of its history, Topoľčany's population was ethnically mixed. While the rural population was almost purely Slovak, the urban population consisted of Carpathian Germans, Jews, and Magyars. Jews immigrated to the town during the 16th-18th centuries. This ethnic mix came to an end in the first part of the 20th century, as industrialization attracted Slovaks from the surrounding areas and the number of Magyars decreased after the creation of Czechoslovakia following World War I.
The Jewish (about 3,200 people) and German populations substantially decreased during World War II. The 550-700 Jews from Topoľčany who survived the Holocaust and returned to their homes found themselves strangers in their native town, without property and in many cases without citizenship. Because most of the Jews in Topoľčany spoke Hungarian or German, they had declared their ethnicity in the last pre-war Czechoslovak census as Magyar or German rather than Jewish or Slovak. The Beneš decrees after World War II expelled Hungarian and German speakers, both Jews and Christians. Additionally, most of Topoľčany's pre-war businesses had been owned by Jews, but were taken over by Slovaks during the war. The Jews that survived the war initially tried to stay and rebuild their lives, even after the Topoľčany pogrom of 24 September 1945, but by 1949 all of the remaining Jewish population emigrated.
Topoľčany