Szentgotthárd is the cultural centre of the Slovenian Raba-country and the westernmost town of Hungary. It is located in the gate of Örseg where River Raba and River Lapincs meet. Its inhabitants take care of the culture and traditions of three nations.
The settlement was founded by King Bela III in 1183, when he located French Cistercian monks here by building a monastery for them which was named after Saint Gotthard, a bishop from Hildesheim. The monastery and the forest around it were exploded by the Austrians during the Bocskai rebellion and this was the end of monk life here. Szentgotthárd battle against the Turkish in 1664 had a great influence not only on the political life of Hungary, but also of Europe. On 1st August 1664 Raimondo Montecuccoli imperial general fought a battle with Ottoman army marching towards Vienna under the command of Köprülü Ahmed chief leader. The Szentgotthárd battle ended with the victory of Christian army.

Plans of the new monastery and church of the Cistercians was made by Franz Anton Pilgram. The implementation of the large conception was started in 1740; the ceremonial dedication was done by Janos Szily, the first bishop of Szombathely, in 1779. In these days the monumental tower of the Cistercian Baroque Church can be seen from far away inviting the visitor into one of the most beautiful church of the country with a very rich inner spatial-formation and decoration. Among the murals of the church emerges the one illustrating the victory of Christian army on the Turkish in Szentgotthárd battle. It was painted by Stefan Dorfmeister from Austria who works mainly in our country.
By the establishment of the railway line towards Graz the industrialization started in Szentgotthárd. At the end of the 1800s factories, plants were founded one after another (Toy factory, Tobacco factory, Clock factory, Silk factory, Scythe factory). Social changes came after the economic development: education, health institutions were established, civil organizations strengthened. By the end of the first decade in XX century Szentgotthárd had become a bustling town. One of the prime movers of the development of Szentgotthárd was Kálmán Széll who supported the ideas as a representative of the region, later as a minister and prime minister. The golden age of the town was over after the Trianon peace contracts, which was followed by the First World War.
The big part of its attraction districts was moved abroad. Between the two World Wars there was stagnation, in the first decades of socialism there was degradation in the settlement. At these times Szentgotthárd wasn’t developed, the institutions were gradually moved as well.
Brightening up has started since 1980. In 1983, on the 800th anniversary of the foundation of the monastery the settlement got a town status in 1983. The change of the regime meant the real change. The town could organize its relation system, which was cut off artificially for decades, more freely. Szentgotthárd’s favourable geographical position and its existing high-level industrial culture have attracted foreign investors.

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