Early Modern Times

In the 15th century Ljubljana became renowned for its art. Particularly well known were the two painter's workshops run by Johannes of Ljubljana and the so called Ljubljana Sculptural Workshop. After the earthquake of 1511, the city was rebuilt in the Renaissance style and surrounded by a new town wall.

The flourishing of Slovenian culture

In the 16th century, when Ljubljana had a population of 5,000 people, 70 percent of them speaking Slovenian as their mother tongue, it became the centre of the Slovenian Reformation movement and culture. 1550 saw the publishing of Primož Trubar's Catechismus (Katekizem) and Abecedarium (Abecednik), the first two books ever written in Slovenian, and Jurij Dalmatin's Slovenian translation of the Bible. At about the same time, Ljubljana got its first secondary school, public library and printing house. The period of Reformation was followed by a period of renewed dominance of the Catholic Church and Counter-Reformation.

The city assumes its Baroque appearance

In 1597, Jesuits arrived in Ljubljana and founded a gymnasium, which later developed into a college. The end of the 17th century saw the foundation of the Academia operosorum, a scholarly society modelled on Italian associations of the kind. The Academia attracted architects and sculptors from abroad and Ljubljana's Renaissance appearance disappeared under Baroque façades. New frontages, arched courtyards and staircases, and third floors were added to originally two-storey Renaissance buildings. Most churches were renovated or built in the Baroque style. A jewel in the crown of Baroque Ljubljana was the work of the sculptor Francesco Robba.