Martin Declaration of 1861

(Memorandum of the Slovak People; Memorandum slovenského národa), a series of demands adopted at a meeting of representatives of cities and villages of Slovakia held on June 6-7, 1861, in the city of Turciansky Svaty Martin.

Prominent representatives of the Slovak national movement, including J. Francisci, Š. Daxner, V. Pauliný-Tóth, and J. M. Hurban, took part in drawing up the Martin Declaration. The declaration demanded autonomy through the detachment of the areas inhabited by Slovaks from the kingdom of Hungary into a separate “Slovak region” (okolie) with its own bodies of administration. The declaration further demanded the use of the Slovak language in administrative institutions, schools, and churches; an equitable representation of the Slovaks in the Hungarian Diet; and the right to create national cultural, educational, and other organizations and to publish newspapers and magazines. The ruling class of the kingdom of Hungary rejected the Martin Declaration of 1861.