The region of Kosice has been inhabited since The Older Stone Age. The remains are to be found in many places of the region , on the tops of the hill, in the caves and abysses. In The Bronze and The Iron Age, merchandise between the Mediterranean area and Baltic Sea opened the north-south route. There are several routes known in Europe that led through The Alps and The Carpathian Mountains. One of these routes used the Kosice fold that intersects the mountains in a north-south direction.
The movement of European population many years ago resulted in a mix of culture from Celts, Ostrogoths- branch of old-Germans/Vikings, Slavonic tribes, Avars, Huns, Tatars and Turks populating what is now modern day Slovakia.
The first written document that mentions medieval Kosice dates from 1230AD. Kosice became a free Royal City in 1347 and the first city to receive its own coat of arms. Handcraft manufacturing, developed since 15th century, went hand in hand with German settlement and with a focus on mining and metal working. This led to prosperity for cities such as Gelnica, Medzev, Bardejov, Levoca, Kezmarok, Spisska Nova Ves, and others.
With wars and the region supporting different sides (Habsburgs, Bourbons, Napoleon, ...) the area declined from the many upheavals, conflicts and rebellions.
It was not until the 19th century that big industry returned to develop the region once again with the construction of railway transport routes from Kosice to Budapest in Hungary and to Bohumin in the Czech Republic.
The union of the Czech lands and Slovakia was officially proclaimed in Prague on Nov 14, 1918 after the Czecho-Slovakian long struggle against former Austrian rulers. The Czech and Slovaks had separate histories but are similar in religion, cultural and social traditions. After the war years and the Communist Era, the Velvet Revolution in 1989 culminated in Soviet troops leaving Czecho-Slovakian soil. This resulted in Slovakia gaining its own independence on January 1, 1993, thus splitting the 74-year old federation.