The Maximilian Fountain, better known as Roland's Fountain, stands on Main Square in Bratislava's old town, in front of the Old Town Hall. Built in 1572, it is the oldest fountain in the city, and a knight in full armour has watched over the square from its column ever since. In 2019 it got back its Renaissance look, together with four little peeing boys who had been missing for more than two centuries.
The Maximilian Fountain at a glance
- Where: Main Square (Hlavné námestie), in the middle of the old town, in front of the Old Town Hall.
- Built: 1572, with money from King Maximilian II.
- By: the stonemason Andreas (Ondrej) Luttringer, from Deutsch-Altenburg in Austria.
- What it is today: Bratislava's oldest fountain and one of its favourite meeting points, restored in 2019.
- Time needed: 10–15 minutes, longer if you sit at one of the café terraces around the square.
A coronation gift and a water supply
After the Ottomans took most of Hungary, Pressburg, as Bratislava was then called, became the coronation city of the Hungarian kings. The first coronation took place on 8 September 1563, when Maximilian II of Habsburg was crowned King of Hungary in St Martin's Cathedral; between then and 1830, eleven kings and eight queens were crowned in the city. The celebrations of 1563 were followed by a fire that destroyed many of the town's houses. Nine years later Maximilian paid for a fountain on the main square, a slightly late gift that gave the townspeople water for their homes and a reserve of water for fighting fires. It was carved from sandstone in 1572 by Andreas Luttringer.
Over the centuries the fountain was altered and rebuilt several times, so it long looked quite different from the original. In the late 18th century its four small boys disappeared, and in the late 20th century several parts, including the knight, were replaced with copies while the originals went into storage. In 2005 a modern stone ring with water was added around it during a makeover of the square. In 2018–2019 the city restored the fountain under the sculptor Vladimír Višváder: the modern ring was removed, the original steps were put back, the pipes were replaced and the four boys returned to the basin.
What to look for
- The knight on the column: a figure in full Renaissance armour holding a sword. Some see him as Roland, the legendary defender of a town's rights; others think he is Maximilian II himself.
- Which way he faces: the knight normally looks towards the Old Town Hall, the seat of the town council.
- The four little boys: small figures peeing into the basin, Bratislava's answer to Brussels' Manneken Pis, back since the 2019 restoration.
- The basin and steps: the round basin is about 9 metres across, and the steps around it were rebuilt in 2019 to match the original design.
The knight who bows at midnight
Bratislava tells many legends about the knight, most of them casting him as the town's protector. One says that he usually faces the town hall, but once a year, at midnight on New Year's Eve, he turns and bows to honour twelve councillors who gave their lives to save the city. Another says that on Good Friday he comes to life, steps down from his column and waves his sword, Durandal, towards the four corners of the world. Only a born-and-bred Bratislavan with a pure heart who has never harmed anyone can see it.
Tips for your visit
- Come in the morning, before the café terraces fill up, to see the fountain without a crowd around it.
- For the classic photo, frame the knight with the tower of the Old Town Hall behind him.
- In late November and December the square hosts the Christmas market, and the fountain sits among the stalls.
Nearby
- Old Town Hall: a group of medieval houses with a tower on the east side of the square, now home to the Bratislava City Museum.
- Primate's Palace: the pale pink neoclassical palace behind the town hall, where the Peace of Pressburg was signed in the Hall of Mirrors in 1805, after the Battle of Austerlitz.
- Čumil: the bronze sewer worker peering out of a manhole at the corner of Panská and Laurinská, in place since 1997.
- St Martin's Cathedral: the coronation church of the Hungarian kings, with a gilded copy of the Hungarian crown on top of its spire, a few minutes' walk away.
See Bratislava with World City Trail
Our Bratislava scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 2 hours, with about 31 minutes of walking. It includes the Blue Church (St Elizabeth's) and St Martin's Cathedral.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Bratislava.
Play the Bratislava scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Bratislava →
Play the outdoor escape game in Bratislava →
Facts checked in October 2026.