Maribor

Maribor stands on the Drava in Lower Styria, below the hill where a castle called Marchburch was first recorded in 1164. A market grew beneath it and gained town privileges in 1254. Fortifications, crafts and trade followed, and wine from the surrounding hills became an important part of the town's commerce. A Jewish community established a synagogue in its southeastern quarter.

Matthias Corvinus besieged Maribor in 1480 and 1481 but failed to take the town. In 1496 Maximilian I ordered the expulsion of Jews from Maribor and Styria, ending the town's medieval community. Ottoman forces besieged it in 1532, but the defenders held the walls. A second castle had been built on the northeastern side of the town in 1478, adding another stronghold to the river settlement.