Žilina is the fourth largest city in Slovakia, an important industrial center, and the largest city on the Váh River. In the 5th century, Slavs started to move into the area. However, the first written reference to Žilina was in 1208 as terra de Selinan. From the second half of the 10th century until 1918, it was part of the Kingdom of Hungary. During the 17th century, Žilina gained the position as a center of manufacturing, trade, and education, and, during the Baroque age, many monasteries and churches, as well as the Budatín Castle, were built. During the Holocaust in Slovakia, tens of thousands of Jews were deported from Žilina.

The historical center of the city, reconstructed in the early 1990s is protected as a city monument reserve. It's dominated by the Church of Saint Paul the Apostle, the old building of the city council, and the baroque statue of the Virgin Mary, and nearby is the Church of the Holy Trinity. The Church of Saint Stephen the King is the oldest architectural relic of the town of Žilina. It's one of the first Romanesque churches in Slovakia.