Croatia Croatia

Croatia, at one time the Roman province of Pannonia, was settled in the 7th century by the Croats. They converted to Christianity between the 7th and 9th centuries and adopted the Roman alphabet under the suzerainty of Charlemagne. In 925, the Croats defeated Byzantine and Frankish invaders and established their own independent kingdom, which reached its peak during the 11th century. A civil war ensued in 1089, which later led to the country being conquered by the Hungarians in 1091. The signing of the Pacta Conventa by Croatian tribal chiefs and the Hungarian king in 1102 united the two nations politically under the Hungarian monarch, but Croatia retained its autonomy.

Following the defeat of the Hungarians by the Turks at the battle of Mohács in 1526, Croatia (along with Hungary) elected Austrian archduke Ferdinand of Hapsburg as their king. After the establishment of the Austro-Hungarian kingdom in 1867, Croatia became part of Hungary until the collapse of Austria-Hungary in 1918 following its defeat in World War I. On Oct. 29, 1918, Croatia proclaimed its independence and joined in union with Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia to form the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. The name was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929.

When Germany invaded Yugoslavia in 1941, Croatia became a Nazi puppet state. Croatian Fascists, the Ustachi, slaughtered countless Serbs and Jews during the war. After Germany was defeated in 1945, Croatia was made into a republic of the newly reconstituted Communist nation of Yugoslavia; however, Croatian nationalism persisted. After Yugoslavian leader Josip Broz Tito's death in 1980, Croatia's demands for independence increased in intensity.

In 1990, free elections were held, and the Communists were defeated by a nationalist party led by Franjo Tudjman. In June 1991, the Croatian parliament passed a declaration of independence from Yugoslavia. Six months of intensive fighting with the Serbian-dominated Yugoslavian army followed, claiming thousands of lives and wreaking mass destruction.

 

Croatia is a former Yugoslav republic on the Adriatic Sea. It is about the size of West Virginia. Part of Croatia is a barren, rocky region lying in the Dinaric Alps. The Zagorje region north of the capital, Zagreb, is a land of rolling hills, and the fertile agricultural region of the Pannonian Plain is bordered by the Drava, Danube, and Sava Rivers in the east. Over one-third of Croatia is forested.

 

 

Places to Visit in Croatia
 

  • Dubrovnik attractions
  • Zagreb attractions
  • Split attractions
  • Losinj Island attractions
  • Rijeka attractions


Popular cities in Croatia

Rab, Klanjec, Nin, Sveta Nedelja, Komiza, Bakar, Vis, Trilj, Gracac, Vrlika, Pag, Hrvatska Kostajnica, Stari Grad, Cres, Buje, Korcula, Opuzen, Supetar, Krk, Ludbreg, Novalja, Cabar, Skradin, Hvar, Lepoglava, Obrovac, Novigrad, Otocac, Delnice, Kraljevica, Krapina, Vrbovsko, Slunj, Novi Vinodolski, Biograd na Moru, Orahovica, Senj, Vodnjan, Donja Stubica, Buzet, Zlatar, Gospic, Oroslavje, Kutjevo, Lipik, Mursko Sredisce, Otok, Varazdinske Toplice, Grubisno Polje, Vrgorac, Omis, Pregrada, Ilok, Novska, Prelog, Opatija, Ozalj, Cazma, Nasice, Durdevac, Mali Losinj, Drnis, Pazin, Beli Manastir, Ogulin, Pakrac, Vodice, Zabok, Glina, Donji Miholjac, Benkovac, Ploce, Imotski, Garesnica, Kastav, Porec, Belicse, Trogir, Slatina, Duga Resa, Knin, Pleternica, Crikvenica, Sinj, Valpovo, Krizevci, Daruvar, Labin, Umag, Novi Marof, Nova Gradiska, Makarska, Rovinj, Ivanec, Zupanja, Petrinja, Metkovic, Ivanic-Grad, Vrbovec, Kutina,

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