Tvrtko Jakovina The History of Croatia between Periodisation and Problematisation 50 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 51 Union administration, encompassing countries from the former Yugoslavia, but excluded Slovenia and included Albania. Following this, comparative discourse was common: euphemisms were used within Croatia, while outside of Croatia the EU terminology was accepted. Croatia became the 28th member of the European Union on June 1, 2013 (→Politics, p. 133). The dominant official rhetoric prior to the referendum which confirmed the decision referred to the final European affirmation of Croatia: the country’s true return to its natural place in Europe, emphasising the cutting of ties with the Balkans. Triplex confinium Where is Croatia, where do Croats live? Almost all nations in the world tend to think of themselves as being unique. And many communities will also claim to be located at the crossroads of civilisations, inheriting the various influences that have transformed their region in particular, into something completely different, new and distinctive. Small nations also tend to emphasise their distinctive, important contribution to history which rarely matches their size and wealth. Some nations, especially those in Central and Eastern Europe, try to ‘outdo’ each other with the amount of suffering and sacrifice that they have experienced, so much so that it can sometimes seem that the magnitude of their misfortune is something that gives value and weight to later historical events. These stereotypes can all be applied to Croats. Nevertheless, some of these characteristics, and even arguments supporting their distinctiveness, can be acknowledged. Croats say that they situated themselves in an area where various systems and great entities meet, which is predominantly in Central Europe and partly on the Mediterranean. Despite the Balkans having a significant influence on them (most Western neighbours will almost exclusively associate them to that part of Europe), Croats barely mentioned the region during some periods of their history and it was considered to be an extremely undesirable identity. Placing Croatia in the Balkans or stating that Croats are (also) a Balkan people could cause heated debate, and there are still those who take offence to this statement. Since the Balkan factor is impossible to ignore, the term is often replaced with region, our part of Europe or South-eastern Europe, so as to avoid the name which links Croatia to its south-eastern neighbours. The term Western Balkans was created in the second half of the 1990s by the European 52 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T The debate over whether or not Croatia Ruins of the Roman Salona is part of the Balkans or not, and whether it is even justified to consider the Balkans to be nothing more than primitive and violent, does not have any particular political relevance, given that in certain periods of history some of the other aforementioned influences were stronger in some parts of Croatia. Regardless of how well Croatia will, perhaps easier than most others, be able to prove that in many ways it forms the border of Western Europe, it is in fact the descendant of three traditions, the meeting place of two religions and three denominations and – for long durations – the meeting place of three empires. At the very end of Antiquity the lands into which Croats would later arrive were then part of the Roman Empire. In the year 395 (→ Art, p. 245) the lands were divided, when the large ancient Roman state split up into two parts – the Eastern Roman Empire, which was known as the Byzantine Empire and existed until 1453, and the Western Roman Empire, which disintegrated in the year 476. The lands which Croats would later inhabit were exposed to Byzantine influences, mainly on the Adriatic coast. However, the majority of the lands were within the zone of influence of the Frankish Empire or other groups on the border of Catholic Europe. Ancient traditions and influences, either cultural or ones which emerged from the mixed population, were probably more important in Croatian formation than the heritage which Croats brought with them (→ Art, p. 245). The existence of a strong Roman tradiTH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 53 The Lion of Venice An Ottoman depiction of Petrinja The Croatian coat of arms during the Habsburg Empire tion in cities in Dalmatia and Pannonia is central to understanding Croatian history, regardless of the fact that it only became Croatia in the Middle Ages and Croats were not yet in the region at the time. Another large division which was of cultural importance was the religious divide. Croatia is one of the easternmost countries in Europe in which Catholicism is dominant. The border between Eastern and Western Christianity, that is, the border between those who recognised the Bishop of Rome and those who recognised the (Greek) Patriarch of Constantinople, passed through this region in the year 1054 – the Drina River divided the modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia from the East (→ Art, p. 245). It is for this reason that leaving Croatia also means seeing a change in the dominant appearance of religious buildings and structures. In the area that was inhabited by Croats – Dalmatia and in Istria – the Republic of Venice (Serenissima) had centuries-long rule during the Middle Ages, which lasted until the late 18th century. The Central European Habsburg Monarchy ruled in the continental part of the areas inhabited by Croats, from the 1500s to 1918. The Ottoman Empire, where the religion was Islam and whose sultan in Istanbul was also the religious leader (caliph), ruled inland Dalmatia, Slavonia and the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In these Croatian areas, where the three states or the three systems – Venetian, Habsburg and Ottoman – interacted, fought, but also cooperated, there was a large Orthodox, Serbian population. In the 15th century the Ottomans from Asia Minor advanced towards Central Europe, and once again the area where Croats lived was positioned, for centuries, on the frontier of civilisations. Of the countless battles which took place during this period, there are two which for centuries determined the biggest losses of Croatian territory and caused the most bloodshed. The first battle took place on Krbavsko polje (Krbava Field) in 1493 when the Ban’s army, led by Emerik Derenčin, was defeated. The second 54 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T was the Battle of Sisak, fought in A floor plan of the fortress in Karlovac, from 1777 1593, when Habsburg soldiers resisted Ottoman troops – and following this the Ottomans did not conquer any more Croatian Habsburg regions. The country at that time was reduced to the remains of the remains of a once glorious kingdom, according to sources from that time. Even when the Ottomans were forced to retreat deep into the south-east, following the Christian Reconquista at the end of the 17th century, one Triplex confinium, the Zrmanja River part of Croatian territory continued to be a military region, separate from civil administration. This Military Frontier was part of the system of specially organised military regions which were not under the civil, Ban’s administration in Zagreb. The military border was governed by the War Council in the Austrian city of Graz, and served as a reservoir of soldiers for the Habsburg Monarchy. In 1881 the Military Frontier was finally reintegrated into the civil Croatian region, decades after the Ottomans ceased to be a threat. The army and the close proximity of battlefields, as well as the exposure to enemies, resulted in uncertainty, economic backwardness, and administrative and political detachment of the region. The special status of its population marked the further breaking up of the Croatian region, and the territorial fragmentation of Croatia is still a feature today. The westernmost position was held by the Croats who became subjects of the Ottoman Empire. As soon as the medieval Bosnian state fell to the Ottomans in 1463, and up until 1878 when it entered the Austro-Hungarian state (and was then annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908), the region was part of a state which was described in early historiography as one of the main reasons for Croatia remaining behind the West and Europe. Furthermore, TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 55 the Ottomans were also described to have terrorised the Christian population. It is only recently that such interpretations have been abandoned, and Ottoman rule was evaluated far more objectively. Once the Ottomans were suppressed, and despite their long presence in the area inhabited by Croats, almost all mosques were destroyed and the Muslim population left. The priests Matija Mesić and Luka Ibrišimović, as well as the Croatian bans, the nobleman Ivan Karlović, and various members of the Erdödy, Zrinski and Drašković noble families were all celebrated in many parts of Europe, thanks to their feats against the Ottomans. One of the most well-known and most revered fighters was Nikola Zrinski. In 1664 he burned down the famous Suleiman Bridge, which went across the Baranja marshland, near Osijek. The bridge was actually a road on wooden posts and at the time was considered to be one of the world’s wonders. The success of the Croatian nobleman, who broke through so deeply into Turkish territory, resounded through Christian Europe. The crest of the noble family Zrinski Positions along the border, along the very edge of the monarchy, were also held by the Croats who were citizens of the Venetian Republic from the Middle Ages until 1797. One of the most common assertions in 19th century historiography and literature (and one which still remains popular today) about the Venetians is that they ‘destroyed’ the Croatian mountain of Velebit The Cathedral of Saint James in Šibenik, 15th century – allegedly cutting down its forest in order to build the city of Venice. It was also frequently claimed that the fate of the Slavs, that is Croats, was metaphorically played out below the decks of the galleys where they were oarsmen in the Venetian navy (this is what was written by author and politician Vladimir Nazor). However, relations with the Venetians were far more complex and did not only involve terror. Renaissance buildings, and being able to have quick and direct contact with the Venetian coast of the Adriatic and the seat of the Italian states all made wonderful and significant contribution to modern Croatian cultural identity (→ Literature, pp. 177–178, Art, p. 245). Croats from the central regions of today’s Croatia, who were subjects of the Habsburg Monarchy from 1527 to 1918, made up the south-easternmost region of the monarchy – a multinational state which had Vienna as its capital city. Some Croats lived in, and even dominated in, regions which did not become part of Croatia for long time – such as Istria, which was a part of the Habsburg Monarchy and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and did not joined the state of Croatia until 1945. Croatian borders look unusual, perhaps even artificial: however, most of the existing borders are centuries old. This is particularly true for the very south of the country. The border with today’s Montenegro was defined in the first half of the 15th century, when the Dubrovnik Republic acquired Konavle. Furthermore, Konavle formed the border of the modern-day Croatian state in the 20th century, despite Croats living in the Montenegrin region of Boka kotarska. The borders of the Republic of Dubrovnik also defined the breaking up of Croatian territory in Neum. Namely, to avoid direct contact with the Venetian Republic, in 1718 the Republic of Dubrovnik ceded Neum to the Ottoman Empire, as well as access to the sea in Boka kotarska. In doing so, Dubrovnik secured its borders from its rivals, the Venetians. Various Croatian regions gradually became part of the Habsburg Empire. North-western Croatia was part of the empire from 1527, with other regions joining gradually, and up until 1918 the entire Croatian region was in the same Habsburg state. The complex Croatian state, organised into the state of Yugoslavia in the 20th century, was one entity made up of diverse systems: the independent Dubrovnik as a city-republic from 1358 to 1808, Istria, the Triune Kingdom (the name given to the regions of Slavonia, Dalmatia and Croatia in the narrow sense), and individual regions which were not a part of the Croatian system, such as Baranja, or Srijem (which was 56 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 57 part of Croatia until the 20th century). This complex territorial structure is reflected in the appearance of the Croatian coat of arms which was created in 1991 (→ Politics, p. 110), depicting the separate identities of the historical regions. In contemporary times it seems that the centuries of centripetal forces have finally subsided, even though there are differences in temperament, cuisine, language, and even in political cultures of various parts of Croatia (→ Ethnology, p. 219; Language, pp. 149–152). Croatia following the Treaty of Passarowitz, 1718. The Habsburg general Eugene of Savoy suppressed the Ottomans from Timișoara, parts of Serbia, and the conquered part of the territory south of the Sava River in Bosnia. The Venetian Republic expanded to Imotski and Vrgorac in the Dalmatian hinterland. Even though territorial gains south of the Sava were soon lost, the Christian Reconquista for Slavonia, Srijem and parts of Dalmatia was completed at the end of the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century. Borders, which are mostly still in place today for the Republic of Croatia, were created. Migrations and mixing Just like other peoples, Croats migrated and were A poster advertising transportation of emigrants, 19th century displaced for centuries. Various other ethnicities became a part of the Croatian peoples – some individually or in smaller streams, and others in larger numbers. The Croatian diaspora is very large: both the diaspora which left the country in the 19th century, and the more recent waves which left during the 20th century. The Croats who migrated to the countries which were once Austrian, Hungarian or Slovakian during the time of the Ottoman invasions, now make up a minority in their respective countries, with their own identity, language and newspapers. In Austria the region is called Gradišće, or Burgendland, and is located in close proximity to Vienna and Bratislava. Later, it was economic factors which led to migration. From the end of the 19th century, Croats went to Australia and the Americas. Just before the start of World War One, in a single year about 30,000 Croats left for the United States. From then on, large and successful diaspora communities have existed in New Zealand, various parts of Australia, in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, in Canada and in the United States (→ Ethnology, p. 238). While there are Croats in New Orleans, or in Kansas City, the largest and most successful North American communities are in California, New York, Chicago, Toronto, and particularly in Pittsburgh. One of the world’s largest and most active immigrant organisations has its headquarters in Pittsburgh – the Croatian Fraternal Union (Hrvatska bratska zajednica). Shortly after the end of World War Two, sections of the population loyal to the Nazi project left Croatia, for political reasons. Then, from the 1960s onward, those who wanted to be temporary foreign workers also left for both economic and political reasons. However, most left Croatia permanently, settling in Western European countries such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France and Sweden. Emigration continued after the 1990s, partly because of war circumstances (as refugees) and then for economic reasons, where the population leaving was not only made up of lowskilled workers, but also of well-educated young people. Emigration has been a long-lasting trend for areas where Croats lived, and such areas were rarely inhabited exclusively by Croats. From the Middle Ages to the 21st century, the regions have been home to various peoples. While neighbouring peoples were the most numerous, they were not the 58 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 59 Emigrants on a boat bound for the New World only minority groups. The dramatic events of the 20th century led to the significant reduction of almost all minority groups, sometimes over the course of only a few years. At the start of the 1990s the Serb minority made up 12% of the population, yet according the results of the 2011 census it now makes up 4.4%. There was a large Italian community in Istria, parts of Dalmatia and in Rijeka, but their numbers drastically reduced after World War Two. The same occurred to Germans: up until the final years of World War Two there were a few hundred thousand Germans in Croatia. The Jewish and Roma communities all but disappeared – more than 80% of their members were killed in the Holocaust and the genocide committed by the Ustashi (Ustaša) regime. Countries in which Croats had minority status, and in Bosnia and Herzegovina where they are the smallest constitutive people, similar processes took place. Following the wars of the 1990s, thousands of Croats from Vojvodina and Bosnia and Herzegovina fled to Croatia. A region which was once quite complex and nationally diverse has with time become less complex and more nationally homogeneous. Periods of Croatian history A characteristic for many nations is that their past is often burdened by certain historical periods, and Croats are no exception: in public discourse and political debate it has long been considered that the 20th century is the only sensitive period. It is only World War Two and the post-war socialist Yugoslavia, and then the period after Croatia gained independence which are politicised and debated in public discourse and outside of historical circles. Remaining historical periods are debated mainly within the framework of historiography – but this does not mean that ideology is excluded. Croatian history is usually separated into a few periods, which mainly correspond to long cycles in European history. Some historians will claim that periodisation is the pinnacle of their discipline. However, there must also be an awareness of the fact that periodisation is often arbitrary, given 60 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T the fact that clear and distinct beginnings and endings are rare. For example, for residents of the city of Zadar, 1202 was a pivotal year in which Crusaders destroyed the Christian city, to ensure that Venetians had the means with which to travel to the Holy Land. This event had different consequences in Dubrovnik, which profited from it, and it had a completely different meaning for Croats in Varaždin, who (if they even heard about it) thought of it as an event in a faraway region. Main events in Croatia from the 6th to the 12th centuries Barbarians conquered the Roman town of Sirmium, and in the year 614 the town of Salona was conquered. The settlements of Epidauraus ceased to exist. The end of Antiquity and the beginning of the Middle Ages. According to legend, five brothers and two sisters lead their people to the region of Croatia. The Byzantine Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus wrote the most detailed description of the migration of Croats in his work De administrando imperio. 7th–8th cent. Hardly any sources about the first Croats. 9th and 10th cent. Christianisation began. The Church of St. Donatus was built. Frankish rule. Duke Ljudevit ruled Lower Pannonia, and Duke Borna ruled in Dalmatia. 846–1089 The altar partition from Rižinica, dux (duke) Trpimir of the Croats: in the year 852 it was granted by Trpimir and is known as Trpimirova darovnica. Croatia was mentioned for the first time (Regnum Chroatorum). The rulers of national dynasties: Domagoj (fought with Venetians in 864), Branimir (879–888), Duke of the Croats, corresponded with Pope John VIII, Muncimir, Tomislav (910–928). In old historiography it is frequently mentioned that Tomislav is the first king of the Croats because sources referred to him as rex, but there was no confirmation that he was a king. Krešimir, Miroslav, Držislav (970– 995) were given the title of eparch and patrician by Constantinople. The peak of the medieval state was during the time of Petar Krešimir IV (1058–1074) and King Zvonimir (1075–1089). Croatia was split into counties (županija) with prefects (župan). 582 TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 61 1100 1097 1102 The Baška Tablet/Slab from Jurandvor, near Baška on the island of Krk. The beginning of literacy and literature in the Croatian language. The last king, Stjepan II, succeeded Zvonimir. His death was the end of the royal family which is typically called Trpimirovići. Jelena, the Hungarian princess, was Zvonimir’s wife and passed on the crown to her brothers. The Battle of Petrova gora (Peter’s Mountain, now called Gvozd) took place, at a location which is not exactly known. Anarchy in Croatia. Koloman from the Arpad dynasty was crowned the King of Dalmatia and Croatia, in Biograd. The Croatia, Slavonia, Dalmatia and Neretva regions united to form one entity. Tensions over the east Adriatic coast intensified with the Venetians. These relations, as well as relations with the Hungarians, shaped Croatian history during the next one thousand years. Croatian history is conventionally divided into periods, the first of which begins at settlement in the 7th century, and lasts until approximately the beginning of the 12th century. We know very little about the origins of Croats. There are four dominant theories about their origins: Slavic, Iranian, Gothic and a theory of indigenous origins. During particular periods each theory was more dominant than others, though not always necessarily in academic writing. The theory of Croats having a permanent presence on the territory of their modern-day homeland was never seriously represented or argued by anybody. In the 1990s the idea of Croats having Iranian origins was pushed by official education authorities. This theory was not spoken about academically, but it was popular and during the Homeland War it served to emphasise the differences between Croats and Serbs. It is undisputed that contact between Croats and Asian elements did exist, but it is impossible to prove any more than this. During World War Two, while Croatia was affiliated with the Axis powers, the government of the Independent State of Croatia (Nezavisna Džava Hrvatska, NDH) forced and supported the theory of Croats having Gothic (Germanic) roots and were therefore Aryan, just like all other Germanic peoples. Such thinking is very difficult to prove so the theory of sociologist Gumplowicz was frequently relied upon – the idea that Slavs were not capable of forming a state on their own, such as the Slavs in Russia who had their state formed by Scandinavians, and the Samo state, formed by the Franks. Given that Croats had formed their state quite early, it was indirectly concluded that 62 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T Fragment of a capital with the name of Duke Trpimir, 9th century The fortress in Knin, which is known as Zvonimir’s city Croats were, therefore, not Slavic. However, the Slavic origin of Croats is the theory that is the most logical and the easiest to prove. Croatian is a Slavic language and no-one serious has any doubt about the Slavic ethnogenesis – but it is also clear that the Croatian population is made up of a mix of settlers and the indigenous, original population. Very little is known about the first, early medieval period or the time of the people’s rulers and the independent Croatian state. There are very few sources, meaning that we know of many rulers only by name. Nevertheless, the Croatian fascination with this period has not waned. The Croatian rulers, dukes and kings were Trpimir (845–864), Domagoj, Zdeslav, Branimir (879–892), Mutimir, Tomislav, Krešimir, Miroslav, Mihaljo Krešimir, Stjepan Držislav, Petar Krešimir IV (1058–1074), Dmitar Zvonimir and Stjepan. In sources, some of the rulers are more prominent than others, and described as being donors and warriors. Nothing is known about some of the rulers. King Zvonimir was married to the Hungarian princess Jelena, which is the reason why, following his death in dynastic battles and in accordance with the then laws, the Croatian crown ended up in the hands of Hungarian kings. Up until today, and especially in certain periods of Croatian 20th century history, it has been very popular to name children after medieval rulers. During the 1990s when Croatia regained sovereignty, there was a renewed interest in this period of Croatian history. For example, September 18, 887 – the date when Duke Branimir Statue of King Tomislav in Zagreb, by R. F. Mihanović, 20th century Statue of Gregory of Nin in Split, by I. Meštrović, 20th century TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 63 led the Croats in successfully attacking Venetian boats – in the 1990s became the commemoration day for the Croatian Navy. Historical studies became more and more popular. Using national rulers as historical role models or inspiration did happen during earlier times, but with somewhat different reasoning. Tomislav, most likely the first Croatian king (910–928), was crowned in the year 925, according to some sources. In 1925 the one thousand year anniversary of his crowning was celebrated all over the new state. King Tomislav was then seen as a forerunner of national unity. Bishop Gregory of Nin was also considered to be an important symbol. During King Tomislav’s reign he opposed the suppression of the Glagolitic alphabet which was invented by the brothers (and later saints) Cyril and Methodius, as a means of Christianising Slavs in the 9th century, and against the Pope and foreign influences (→ Language, p. 153; Literature, p. 173). The Glagolitic practice had a long tradition in Croatia and was maintained until the 19th century. In many Slavic countries it was taken over by Cyrillic script, which also appeared in Croatia. Gregory of Nin was an advocate of the Glagolitic alphabet and of Slavic liturgy. From when he was returned to the historical scene in the 17th century, followed by the creation of his historiographic cult status at the end of the 19th century, he became a warrior against foreign enemies. When Croatia joined Yugoslavia he became a warrior for people’s sovereignty and independence. The statue of Gregory of Nin in Split is the work of Ivan Meštrović, from 1929. It was removed by the Italians when they entered the city in 1941, and it was returned in 1955. The King Tomislav statue in the centre of Zagreb was erected in 1947. The Battle of Mohács, an Ottoman miniature 64 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T In 1102 Croats entered a union with the Hungarians, and Koloman Arpadović was crowned king, in Biograd. The union lasted until 1526 and the death of the Hungarian king in the Battle of Mohács, against the Ottomans. The seat of the state was moved to the distant Pannonia, into the hands of the continental dynasty. This period, where Croatia was a part of the Hungarian monarchy, had a few significant stages. One of the most significant events was the Zadar Treaty (1358), when Hungari- an King Louis I gathered the whole of Dalmatia and overcame the Venetians who had been constantly attempting to conquer the eastern Adriatic coast. Since the beginning of the Croatian union with Hungary there had not been such a large amount of territory within the same state as there was at the start of the 14th century. From then on, of all the Dalmatian cites, it was only Dubrovnik which remained completely independent, and at the start of the 15th century the commune became a city-republic. The area which became the south of Croatia, regardless of its internal changes, had the same framework up until 1808 when Napoleon’s French army entered Dubrovnik. Church of St. Blaise, 18th century Panorama of Dubrovnik The Republic of Saint Blaise, as Dubrovnik was called, expanded territorially until the 15th century and became the most successful South Slavic venture – in terms of its organisation, administration and culture. The Dubrovnik cultural heritage remained the foundation of Croatian literature and culture, just as, for example, the institute of honorary consuls has become used around the whole world. Economic achievements and widespread trade throughout the Mediterranean and the Balkans made Dubrovnik a wonderfully successful city, however, this mostly applied to nobility. For the rest of Dalmatia, the suppression of the Venetians was not permanent. Venice was dependant on navigation along the eastern Adriatic coast, making surveillance of the islands and towns vitally important. The death of King Louis I led to an outbreak of fighting for the kingdom among local lords. This allowed for the centuries-long process of the Venetian return to the east coast of the Adriatic. From 1409, when they returned a few cities and bought or had the rights to all of Dalmatia, the Venetians had total reign over the region – leaving their mark in a language, culinary and historical-cultural sense. The territory they occupied spread into inTH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 65 land Dalmatia, at the expense of territory which was Ottoman, and they remained until 1797. From the end of the 14th century Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slavonia and even Dalmatia were exposed to increasing attacks by the Ottomans, who had already penetrated into Bosnia and Slavonia, but without the intention of taking over the territory. Applying the wedge model, they entered Christian territory, razed it, drove out the population and then left with everything that they looted. After a few years the penetrated territory was empty and easily conquered. This is how the last ruler of Bosnia, Stjepan Tomaš, was defeated in Ključ in 1463. Many parts of Bosnia were emptied, and other people, mostly from South-Eastern Europe, settled in the abandoned areas. Main events in Croatia from the year 1115 to the 16th century Venetians conquered the islands of Krk, Osor (Cres and Lošinj) and Rab. Venetian rule recognised Zadar, and the Venetians destroyed Biograd in 1124. The Duke of Krk held a special position, and the Frankopan family became more influential. 1165–1180 The final and short-lasting renewal of Byzantine rule in Dalmatia 1202 Crusaders took over Zadar before establishing the Latin Empire in the Byzantine Empire. 1241 The Mongolian invasion of Hungary, and they continued to the Adriatic. As a result, Slavonia was colonised, towns were fortified and communes strengthened their position. The king issued the settlements with the ‘Golden Bull’ edicts (bule), which gave them privileges – the emergence of free royal cities. Rapid economic development. 1301 The last Arpad died. The new Anjou dynasty in Hungary. The new dynasty tried to break the superiority of the feudal lords, such as the Šubić counts. 1358 Peace in Zadar. Louis I of Hungary defeated the Venetians and had reign over Dalmatian cities. For the first time, Dubrovnik became a part of the Croatian-Hungarian State. From then until the termination of its independence in the 19th century, there was intense development of the city-state. It used the name ‘republic’ for the first time since 1400. In 1419 Orlando, a pillar which was similar to those in North American cites, became the symbol of the city and of its freedom. 1410–1437 The German Emperor, Sigismund of Luxembourg, married Mary from the House of Anjou and became the Hungarian king. 1115 66 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T 1409 1526 The rise of the Bosnian state at the end of the 14th century. King Tvrtko Kotromanić (1338–1391) reigned in Bosnia from 1377 and expanded into Dalmatia. Dalmatia was sold to the Venetians. Ladislaus of Naples sold his rights to that part of the land for 100,000 ducats. From 1353 there was constant expansion of the Ottoman Empire into South-East Europe; in 1389 the Battle of Kosovo took place and Serbia was heavily defeated, Bosnia was conquered in 1463, the Battle of Krbava field in 1493 and the defeat of Ban Emerik Derenčin and his army of ten thousand soldiers. An unsuccessful attempt to create a defence system against the Ottomans with King Mattias Corvinus at the end of the 15th century. Large parts of Slavonia and Bosnia were abandoned. The Battle of Mohács and the end of the Croatain-Hungarian state. At the Cetingrad Assembly one part of Croatian nobility chose to join the Habsburg Monarchy. Following the Mohács defeat in Assembly in Cetingrad, by D. Weingärtner 1526 and the Cetingrad parliament of 1527, where only one part of Croatian nobility decided to enter the Habsburg Monarchy, it was hoped that this would better enable them to fight against the Ottomans. The need for Croatia to retain homogeneity and the outlawing of any form of division are some of the possible reasons to explain why Protestantism and also Judaism were prohibited. For example, from the 15th century up until 1782 when Emperor Joseph II issued the Edict of Tolerance, Jews were not allowed to permanently settle in Croatian areas. The hope was that Christian rulers would help in defending against the Ottomans and that the Pope would organise assistance, however, this did not happen. Croatia was called the remains of the remains. During this time, Croatia’s most difficult century of exposure to the Ottoman Empire, a legend emerged about the medieval downfall of the Croatian state – the so-called King Zvonimir’s imprecation that Croats will never again have a ruler who speaks Croatian (→ Literature, p. 175). Even though it is historically impossible to prove this legend, it remained in literature for a long time, and TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 67 The old town of Varaždin Statue of Ban Jelačić, by A. Fernkorn, 1866 Ban of Croatia Josip Jelačić (1801 – 1859) 68 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T even became part of everyday conversation. Therefore today many will still claim, albeit incorrectly, that Zvonimir was the last Croatian king of the people’s dynasty (narodna dinastija), while some will say ungrateful Croats killed him on the Kosovo field near Knin because he, supposedly, called them to join the Crusades. Until 1918 all Croatian territory was located within one border. As the centuries past, every part of the land where Croats lived became part of the empire whose capital city was Vienna. When the complex Habsburg Monarchy entered into a crisis, the two dominant peoples – the German speaking people and the Hungarian speaking people – agreed to dissolve their relations and created the Dual Monarchy, that is, the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Some Croatian lands – Slavonia and Croatia – found themselves within the Hungarian part of the Empire. Slavonia and Croatia had autonomy for certain fields. They had a parliament which was called Sabor, a ban (a viceroy) and the right for the Home Guard (Domobrani) to use Croatian as the language of command for the army in Croatia. Dalmatia and Istria were in the Austrian part and had their own provincial parliaments in Poreč and in Zadar. Despite the name Triune Kingdom (Dalmatia, Slavonia and Croatia), Dalmatia and Istria did not have firm ties with the rest of the country (Goldstein 2003: 35–61; Steindorff 2006: 25–48; Magaš 2007). For a very short time the majority of Croatian lands were within the Illyrian provinces of Napoleon’s French administration (1809–1813). On Croatian territory, for example in Novi Zagreb (a suburb of Zagreb) right next to the Sava River there is small monument which marks the border of the territory which was ruled by France. Due to the modernisation projects which the French undertook, the French were more popular in Croatia than they were in many other parts of Europe. The only exception was Dubrovnik, whose population considered the extinguishment of their statehood and the end of the Dubrovnik Republic to be deeply unjust. However, by doing so the French government quickened the integration of Croatian regions into the same Habsburg structure. After 1813 all Croatian territory which now makes up the modern-day Republic of Croatia was in the same state union. The Croats who lived in Bosnia and Herzegovina were formally subjects of the Ottoman Empire until 1908, however, they were actually subjects only until 1878 when Austria-Hungary entered the, until then, most marginal Ottoman province. Croatia in Austria-Hungary, 1867 One of the key moments in the entire history of Croatia, and also the history of Central Europe, was the Agreement (German: Ausgleich) between Vienna and Pest, which the Habsburg Monarchy divided with the Leitha River into Cisleithania and Transleithania – the Austrian and Hungarian parts. Croatian lands found themselves divided between these two parts. The so-called short 20th century, from the end of 1918 to 1991, is marked by the existence of two Yugoslav states: the first, monarchical and capitalist, lasted until 1945, and the second, republican and communist, was dominated by the Communist party and Josip Broz Tito from the end of World War Two TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 69 until 1991. Istria, Rijeka, Zadar and the islands of Cres, Lošinj and Lastovo were not within the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, which was called the Kingdom of Yugoslavia from 1929, but rather they were a part of the Kingdom of Italy. After World War Two these areas were freed and became a part of the Federal, People’s and from 1963, the Socialist Republic of Croatia which was within the Federal People’s Republic of Yugoslavia (Federativna Narodna Republika Jugoslavija, FNRJ), and later the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Socijalistička Federativna Republika Jugoslavija, SFRJ). The Yugoslav region became involved in World War Two in April of 1941. Croatian noblemen Zrinski and the Frankopan brothers During the war the territory of modern-day Croatia, as well Bosnia and Herzegovina and Srijem (but without most of Dalmatia which was given to the Italians, and without Međimurje which was taken by the Hungarians) made up the axis, puppet Independent State of Croatia (Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH). This state collaborated with and was closely affiliated to Nazi Germany, and collapsed with the defeat of Nazi Germany. In 1991 Croatia left the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia with the borders which it had during Tito’s Yugoslavia, and with these borders fought the Homeland War. The occupation of about a third of the territory: the central, mountainous part of the country, parts of western Slavonia, and the easternmost part of the country – Baranja, eastern Slavonia and western Srijem – lasted until 1995, ending with the military and police operations Flash (Bljesak) and Storm (Oluja). All parts of the country were freed, except for the far east which was peacefully reintegrated into Croatia in 1998. The operation of suppressing the Republic of Serbian Krajina, the unrecognised selfproclaimed state of Serbs in the so-called Krajina region in Croatia, resulted in the mass departure of Serbs from Croatia. Therefore, at the end of the 20th century Croatia became more nationally homogenous than it ever was in its history. After the international isolation which lasted during the Homeland War, Croatia’s process of returning to Europe lasted for a relatively long time, in comparison to other countries. Before becoming a member of the European Union on July 1, 2013, Croatia was the only Western Christian country which was not in some form of Western European integration. Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina, one of the country’s constitutive peoples, did not, of course, become a part of the European Union. The pieces of information and turning-point years, mentioned in this text and also many more, must be interpreted only in relation to historical events in Istanbul, Venice, Budapest, Vienna, and later in Belgrade and Brussels. Without everything that happened in these places it is impossible to under70 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T stand the long course of Croatian history. Croats spent one thousand years in the same union with Hungarians and half a millennium with the Habsburgs, as well as with the Slovenes, and just over 70 years with other South Slavic peoples. The Croatian noble family Zrinski reflect the depth of the connection with Hungarians. Accused of conspiring against the Habsburgs, the Ban of Croatia Petar Zrinski and nobleman Fran Krsto Frankopan were executed in Wiener Neustadt, near Vienna. By doing so, the Emperor of Habsburg gained huge estates in Croatia and Hungary and abolished the richest and most respected Croatian family. The Zrinskis, as well as their conspiracy, are revered equally in both Croatia and Hungary, where many busts dedicated to them have been erected. They were a family where one brother, Nikola, was Hungarian and the other brother Petar was a Croat – but both brothers are celebrated in both countries. Even though in earlier periods, especially in the 19th century, the Hungarians were generally very unpopular, the animosity towards them later diminished. When a statue of the Ban of Croatia Josip Jelačić was raised on Zagreb’s central square in 1866, it was a symbol of resistance against Hungary. Although Jelačić, a general and a ban who defended the Kingdom of Croatia and the Habsburg Crown from Hungarian revolutionaries during the period 1848–1849, remained loyal to the Habsburgs during the reign of Chancellor Bach (the period known as Bach’s absolutism), Croats were treated in the same way that Hungarians were treated. People would say that a punishment TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 71 for the Hungarians was a reward for Croats. However, it is not true that the Hungarianisation – whose implementation continued after the Austro-Hungarian compromise of 1867 and the Croatian-Hungarian settlement of 1868 – was successful. Nevertheless, from texts written by historians in the 19th century and the early 20th century it would seem that the threat of Hungarianisation was then very strong and that it was a wonder that it did not result in Croats speaking Hungarian. In a country which had a mainly rural and illiterate population and where businesses which had more than 20 employees made up less than one percent of all businesses, there was not much opportunity for such a difficult and dissimilar language to spread. Hungarianisation was frequently mentioned in national songs and it was the background to the raising of the Jelačić statue. When the statue was removed in 1947 it took on a totally different meaning, symbolising the fight against communist rule – and in this atmosphere it was returned to Zagreb’s main square in 1990. Regardless of the pathos in public discourse that is felt by Croats when they speak about history, their past is not always taken seriously. Historiography speaks just as much about the time in which it is written and about the author who wrote it, as it does about the period which is actually being documented – many historical episodes are interpreted with varying levels of emotional ties to the era in which the documentation and writing takes place. Main events in Croatia from the 16th to the mid-19th centuries 1566 1597 1537 1458 1593 1573 1671 72 The Siege of Sziget in Hungary; the city was defended by Nikola Šubić Zrinski. Karlovac/Karlstadt was founded, a fortified town in the shape of a sixpoint star on the border of Christian Europe and the Ottoman Empire, the seat on the Croatian-Slavonian Military Frontier. The Sanjak of Požega was created, the seat of the Ottoman administration in Slavonia. Dubrovnik had vassal relations with the Ottomans; independence was preserved. The city suffered greatly in an earthquake in 1667 but it remained independent. The Battle of Sisak. Ottoman troops were defeated, and the most difficult century of Croatian history finished – the century began with the Battle of Krbava Field defeat and ended with the Sisak victory. Massive peasant revolt in Slovenia and Croatia, led by Matija Gubec – the King of Peasants. The Zrinski and Frankopan ‘conspiracy’; Emperor Leopald I destroyed the most powerful noble family not only in Croatia, but also in other parts of the state. CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T The Treaty of Karlovac; the Treaty of Požarevac in 1718. The suppression of the Ottomans from Central Europe and the creation of military borders, frontiers. In the south, Venetian territory expanded into inland Dalmatia. 1745 The county system in Slavonia was restored. The counties were: Požega county, Srijem county (seat in Vukovar) and the Virovitica county (seat in Osijek). Magnate families arrived and settled in the empty Slavonia, such as the Eltz and Odeschalki families. The reforms of Maria Theresa. The Croatian Regent Assembly in Varaždin in 1767 and in Zagreb from 1776. This was the beginning of the administrative structure and special status of Croatia in the Habsburg Monarchy. 1805–1813 The Illyrian Provinces; Napoleon’s restructuring of Europe. 1835 – 1848 The Illyrian Movement – the Croatian National Revival. Ljudevit Gaj was the leading figure of the period. Horvatska domovina (Croatian Homeland) by Antun Mihinović was published in 1835, and later became the national anthem of Croatia. 1848 and 1849 Revolution. Feudalism was abolished March 25, 1848. People’s demands for civil rights and the union of Croatia and Slavonia with Dalmatia, and including the military frontiers, into the structure of Croatia. Ban of Croatia, Josip Jelačić. 1851 Neo-absolutism in the Monarchy. That which Croatia was given as a reward for their loyalty to the Habsburgs, Hungary was given as a threat. 1861 The constitution imposed by the Austrian-Hungarian Empire 1867 Dual Monarchy. Croatian-Hungarian Compromise in 1868. The Rijeka krpica (patch) amendment to the compromise. Unification of the Military Frontier (Krajina) with Croatia in 1881. The development of national political parties. In 1884 only 2% of the population had the right to vote in elections. Prominent individuals: Ivan Mažuranić and Josip Juraj Strossmayer. 1871 Eugen Kvaternik’s revolt in Rakovica against ‘German-Hungarian lords’. Mass emigration of Dalmatians at the end of the 19th century to overseas countries. 1905 The Zadar and Rijeka resolutions. A Croatian-Serbian coalition in power from 1906 to 1918. Frano Supilo, Svetozar Pribičević, Ante Trumbić and Ante Pavelić (the dentist) were the significant people of the era. 1699 TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 73 The defining centuries Austro-Hungarian soldiers in front of the Viribus unitis monument The Great War The 20th century, because of the number of deaths and the changes on the political map of the world, was the most dramatic century for many European nations. Numerous historical events from that time are present in everyday life, almost as though the main historical dilemmas from the era have never been resolved. The most important personalities and events of the 20th century are the subjects of political appearances, parliamentary resolutions regarding this period are adopted, and there are still events which remain unresolved and unprosecuted, some over a hundred years old. Croats are extremely sensitive to the period of the 20th century – and Croatia is a nation whose politicians and journalists refer to politicians who were alive and to events which took place decades ago. The world which we live in is the result of the events of the 20th century. It is the era in which many states formed their modern borders, when many modern nation states defined their constitutions, and also certain nations formed relations which are still relevant. Croatia’s 20th century history was defined by three wars: The Great War or World War One (1914–1918), World War Two (for all Croats, except for those living in Italian regions, it lasted from 1941 until 1945) and the Homeland War (1991–1995). In one of the wars for Yugoslav heritage – the Homeland War, as it was called by the first Croatian president Franjo Tuđman, the then Socialist Republic of Croatia and one of the republics in SFRJ, proclaimed its indepenThe Austro-Hungarian naval port in Pula 74 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T dence and maintained its territorial integrity (→ Politics, p. 103). The war was fought against a part of the Serbian population in Croatia and the military units commanded by the Belgrade government, and had support from Serbia and Montenegro. The Austro-Hungarian Monarchy was destroyed in World War One. The Kingdom of Yugoslavia (1918–1941) was destroyed at the start of World War Two, even though its status was confirmed constitutionally only after the war. The new Yugoslavia, socialistic or republican (1945–1991) was different in its structure and its territory was expanded. The defeat of the Axis powers brought an end to Hitler’s Germany and Mussolini’s Italy in 1945, and also to the quisling Independent State of Croatia (1941–1945). With the end of the Cold War, the demolishing of the communist movement and the multiethnic federations in the east of Europe, also came the breakdown of Tito’s republican or Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The modern Republic of Croatia declared its independence on June 25, 1991 (Statehood Day is now celebrated on this date), and then following a three-month delay, the decision was finally confirmed on October 8, 1991 (Independence Day is celebrated on this date). International recognition of the Republic of Croatia was received from most states following the end of the first phase of war in January, 1992 (→ Politics, p. 102). TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 75 The reason for the outbreak of World War One was history’s most successful terrorist act. On the Feast of St. Vitus (Vidovdan), June 28, 1914, a member of the Young Bosnia (Mlada Bosna) organisation and collaborator with the secret Serbian society Black Hand (Crna ruka), Gavrilo Princip, killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie Chotek. The death of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne was avenged by declaring war on the Kingdom of Serbia, while Croats and other citizens of the Triune Kingdom were ready to fight on the side of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and the Central Forces (the German Empire, later the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria). Firstly on Serbian battlefields, and then later on all battlefields of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, Croats fought with discipline. Apart from in Serbia, which was occupied at the end of 1915, they also fought on the Galician, eastern battlefield against the Russians. Some soldiers found themselves in other parts, for example on Austro-Hungarian vessels in China. During the war many became Russian prisoners. Italy signed the London Agreement with the Entente Forces (the United Kingdom, France and Russia) on April 26, 1915. They also ‘gave up’ the Austro-Hungarian territory which they aspired to based on the sacred egoism policy of the Italian state, and this opened up a new battlefield. For the Entente Forces it was easy to cede territory which it did not even own, therefore Italy was promised South Tyrol, large parts of Slovenia, numerous east Adriatic islands, Dalmatia – up to rt Ploče (Cape Ploče), by Šibenik – and part of Albania. The Italian, or Isonzo, battlefield was particularly bloody, but was also the most successful for the Austro-Hungarians. A large number of Croats and Slovenes were in the Austro-Hungarian army, led by the successful, though somewhat tough, General Svetozar Borojević – the Lion Field marshal Borojević, The Lion of the Isonzo of the Isonzo – the invincible military leader whose battle positions were broken only when conflict ended in November of 1918. In the makeup of the Austro-Hungarian troops Croats used Croatian as their command language – a reflection of their special status within the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Svetozar Borojević Some Croatian politicians who were against the Austro-Hungarian structure left as soon as fighting started in 1914. They settled in London and formed the Yugoslav Com76 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T Frano Supilo A. Trumbić, N. Pašić, M. Vesnić and I. Žolger at the end of the war mittee, an organisation which advocated the breakup of Austria-Hungary; they sought a political solution for South Slavs, once the Entente Forces beat the Central Forces. The most prominent were: Ante Trumbić, who was from Split and later became the first Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, Frano Supilo from Konavle, one of the most competent Croatian politicians and founder of the Novi list newspaper (it still publishes his picture daily), and Ivan Meštrović, the sculptor who was compared to Auguste Rodin (→ Art, p. 286) and creator of the Yugoslavian heroic-national imagery. Other politicians stayed in the country and participated in the Croatian parliament, once the country’s constitutional status was renewed in 1917. These included personalities who were later exceptionally significant, such as: Svetozar Pribičević, the leader of Serbs in Croatia, and Ivan Ribar, an important politician in both Yugoslavias. The Kingdom of Serbia, whose army had to leave the country in 1915, wasn’t defeated – they joined the Entente Forces in Thessaloniki. Serbian war plans had two possible solutions, and both concerned Croatia. Following the end of conflict, had Serbia and Italy agreed to share a border, so that each would claim part of the territory which was inhabited by South Slavs, Croatia would have been irreversibly split apart. In the end, partly because of the influence of the American president Woodrow Wilson – who, in an address to Congress on January 8, 1918, stated that he saw open diplomacy and trade in the postwar world, as well as free sailing of the seas, restricted armament and a world organisation which would ensure peace – and, partly because of the pressure from the Yugoslav Committee, the creation of the Yugoslavian state started. TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 77 Once it became clear that the United States had no intentions of preserving Austria-Hungary, nor would any sort of amputation be satisfactory, and the only acceptable solution was the creation of new nation states, the People’s Council of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (Narodno vijeće Slovenaca, Hrvata i Srba) was created. It was a body made up of South Slavs from various political parties in the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, declaring the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (Država SHS) on October 29, 1918. Its capital city was Zagreb, its president a Slovene, and a Croat and a Serb were vice presidents. Croatia’s state rights and its parliament (Sabor) were the reason for Croatia being the centre of the state, however, the state was not recognised and Italian and Serb soldiers entered its territory. Vojvodina (today the northern part of Serbia) decided to join Serbia. Out of fear that Italians would take over the Slavonian region, an urgent union with Serbia was generally advocated. Not a single politician in the People’s Assembly opposed the union. Stjepan Radić and the Croatian Republican Peasant Party advocated a federal structure and federal state. One night, at the end of November, Stjepan Radić allegedly spoke his famous words: “Croats, don’t rush (forward) like geese in a fog!” (Hrvati, ne srljajte kao guske u magli!) into the new state. This speech, or at least a few of the points that he emphasised, is one of the most quoted in Croatian history. Radić wrote it down while he was in jail, from memory, months after he gave the speech. Despite all of this, a delegation from the People’s Assembly of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs, led by Ante Pavelić (the dentist; his profession is mentioned because of the fact that there are two figures by the name of Ante Pavelić in Croatian history) on December 1, 1918, met with the Regent of the Kingdom of Serbia, which the Kingdom of Montenegro had already joined. The so-called ‘Unification Address’ was read out, which was somewhat modified compared to the ‘Instructions’ which the delegation from Zagreb bought with them to Belgrade. It was here, and not at the Versailles Conference which had just begun in Paris, that the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was created – with Belgrade as the capital city and headed by the Karađorđević dynasty. The exact borders of the state were not defined for some time because the Italians in Versailles, at the Peace Conference, were not satisfied with the fact that the territory which it finally owned was much less than what it was promised by the London Agreement. Istria, the city of Zadar and the islands of Lastovo, Lošinj and Cres became a part of Italy. As did the Free State of Rijeka in 1924, following the efforts of the poet Gabriele D’Annunzio and his Ardidti troops, which are frequently thought of as the precursors of fascism. 78 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (SHS), the Kingdom of Yugoslavia Joining the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slo- Stjepan Radić (speaking), venes brought numerous changes. The people Svetozar Pribičević (sitting) who once had Vienna as their capital city now had Belgrade as their capital. Unification with South Slavic peoples was one of the political aims, but it proved to be an aim which caused tension. Even though leading politicians from the northwest of the country, for example Ante Trumbić, believed that the more developed parts of the state (Slovenia and Croatia) would have the leading role in the newly formed state, this did not happen because power was in the hands of the Belgrade palace. The country had a unitary-centralised organisation, and was divided into non-historic districts. However, all Croatian regions – with the exception of the parts which were in the Kingdom of Italy – were within the one system. Provincial autonomy and the parliament in Zagreb were abolished, but Croats were now the second most powerful people in the new monarchy, and at least the second according to wealth. Males received the right to vote, and agrarian reform also took place. The first constitution of the new state was voted in on June 28, 1921, on the Feast of St. Vitus. There were 224 votes for, and 195 representatives either abstained or left the parliament. The main political force became the party which benefited from the fact that a large number of the population had a peasant background. In a country of peasants the Croatian Republican Peasant Party (HRSS), led by the Radić brothers, became dominant. Until 1920 it was called the Croatian Republican Peasant Party, from 1920 it was called the Croatian People’s Republican Party, and since 1925 it has been called the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS). Stjepan Radić was prone to political experimentation, compromises and populism, but nevertheless he became a mighty force in the Croatian political scene and the central figure in the opposition movement in the Kingdom. One of the most powerful parties just after World War One was the Socialist Workers’ Party (Communists). In 1920, at a congress in Vukovar, it was renamed the Communist Party of Yugoslavia and was officially banned a year later, after which it existed illegally for decades. TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 79 Initially, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes recorded economic growth. Zagreb became a modern city and turned into the main economic centre of the new state (in the year 1910 it had a population of 74,000; before the start of World War Two its population was just under 300,000). There was rivalry among the main cities in the Kingdom, especially in the field of culture. Democracy was lacking, and there was much dissatisfaction. A dramatic split took place, following the shooting in the Parliament in Belgrade which killed Stjepan Radić and other HSS members. The murders led to the King abolishing the Parliament, on 6 January, 1929 and he imposed a unitary, personal dictatorship. Parties were disbanded and the name of the state changed – the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Police terror increased, and many intellectuals and politicians who opposed the regime were persecuted. The Party of Rights representative in the Parliament, Ante Pavelić (the lawyer) fled to Bulgaria. He then fled to Italy where, under the guidance of Mussolini, he led the Ustashi (Ustaša), an extreme Croatian nationalist group. Constitutional status was returned with an imposed constitution in 1931. The country’s traditional borders were ignored and it was divided into banovina regions. Vladko Maček, before taking an oath of Yugoslavia. The Banovina received autonomy which was supposed to expand. This appeared to be the solution to the Croatian question – the key question for the Yugoslav state. Given that Yugoslavia was a multi-ethnic state, Serbs could not rule without respecting Croatian demands, but Croats were often uncompromising in negotiations. Opposition politicians in other non-Serbian parts of the country were unsatisfied with the Serb and Croat agreement, which weakened their negotiating position with the central government. The Prime Minister Dragiša Cvetković, and Vladko Maček signed an agreement less than a week before the start of World War Two in Europe. They formed a joint Cvetković–Maček government, a favourable solution for Croats. Given the Kingdom’s weak army and entrenched internal divisions, it needed stability so that it would be able to maintain neutrality and survive outside of the war which was to take place over most of the European continent. Banovina of Croatia Serbian political elites, after many years of trying, realised that the Croatian question would not be resolved with a majoritarian approach or by force. The agreement between HSS and Prince Pavle gave the Banovina of Croatia in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia greater autonomy, more territory and certain rights, and political elites were generally satisfied. During his visit to France in 1934, King Alexander Karađorđević was killed in Marseille. The assassin was a Bulgarian but the assassination was organised by the Ustashi. The King’s sons Petar, Tomislav and Andrej (the first had a Serbian name, the second a Croatian name and the third a Slovenian name) were minors, so he was succeeded by his cousin Prince Pavle, who at first continued with the politics of his predecessor. The changing situation in Europe, the strengthening of Hitler’s Germany and Italy’s aggressive politics complicated circumstances in the country. Vladko Maček, the leader of HSS following the death of Stjepan Radić, won 80% of votes at the 1938 elections. It is because of this that negotiations started between Serbian parties, the royal family and HSS. This resulted in the creation of Banovina Hrvatske (the Banovina of Croatia), administrative entities which encompassed almost all Croats who lived in the Kingdom 80 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 81 Croatia in World War Two The south-east of Europe was not one of the main Nazi priorities in conquering the world. Hitler, however, insisted that the Kingdom of Yugoslavia join the Tripartite Pact, on March 25, 1941. Just two days after the agreement was signed in Belgrade there were demonstrations and a coup d’etat. The Cvetković–Maček government was overthrown, and Prince Pavle was sent to Kenya. The new Prime Minister, General Dušan Simović, who became Prime Minister with the help of the United Kingdom – the only opponent to Hitler at the time – knew very well the state of his army and did not wish to enter conflict with the Germans. However, not wanting to take any chances, Hitler launched Plan 25 and on April 6, 1941, airstrikes were carried out on Belgrade, despite the city being declared open. The April War lasted only twelve days, and Yugoslavia ceased to exist. The army was destroyed, the government fled to London and the country was divided between Hungary, Italy, Bulgaria and Germany. HSS leader Vlatko Maček returned to Zagreb where the Ustashi movement led by Ante Pavelić took power on April 10, following the HSS rejection of taking power, as had been proposed by the Germans. This is how the puppet Independent State of Croatia (NDH) was formed – it included Bosnia and Herzegovina but thanks to the Treaties of Rome, large parts of Dalmatia were handed over to Italy. Hungarians entered Međimurje. The country was divided into zones. The north was dominated by the Germans who were, before all else, interested in the railway connection towards the south-east, while Italians dominated in the south. The NDH parliament sat only three times in 1942 and the Poglavnik, as Pavelić was called, was the absolute ruler. Adolf Hitler and Ante Pavelić 82 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T dovno, and on the island of Pag. In NDH, almost 80% of all Jews were killed, as was almost all of the Roma community. Given that the Ustashi movement was, before all else, antiSerbian, mass crimes against Serbs were particularly savage and numerous. In Jasenovac, where almost 90,000 people were killed, many Croats were also kept prisoner. Vladko Maček was a prisoner there, and the sculptor Ivan Meštrović was also arrested. It is estimated that the Serbian population suffered a loss of around 395,000 people during the war on the territory of NDH (Pavlowitch 2008; Tomasevich 2010: 53–70, 360–569). The newspaper Hrvatski narod (Croatian People) The Independent State of Croatia With the defeat of the royal army and the entrance of the German army into Zagreb on April 10, 1941, the Independent State of Croatia was created and was a satellite state within the German Nazi system. It included Bosnia and Herzegovina, but not parts of Dalmatia which were handed over to Italy. Furthermore, the state was divided into German and Italian zones of control. Like other countries which collaborated with the Nazis, NDH declared war on the Unites States of America, participated in the war against the USSR, and exported manpower to the Reich – it was completely subordinated to Hitler. Racial laws were introduced, Jews and Serbs were marked and the first concentration camp, Danica, was opened near Koprivnica just five days after NDH was founded. The largest concentration camp was in Jasenovac, and there were also camps in Đakovo, in JaTH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 83 The uprising against NDH and the Axis forces started on Croatian territory with the gathering of Partisans in the Brezovica forest by Sisak, on June 22, 1941. The Communist Party of Yugoslavia (KPJ) was behind all of this and had become renewed and more dynamic from 1937 when Josip Broz Tito returned from Moscow to lead the movement. Upon his arrival, the Communist Party of Croatia was formed (in Anindol, near Samobor) as was the Communist Party of Slovenia. At first, the Partisan movement gathered an above-average proportion of Serbs from Croatia, seeking safety from Ustashi terror in the Partisan guerrilla fighting. Later the Partisan movement developed in Dalmatia, unsatisfied with being merged with Italy. The biggest battles took place on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the war Croats had three poThe Supreme headquarters litical centres: the NDH government funcof the National Liberation Army in Drvar tioned within the German Axis system, the Partisans were led by the Supreme Headquarters, headed by Josip Broz Tito and the Croatian Partisans were lead by the Main Headquarters. The third centre was in London where Ivan Šubašić became head of the Royal Government in 1944. He was the former Ban of the Banovina of Croatia and a HSS politician. Pavelić depended on the fate of the Axis forces, and the HSS, that is, the Royal Government, and Tito were real opponents for future government, once the war was finished. As a result of this, Partisans crossing the Neretva River, February 1943 84 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T A Partisan commandant giving a speech before the Sutjeska River offensive, May 1943 much of the fighting during the war was between the army that was loyal to the Royal government in exile, and the army which was gathered in the country – mainly Serbs, the Chetnik (Četnik) forces, led by Dragoljub Mihailović. The Chetniks had strong support in northern Dalmatia among the local Serbs there, and they were armed and protected by the Italians. The main operations and the largest battles took place in the winter and spring of 1943 (the battles on the Neretva and Sutjeska rivers). The Italian capitulation in 1943 was the big turning point of the war. Following the capitulation of Italy in September of 1943, masses of local Croats joined the Partisans. Part of the Dalmatian population, about 30,000 people, who fled from the Germans who were taking over the areas where the Italians had been, went to the El Shatt refugee camps in Egypt. With the Pazin Decree the district and provincial National Liberation Committees (Narodnooslobodilački odbori, NOO), the local organs of the new government, on September 13 and 15 declared that Istria and other parts of Dalmatia under Italy would once again be united with Croatia. At the first sitting of the Partisan parliament, the State Tito and Churchill in 1944 Anti-fascist Council for the National Liberation of Croatia (Zemaljsko antifašističko vijeće narodnog oslobođenja Hrvatske, ZAVNOH) in Otočac and at the Plitvice Lakes in June 1943, the decision to unite the former Italian regions with Croatia was confirmed. These regions finally became a part of Croatian territory after 1954 and the process was once again confirmed with the Treaty of Osimo in 1975. The poet Vladimir Nazor was elected as the President of the Executive Committee of ZAVNOH, he later became chief of the Federal Parliament of Croatia – formally the head of the Republic of Croatia. The head of the Communist Party of Croatia, as the leader of the Partisans, was Andrija Hebrang, and was succeeded by Vladimir Bakarić. Hebrang is credited for setting a broad front which also included the liberal wing of the Croatian Peasant Party and others who did not agree with Pavelić. The head of the General headquarters of Croatia was General Ivan Rukavina, and then later Ivan Gošnjak – both fought in the Spanish Civil War and were prominent soldiers even in later periods. In April of 1945 the first Government of Federal Croatia was formed in Split, headed by Vladimir Bakarić. Therefore, there were simultaneously two governments in Croatia – one Partisan, one Ustashi – and there were two Yugoslav cabinets – one was Tito’s and the other was Ivan Šubašić’s, the Royal Prime Minister. All were Croats. TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 85 Federal Croatia, Socialist Yugoslavia In May of 1945 in Beograd, in accordance with the agreements from the Island of Vis in 1944, one government was formed out of the two cabinets – the Tito–Šubašić government. The Prime Minister of the Partisan Government of the National Committee for the Liberation of Yugoslavia (NKOJ), Marshall Josip Broz Tito, became the President and Defence Minister of the newly formed government, and the Prime Minister of the Royal Government in exile, Ivan Šubašić, became Foreign Affairs Minister. King Petar II was represented by a three-member Regency, and elections were to decide the fate of the Monarchy and the future structure of the government. After the Tehran Conference held between the Big Three at the end of 1943, and the reports which were sent from the Supreme Headquarters by British military representatives – especially the Scottish nobleman Fitzroy McLean who is said to have been the inspiration for the James Bond character, William Deakin, an Oxford historian, and Randolph Churchill, son of the British Prime Minister – it was clear that London selected the side which contributed the most to its war aim. The selection of the Partisans as the only active anti-Hitler forces allowed them to gain some sort of influence over the events in Yugoslavia after liberation as it was known that Tito had ties with Moscow, and that he had the most influence over the government. Elections in Democratic Federal Yugoslavia (DFJ) were held at the end of 1945. They were neither democratic nor fair, but the results were recognised by all countries. Tito’s list, the People’s Front, behind which was the Communist Party and other associated political powers, won with more that 90% of votes. The new state, now the Federal People’s Republic of Yugoslavia (FNRJ), began the process of rapid Sovietisation and turned into a country which by all measures was most similar to the Soviet Union. As opposed to other East European satellite states, Tito was popular and gained power on his own. The Red Army only passed through Serbia and helped in parts of the operations, but the defeating of the Nazis could be attributed to the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. This is where its massive influence over the government came from. Similar to other European countries, the new government undertook revolutionary changes to create an order based on Marxist ideology. In a country whose territory had endured a four-year ethnic war – where the Jewish community had just about disappeared, where almost all Germans and a large number of Italians had been expelled 86 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T or killed at the end of the war, where the Roma community was destroyed, and civil parties were compromised and marginalised – the new order of the nationalisation of resources and agrarian reform were all relatively easy to implement. This would still have been the case even if it wasn’t for the group that headed the new government, who were all young, highly motivated and somewhat fanatical. In the new Federation, the territory of the People’s Republic of Croatia (NRH) extended to Rijeka, Zadar, the islands which had been a part of Italy since 1918, and also most of Istria. Bosnia and Herzegovina became a separate People’s Republic in which Croats, along with Serbs and Muslims (from 1971; today Bosniaks), were one of the constitutive peoples. Apart from the Croats who lived in the Austrian and Hungarian Gradišće or in a few villages in Romania, the Molise Croats in Italy, the Croats who went to Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and the USA, almost all Croats lived in one state. Immediately after the war finished, Croats held some of the most important positions, including the position of the chief of the army and government (Tito), and president of the assembly (Ivan Ribar). The national tragedy and division which was evident during the war was particularly apparent during the last days of conflict. The Independent State of Croatia (NDH) was the last state to remain alongside Hitler’s Germany. At the beginning of 1945 about 130,000 people took part in the war on the side of the Ustashi government. Partisan units, which just over 60% of Croats belonged to, had about 130,000 soldiers, among them almost 30% of the Serbs from Croatia. Even though Budapest was surrounded by the Red Army from December 1944 and was liberated in the middle of February, and Vienna was conquered in mid-April, in Zagreb the leaders of NDH waited all up until 6 May to begin their withdrawal towards Austria in the hope of handing themselves over to the Western Allies. Extending the war by a week, they reached Bleiburg in Austria. In accordance with the messages from the Big Three conference in Yalta, the final gathering of the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the Soviet leader Stalin and the American President F. D. Roosevelt (February 1945) that warring parties must surrender themselves to those against whom they were fighting, the British rejected the surrender. Tens of thousands of civilians and soldiers from NDH were transferred over the border into Democratic Federal Yugoslavia where a large number of Croats (about 45,000), Serbs, Montenegrins and Slovenians were killed or later perished in the numerous križni put (The Way of the Cross) marches which stretched to the very east of the state (Rusinow 1978: 13–107; 87–191). TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 87 Despite the fact that Yugoslavia was the leader among the remaining socialist states, and even though Belgrade was chosen to be the seat of the Communist Information Bureau (Cominform), Tito was too radical for Moscow. Disciplining the most loyal ally, and also bringing order to the Eastern European countries by accusing their politicians of being Titoists, started when Yugoslavia was expelled from Cominform on 28 June, 1948. American diplomats described this moment as being the most significant event after the capitulation of Japan. In the history of the Cold War, which had just started, this was one of the key moments because a small and poor country from the south-eastern edge of Europe became the centre of world affairs. A communist state not in the Soviet orbit was important for the West, in a propaganda sense and in a strategic sense. All of a sudden Italy and Greece had a significantly more favourable geopolitical position. The Yugoslav regime did not become plural. Tito and the League of Communists (formerly the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, it was renamed in 1952) had a monopoly on power, but Yugoslavia became an American communist ally and functioned outside the Soviet system until its breakup in 1991. The Balkan Pact, signed in the mid-1950s, was a military alliance of two NATO members – Greece and Turkey – with Yugoslavia. From the beginning of the 1960s Yugoslavia became the leader of the Non-Aligned Movement (Pokret nesvrstanih, PN), a group of countries with varying structures and regimes from the Third World which played an important role in the world diplomatic scene. Tito and American President Nixon In 1948, almost a fifth (18.01%) of the Croatian population was illiterate. Including those who did not complete primary or secondary schooling, the functional illiteracy rate was much higher. Attempting to create a modern society in such circumstances was difficult, and many mistakes were made. Nevertheless, during the 1950s and 1960s the economic growth was significant. Zagreb remained not only the main industrial and educational centre of the state but the city’s economy accounted for 25% of the country’s economy. Cities grew: Zagreb had a population of 350,000 in 1953, which grew to almost 800,000 just before Yugoslavia broke up in 1991. This is why, at the start of the 1950s, the mayor of Zagreb Većeslav Holjevac decided that Zagreb would 88 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T cross the Sava River, and a new suburb called Novi Zagreb (New Zagreb) was built on the southern side of the river. The Velesajam was moved there, it was not only the most important exhibition centre in Yugoslavia, but also a meeting place of the Western and Eastern worlds. At the Zagreb Autumn Fair in 1957 the USA displayed an American supermarket and the Soviets, as well as displaying heavy trucks and equipment, also organised a helicopter landing. Croatia in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia From 1945, but especially after the 1954 agreement with the Italians in London, the external and internal borders of Yugoslavia were determined. Croatia received Istria, the city of Zadar and the islands which were Italian between the two world wars. Even though the development of the non-aligned country, which implemented its own version of socialism based on self-government, was rapid and often impressive, the state experienced numerous difficulties. With a new constitution the state changed its name in 1963 to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRJ). Internally, there were problems among the various nationalities and also conflict between advocates of greater decentralisation and centralism. The tensions were to an extent resolved in 1965 and 1966, with the launch of the most ambitious economic reform TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 89 programme ever undertaken in a socialist country. The currency – the dinar – was devalued, the planned economy was to be abandoned and they bravely set foot into the world. A year later on the Brijuni Islands Aleksandar Ranković, arguably the second in charge of the Federation, was dismissed. He was the most powerful Serb politician, the head of the state apparatus of repression and the personification of centralisation. The role of the secret police was reduced, and the power of individual republics was increased. A number of prominent politicians were retired, as were those who were not intellectually adequate for the modern times. Constant tension among the republics and the growing federating of the Federation, as it was referred to by the most powerful Croatian politician Vladimir Bakarić, became even more pronounced at the end of the 1960s, when a team of very young and educated politicians came into important positions in Zagreb. American diplomats in the General Consulate of the USA in Zagreb described them as an impressive group and they were truly popular. centralistic positions were a cover for those who wan- Miko Tripalo during ted non-transparent relations and uneven spending the Croatian Spring of funding which would disable Croatia’s rapid development. Changes in the political world were also seen when Ivan Supek, a renowned physicist who was not a member of the League of Communists, became rector of the University of Zagreb in 1968. For the position of student vice-rector a practising Christian was chosen, even though there was another ‘official candidate’. As well as in the League of Communists, during the 1970s there were political happenings among students, in Matica hrvatska (one of the oldest Croatian cultural institutions), and in the Croatian Writers’ Association. Newsletters were compiled and released, and were a reflection of the hint of pluralism which could be felt at the time. Savka Dabčević Kučar, the first woman to lead the League of Communists of Croatia (SKH), and Miko Tripalo, one of the most competent politicians of the post-war period, became the personification of the changes and demands for changed relations within the Federation. Political debates became more open, especially after the media broadcasted the 10th sitting of the SKH Central Committee where the Split politician Miloš Žanko was dismissed. He led the criticism of the Croatian leadership, which accused Savka Dabčević Kučar and Miko Tripalo of nationalism. The Croatian leadership claimed that Croatia on its own, more or less, sought fair and transparent finances, and in 1971 there were dismissals. While the changes made in Croatia after the movement later known as Hrvatsko proljeće (Croatian Spring) were the most thorough, there were also changes made in other republics, where young reformist politicians were replaced. The anti-liberal attack had serious consequences for the future of the country. Saka Dabčević Kučar, 8 May 1971 90 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T The new Croatian leadership was made up of people who had until then been in government. Savka Dabčević Kučar was replaced by Milka Planic as the head of SKH, who later became Federal Prime Minister and the first female head of government of any socialist country. Following the enthusiasm for Savka and Tripalo, the dismissals of the Croatian Spring politicians led to many Croats being disappointed with politics, and also led to most Serbs in Croatia being disappointed with the Party in Croatia. As a result of the dismissals and conflict there was a period of depressing apathy, sometimes called the time of hrvatska šutnja (Croatian Silence). At the same time, it was a period of large investments and building projects. Some of the demands of the Croatian Spring leadership were included in the 1974 Constitution, where republics received almost confederate powers, and the republic leadership became very significant for the personnel policy of the Federation, thanks to the key system of nation representation. All committee positions had to proportionally represent all peoples and nationalities, as the minorities were called, and they were chosen in the republics. By doing so, the Federation had a shrinking role, and the republics had growing roles. TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 91 Given that the two opposing Cold War blocs would not be in conflict in Europe, and that the borders after the 1975 Heksinki Accords were guaranteed, this meant the decrease of the relative importance of Yugoslavia as a special factor in the relations between Moscow and Washington. The death of the regime’s central figure Josip Broz Tito in 1980 did not cause disturbance in the functioning of the state, but the incompetence of his successors and the complexity of the state structure did not allow for an adequate reaction to obvious problems. Economic crisis and the general resistance to change of socialist regimes increased the existing Yugoslav problems and increased the tensions between individual republics and nationalities. The dinar was devalued at the start of the 1980s, petrol vouchers were introduced and there was a shortage of coffee, detergent and some types of fruit. The stabilisation programme increased tension and scepticism in society, and the tension between nationalities became more apparent. Cover of the magazine Polet The Yugolsav Writers’ Association broke up in 1985, and the annual Štafeta mladosti (Youth Relay) event which connected the whole country and celebrated the cult of youth as well as the personality and deeds of Josip Broz Tito stopped being held in 1987. Youth media, especially the magazine Polet constantly pushed the boundaries of media freedom in Croatia. Various subcultures emerged and national patriotism, especially in sport, was occurring more frequently. Croatian frustration increased when Slobodan Milošević came to power in Serbia, because it seemed that the mass gatherings the Serbs were organising were part of an attempt to change relations in the Federation. On December 10, 1989, Croatian communists decided to call multi-party elections for the Parliament of the Socialist Republic of Croatia. Presidency of the Central Committee members of the SKH voted on this, and the decision passed by one vote. Ivica Račan became the last SKH leader and the first president of the newly formed party SDP – then Stranka demokratskih promjena (Party of Democratic Changes), later called Socijaldemokratska partija (Social Democratic Party) (→ Politics, p. 107). At the 14th extraordinary League of Communist (SKJ) congress in January of 1990 the League broke apart. Slovenian and Croatian delegates left the session. Many still believed that the Federal Executive Council (Savezno izvršno vijeće, SIV), the name given to the SFRJ government, whose president was Croatian politi92 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T cian Ante Marković (former director of the large ‘Rade Končar’ company) would successfully continue with reforms and economic stabilisation. In a world where the breakup of socialist states was occurring rapidly, where reforms in countries which were far behind Yugoslavia managed to catch up to and take over the amount of reform in Yugoslavia, its lagging behind was increasingly evident. The numerous shortcomings of the regime in the field of human rights which had been tolerated for decades were now became less tolerated internationally. The two north-western republics, Slovenia and Croatia, called multi-party elections, while the rest of the state did not follow. The first new political organisation in Croatia was the Croatian Social Liberal Union, later Party (Hrvatski socijalno liberalni savez, later stranka, HSLS). The Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) returned to Croatia from abroad and many other parties emerged. Ten parties merged for the election into the Coalition of the People’s Accord (Koalicija narodnog sporazuma, KNS). The most important party became the Croatian Democratic Union (Hrvartska demokratska zajednica, HDZ), headed by Franjo Tuđman. In the first democratic elections, held in two rounds in April and May of 1990, HDZ received 41.9% of votes to claim almost 60% of the seats in the Parliament (Sabor) (→ Politics, p. 121). At the time when Croatia dreamed of leaving Yugoslavia, the SFRJ Presidency, which was the collective head of Yugoslavia, was held by Stipe Mesić from HDZ, Ante Marković was the head of the Federal Executive Council, Budimir Lončar was the Federal secretary for foreign affairs, and Croatian Serb Veljko Kadijević was the head of the Federal Secretariat of national defence. The domination of Croats in the most important positions is similar to the situation in 1945, but the processes now were the complete opposite. Decisions regarding the events in the country were not made in the Federation, but in the republics whose leaders’ meetings were held in a different republic each time. The Serbian representative Slobodan Milošević had by then taken over Montenegro and both Republic of Serbia provinces – Kosovo and Vojvodina, and he had the remarkable ability of being appealing to both hardline nationalists and those who dreamed of a return to a centralised, unitary Yugoslavia. The Republic of Croatia In the summer of 1990 barricades were built around the town of Knin, in inland Dalmatia. The gradual homogenisation of Croatian Serbs, who were a majority in 11 (out of 114) municipalities in Croatia and before the breakup of Yugoslavia they made up 12% of the total Croatian population, turned into the push for territorial autonomy. It was the start of the balvan revoTH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 93 lution (named after the logs which were used to block roads) and did not allow the republican government to function in certain parts of the Republic of Croatia. In 1991, Serbian Autonomous Regions (srpske autonomne oblasti, SAO) were declared in various parts of Croatia: Krajina, west Slavonia, Slavonia, Baranja and west Srijem. These regions later united to form the Republic of Serbian Krajina (Republika Srpska Krajina, RSK), with Knin as its capital city. In May of 1991, twelve Croatian policemen were killed in Borovo Selo, in the far east of Croatia. There were also massacres in the villages of Ćelije, Voćin, Erdut and Dalj in Slavonia, and in the village Škabrnja in the Zadar hinterland. Croatia entered a war against parts of its own Serbian population and the Yugoslav army which was supported by Serbia. From the summer of 1991 until January of 1992, when the Sarajevo ceasefire was signed, the circumstances in Croatia were wretched. In the Homeland War towns and cities all over the country were attacked, and the numbers of refugees grew continuously. Serbian forces seized Vukovar in the autumn of 1991, where scores of patients were taken from the hospital and killed by the Serb forces, before the eyes of the international community. Even though Croatian forces had high morale, they were not adequately armed. The only successful military operations took place in western Slavonia. Croatian parliament (Sabor), 1990 Croatian leadership at the start of the 1990s The fighting became somewhat less intense from the start of 1992, and it was agreed that UN forces would come into Croatia. UNPA zones Croatia was able to stop the war with an agreed ceasefire and when international forces entered the country, but it remained divided and without sovereignty over the areas monitored by UN forces. It remained like this until 1995. Croatian army evacuating refugees Croatia and Slovenia were internationally recognised on the January 15, 1992. Soon after, they entered the United Nations. The driving force behind the recognition was German and Austrian diplomacy, even though all European Community countries granted recognition on the same day. The Holy See set a precedent by granting diplomatic recognition a few days before the large European countries. Croatia used of the period that followed to organise and arm itself. However, events in Bosnia and Herzegovina deeply 94 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 95 influenced the situation in Croatia. Far bloodier than the war in Croatia, the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina started as a conflict between Croats and Muslims (later called Bosniaks) together against the Serbs. Croatia was the first haven for hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing the neighbouring state, and it remained a haven even after Croats and Bosniaks began fighting against each other in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The decision to go into conflict with each other and the inability to prevent the two peoples from warring, even though they were dependant on one another, proved to be disastrous for Croatia’s interests and its international reputation. Liberating Croatian territory included many operations. During 1992 and 1993 the Miljevci Platau (Miljevački plato) was freed, as were the Dubrovnik hinterland, Medak Pocket (Medački džep) and Maslenica. Operation Maestral (Operacija Maestral) took place in western Bosnia. The Croatian army and police became increasingly capable and after another failed round of negotiations with Krajina Serbs in May of 1995, Operation Flash (Operacija Bljesak) was launched. It was followed in August by the large The destroyed Maslenica Bridge (Maslenički most) Operation Storm (Operacija Oluja), which was a quick and almost flawless military operation. The victory liberated central, Mountainous Croatia and also eased the bleak situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a result of the Croatian victories, the territorial relations in Bosnia and Herzegovina were altered, allowing for successful negotiations in the American city of Dayton and the Dayton Accords are the basis of today’s structuring of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Serbian Krajina population massively retreated from Croatia and from Bosnia to the east. Their houses and villages were burned and these actions mainly remain unsanctioned. Due to this Croatia headed towards international The founding of the National Guard 96 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T condemnation and isolation. While some were on the battlefields, others, closer to the ruling party, gained ownership of factories which they often managed poorly, leading to their closures. Croatia lost its victim status and it was criticised for its attempts to achieve total control of the media. The most free and critical media were the Feral Tribune magazine from Split and the Radio 101 station from Zagreb, which the government attempted to silence or takeover, and it almost completely controlled the public broadcaster Croatian Radiotelevision (Hrvatska radiotelevizija, HRT). Demonstrations (which were successful!) in support of Radio 101, against a broadcasting ban, were organised on the central Zagreb Ban Josip Jelačić Square in November, 1998. They were the largest protests of the 1990s against the government’s politics. The first Croatian President Croatia lost about 18,000 of its total population in the Homeland War. Large parts of the country were abandoned, a large number Serbs in Croatia left the country and never returned, and a part of the young, educated population emigrated to the West. As of the elections held in the year 2000, there was more or less full national consensus regarding two precise aims: Croatia entering NATO and the European Union, and both determined the tempo of political life and reforms over the following decade. The negotiations lasted so long (starting with the Ivica Račan SDP government, then the Ivo Sanader and Jadranka Kosor HDZ governments, concluded by the Zoran Milanović SDP government, and including the Presidents Stjepan Mesić from 2000 until 2010 Former Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Račan Franjo Tuđman Former Croatian Presidents Stjepan Mesić and Ivo Josipović Operation Storm (Operacija Oluja), Dvor on the Una River TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 97 and Ivo Josipović from 2011 until 2015) (→ Politics, p. 132), that in the meantime Croatia managed to implement the required reforms, reverse its international isolation and address the requests of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague. Croatia entered the European Union alone. It now faces the task of clearly defining new strategic interests for the Croatian state (Clewing, Lukić and Ramet 2008: 31–59, 89–140, 171–229; Tanner 1997, Tanner 2001). Literature and Sources Clewing, Konrad, Lukić, Reneo and Ramet, Sabrina Petra (eds.) 2008. Croatia Since Independence. War, Politics, Society, Foreign Relations. Munich: Oldenbourg. Goldstein, Ivo. 1999. Croatia: A History. London: Hurst and Co. Magas, Branka. 2007. Croatia Through History: The Making of a European State. London: SAQI. Pavlowitch, Stevan Kosta. 2008. Hitler's New Disorder: The Second World War in Yugoslavia. London: Hurst and Co. Ramet, Sabrina Petra. 1996. Balkan Babel: The Disintegration of Yugoslavia From the Death of Tito to Ethnic War. Boulder: Westview Press. Rusinow, Dennison. 1978. The Yugoslav Experiment 1948-1974. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Steindorff, Ludwig. 2006. Povijest Hrvatske od srednjeg vijeka do danas. Zagreb: Jesenski i Turk and Institut društvenih znanosti Ivo Pilar. Summary By combining a problem-solving approach and a chronological approach the author of The History of Croatia Between Periodisation and Problematisation presented where Croats live, who they have had contact with, the nature of their interaction with others and how their position on the margins impacted on their formation. Croatia’s marginal position – both in a religious sense and in a territorial sense – as the last Western Christian country in South-East Europe and the edge of large empires throughout the centuries – the Habsburg, Ottoman and Venetian Empires – all contributed to the militarisation of the live and the orientation towards survival and the presence of danger. The events of the 20th century are explained in detail and are events which were determined by life in two states with other South Slavs (the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and Tito’s Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). Also covered is the period which ends the short 20th century – the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War. As opposed to other countries in transition, Croatia first had to defend its independence in a war (1991–1995), which coincided with the longer and more painful process of complete restructuring. In many aspects this is a process which is still continuing, even though Croatia has become a member of the European Union, joining in 2013. Literature relating to the history of Croats is relatively extensive, but unequal in quality and reliability. For those interested, English language authors such as John Lampe, Misha Glenny, Ivo Banac, Jozo Tomasevich and Marcus Tanner provide an excellent source for deeper reflection. 98 CR OAT IA AT F IRST S IG H T TH E H I STO RY O F CR OATI A BE T WE E N P E R I O DI SATI O N AN D P R O BL E MATI SATI O N 99