The history of travel in Croatia is intertwined with the name “Hrvat”, a Slavic word meaning friend, sunny land, and owning much property. The landscape of Croatia is picturesque, containing thousands of islands with diverse landscapes along the crystal clear Adriatic Sea. There are sandy beaches perfect for travel, and also dare-devilish cliffs to encounter. The land of Croatia is so stunning that it has been fought over for years, back as far as the Roman Empire. Croatia is close to Venice, the trading and travel port of the world, and that means Croatia is like a treasure chest of riches from India and Arabia, and also a travel retreat for the elite throughout history; Croatia is where palaces sprang up, and villas and castles emerged at different points in history, constructed by ancient travelers.
The warm people of Croatia are believed to have traveled from the Ukraine to Croatia in the 7th century. Following the fall of the Eastern rule of the Roman Empire, Croatia became a Frankish Realm. Then in 925, the Kingdom of Croatia arose. But this didn’t last long enough, for in 1102 Hungary traveled there and took over their shores, and Croatia and Hungary were intertwined until the late date of 1868.
Croatia’s history is quite spirited and lively, and that makes it a great travel destination. At one point they joined the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, and became an independent puppet state during WWII. The Republic of Croatia finally became independent in 1991 and lastly the Croatian Democratic Community in 1995. It’s the perfect peaceful country now for travel.
As you can see, it’s been a long and bumpy history for Croatia, but historians know well that all this traveling and fighting over the shores of Croatia has to do with the exquisite beauty of its land. Civilizations for ages have been traveling to it and fighting for it, and in this great time of Croatian peace, travelers should see what all the fuss is about. It’s been a long fight to be an independent country, but with all that work, Croatia is finally free for all of us to travel to and cherish in the name of peace, as a diverse global community of travelers. So travel to Croatia this year as a great gift to yourself and your loved ones. See with your own eyes a country that embodies the meaning of hope, democracy, and the future. Croatia is open for all, and we travelers need to celebrate and enjoy that. Don’t get me wrong, you’re going to have a darn good time while you’re there. Croatia is a travel experience you’ll never forget.
It’s commonly known that Croats have settled down here, in Croatia, in the 7th century. Early Croatia was divided into two dukedoms — Pannonian and Littoral Croatia. Croats were getting used to their new territory for two more centuries — in the 9th century, the christianization of the Croats was over.
In 925, the very first Croatian king named Tomislav was crowned. Due to his title he was also remembered as the king who had united both Croatias, forming a real country.
Years of greatness have quickly passed and due to the disappearance of the Croatian dynasty, Croatia formed a personal union, known as Pacta Conventa, with Hungary, choosing Coloman for their mutual king. Being under the rule of the Hungarians for more than four centuries, Croatia couldn’t develop on a proper level.
In 1526 Hungarian rule over Croatia was over. But Croatia still wasn’t free — Hungarian reign was immediately replaced by the Habsburg Monarchy which lasted until 1918. With a history as it is, Croatia was always fragmented, fighting for its freedom, territorial integrity and independence. The closest it got to the goal was during the Illyrian movement, trying to induct Croatian language and prevent Germanization and Magyarization of Croatia. The Illyrian movement, started in 1830s, tried to improve Croatian culture and in general, Croatian independence from the empire.
As the first world war was coming to its end, Croatia disrupted all connections with Austria and Hungary forming the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs. Shortly after, the name was modified to The State of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes due to the fact that the Serbs owned most of the parts of the kingdom.
Doing things they benefit from, Serbs were constantly trying to subdue Croats and Slovenes. Stjepan Radić, leader of the group that was rejecting Serbs’ domination and rule, was shot in 1928 during a Parliament session along with a few other people. A year later, king Alexander proclaimed a new constitution and declared a new name of the state — Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
With the desire of having their own state with Croatian culture and language, during World War 2, Ustaše party came to power and in 1941 proclaimed Independent State of Croatia, with its leader Ante Pavelić. With no democracy or a sense of human rights, the new authority was determined to wipe out minorities.
In 1945 Croatia became part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia along with five other countries. Tito’s Communist Party of Yugoslavia had an authority over them. All of the things that took place a bit later — Croatian Spring in 1971, Tito’s death, the appearance of Slobodan Milošević, led to the Croatian War of Independence (1991-1995). The war occurred because Croatia had declared independence from Yugoslavia on June 25th, 1991. Serbs were led by their never-ending desire of creating the great Serbia. In the operations consisting of Croatian forces that took place all over Croatia, the little country that was always fragmented and under the control of someone else finally gained its liberation.