Little is clear and definite when it comes to the real history of Croatia as crisscrossing allegiances and vague origins abound. In fact, to this day, most of the details regarding the emergence of Croatia as a country continue to be cloaked in history.
For instance, historians can’t reach a consensus regarding the genesis of the Croats’ earliest tribes. Were they indeed Slavic, and if yes, how closely connected are they to the rest of the Slavic groups? What made them decide to occupy the area that is now known as Croatia?
Down the timeline, the history of Croatia (https://www.travel-rs.com/6-best-reasons-to-visit-croatia-soon/) has also become an even more complex algorithm of shifting national and ethnic identities. Due to all these uncertainties, several key developments should be kept in mind when trying to decipher the ambiguous past of Croatia.
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Croatia During the Roman Empire
Starting from 11 BC to approximately to 5th century AD, the roost was ruled by the Romans. During this period, the territory that is currently Croatia was structured into a coastal area known as Dalmatia, in the provenance of the adorable spotted dog. The northern area, on the other hand, is called Pannonia.
Throughout the conquering heyday of the Romans, they formed a network of roads that connected the coast of Dalmatia with the Black and Aegean Seas as well as the Danube, which made the region their land of plenty.
All it takes is to sit at the center of the ruins of the palace of Emperor Diocletian in Split, Eastern Europe’s Roman ruins to get a glimpse of the former glory of Rome in the area. Although there weren’t significant remains of the Roman Empire in Solin, which was the town that used to be Salona, the Roman capital, the amphitheater in Pula that remains standing to this day feel like a distant cousin of Rome’s famous Coliseum.
The Rise of the Croat Tribes
Although the Roman Empire first thrived and imploded, Croats and the rest of the Slavic tribes were already carving their existence in what several historians assume to have been the marshlands of today’s Ukraine.
The tribes were variably establishing communities. They then migrated and engaged in wars with each other. Some historians also claim that during the mid-7th century, Croat tribes relocated to Dalmatia and Pannonia, paving the way for the emergence of powerful rulers and clans.
The Spread of Christianity
When 800 AD came, Charles the Great, the Frankish emperor, ruler of Western Europe, and the first actual superpower since the Romans fell, had Dalmatia under his control. Several historians also claim that Charles also quickly started a campaign to convert the Croat rulers to the Christian religion.
After Charles passed away in 814, most of Dalmatia came under the control of the Byzantine Empire, with the Franks continuing to rule over the Pannonian Croats. However, the spread of Christianity urged cultural ties with Rome, becoming the ultimate factor that unified and forged a future national identity. To this day, about 90% of the Croats are Catholic.
The Kingdom during the Medieval Era
The Kingdom of Croatia came to be when King Tomislav was crowned in 925. The king united Pannonia and Dalmatia into one kingdom. It was during his rule that Croatia became one of the Balkans’ most powerful forces.
However, the precise geographical extent of the kingdom of Tomislav remains controversial and unknown. Following his death, the royal successors of Tomislav continued ruling the kingdom up to the late 11th century when Hungary entered the picture.
The Mergers and Acquisitions
Why and how Croatia exactly united with Hungary are some of the most common topics of debate among many historians. However, based on the research of the US Library of Congress, Hungary’s King Ladislaus became Croatia’s new ruler in 1091 following the death of the last king of Croatia.
But a Croatian leadership system was upheld by the separate institutions of Croatian statehood, such as the assembly of nobles called the Sabor. During the 1409s as the Ottoman Empire attempted to conquer the Balkans, Croatia found itself stuck in fights between the Hungarians and the Turks.
After several years of the Ottomans’ tough bashing, Croatia was able to resist them and united with the Hapsburgs. The country soon became a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia
When World War I ended and the Austro-Hungarian Empire fell, the loyalties of Croatia were afloat all over again. A delegation from Croatia decided to align their forces with the Serbs, establishing the “Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes.”
The said “Kingdom of Yugoslavia” failed fast and declined into civil war and uprising with the Ustase, a rebel Croat group, embarking on a vicious terrorist campaign to get rid of all the Jews and Serbs. The Chetniks, an opposition group, resisted but they also ended up as terrorists, massacring the Croats.
But the Partisans, another group under the leadership of Josip Broz or Tito earned extensive support. When World War II ended, Tito became Yugoslavia’s leader.
Communist Yugoslavia
With Tito as the leader, Yugoslavia, which included Herzegovina and Bosnia, Serbia, Slovenia, Macedonia, Croatia, and Montenegro, followed a form of planned market socialism, nationalizing privately owned estates and factories.
Tito also made Yugoslavia into an industrialized nation coming from being a mostly agricultural one. However, when Tito passed away in 1980, the gaps in the Yugoslav system got bigger. There was a weak economy, a divisive Serbian nationalism was stirred up by Slobodan Milosevic, and the Yugoslav government’s unity became feeble.
It was on the 25th of June 1991 when Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia, and the data is now commemorated as Statehood Day. It was also during this time when the Serbs residing in Krajina, a territory of Croatia, declared their independence from the country, leading to an imminent civil war.
After almost 20 years after the war ended on December 14, 1995, Croatia has established itself as an independent, tourist-friendly, and safe country. With a stable government and strong economy, Croatia is now a favorite destination among tourists across the globe.