Croatia
Croatia (, kroh-AY-shə; Croatian: Hrvatska, pronounced [xř̩ʋaːtskaː]), officially the Republic of Croatia (Croatian: Republika Hrvatska, (listen)
),[e] is a country at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe. It shares a coastline along the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro to the southeast, and shares a maritime border with Italy to the west and southwest. Croatia's capital and largest city, Zagreb, forms one of the country's primary subdivisions, with twenty counties. The country spans an area of 56,594 square kilometres (21,851 square miles), hosting a population of nearly 3.9 million.
The Croats arrived in the late 6th century. By the 9th century, they had organized the territory into two duchies. Croatia was first internationally recognized as independent on 7 June 879 during the reign of Duke Branimir. Tomislav became the first king by 925, elevating Croatia to the status of a kingdom. During the succession crisis after the Trpimirović dynasty ended, Croatia entered a personal union with Hungary in 1102. In 1527, faced with Ottoman conquest, the Croatian Parliament elected Ferdinand I of Austria to the Croatian throne. In October 1918, the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs, independent from Austria-Hungary, was proclaimed in Zagreb, and in December 1918, merged into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Following the Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, most of Croatia was incorporated into a Nazi-installed puppet state, the Independent State of Croatia. A resistance movement led to the creation of the Socialist Republic of Croatia, which after the war became a founding member and constituent of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. On 25 June 1991, Croatia declared independence, and the War of Independence was successfully fought over the next four years.
Croatia is a republic governed under a parliamentary system. It is a member of the European Union, NATO, the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the World Trade Organization, and a founding member of the Union for the Mediterranean. Croatia is set to replace its national currency, the Croatian kuna with the euro on 1 January 2023, officially becoming the 20th euro area member. Should there be no unforeseen obstacles, Croatia should also join the Schengen Area on the same date. [11] An active participant in United Nations peacekeeping, Croatia contributed troops to the International Security Assistance Force and filled a nonpermanent seat on the United Nations Security Council for the 2008–2009 term. Since 2000, the Croatian government has invested in infrastructure, especially transport routes and facilities along the Pan-European corridors.
Croatia is classified by the World Bank as a high-income economy and ranks highly on the Human Development Index. Service, industrial sectors, and agriculture dominate the economy, respectively. Tourism is a significant source of revenue for the country, which is ranked among the 20 most popular tourist destinations. The state controls a part of the economy, with substantial government expenditure. The European Union is Croatia's most important trading partner. Croatia provides social security, universal health care, and tuition-free primary and secondary education while supporting culture through public institutions and corporate investments in media and publishing.
Left: Vučedol culture, Vučedol dove made between 2800 and 2500 BCE
Right: Croatian Apoxyomenos, Ancient Greek statue, 2nd or 1st century BC.
The 1st century-built Pula Arena was the sixth largest amphitheatre in the Roman Empire
Kingdom of Croatia c. 925, during the reign of King Tomislav
Coronation of King Tomislav by Oton Iveković
Croatian Ban Nikola Šubić Zrinski is honoured as a national hero for his defence of Szigetvár against the Ottoman Empire
Ban Josip Jelačić at the opening of the first modern Croatian Parliament (
Sabor), June 5, 1848. The tricolour flag can be seen in the background.
The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia was an autonomous kingdom within Austria-Hungary created in 1868 following the Croatian–Hungarian Settlement.
Stjepan Radić, leader of the Croatian Peasant Party who advocated federal organisation of the Yugoslavia, at the assembly in Dubrovnik, 1928
German dictator Adolf Hitler with Quisling and dictator of the Independent State of Croatia Ante Pavelić at the Berghof outside Berchtesgaden, Germany
Cardinal Aloysius Stepinac with the Croatian communist leader Vladimir Bakarić at the celebration of May Day, shortly before Stepinac was arrested by the Communists and taken to court
People of Zagreb celebrating liberation on 12 May 1945 by Croatian Partisans
Josip Broz Tito led SFR Yugoslavia from 1944 to 1980; Pictured: Tito with the US president Richard Nixon in the White House, 1971
The Eternal Flame and 938 marble crosses on the National Memorial Cemetery of The Victims of Homeland War in Vukovar, commemorates the victims of the Vukovar massacre as one of the symbolic and crucial events in Croatian War of Independence
Croatia became the 28th EU member country on 1 July 2013
Bora is a dry, cold wind which blows from the mainland out to sea, whose gusts can reach hurricane strength, particularly in the channel below Velebit, e.g. in the town of Senj
Karst spring of the Cetina river and Dinara Nature Park in the background, the newest and second largest Croatian nature park. Recognised in 2021
[143] Telašćica Nature Park is one of 444 protected areas
Wooden trail through nature park Kopački Rit in Osijek-Baranja County
St. Mark's Square, Zagreb –
Left-to-right: Banski dvori complex, official residence of the Croatian Government, St. Mark's Church and Croatian Parliament
Honor guard in the front of Banski Dvori in Zagreb welcoming Pedro Sánchez Prime Minister of Spain and Andrej Plenković Prime Minister.
President Zoran Milanović on NATO summit on 24 March 2022. The accession of Croatia to NATO took place in 2009
Croatian Air Force and US Navy aircraft participate in multinational training, 2002
Croatian Army Soldiers as members of Special Operations Force (SOF) during Exercise Trojan Footprint 22 near Udbina, Croatia
Varaždin, capital of Croatia between 1767 and 1776, is the seat of Varaždin county; Pictured: Old Town fortress, one of 15 Croatia's sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage tentative list
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Counties of Croatia
Croatian counties by GDP (PPS) per capita, 2019
A proportional representation of Croatia exports, 2017
Dubrovnik is one of Croatia's most popular tourist destinations.
Zlatni Rat beach on the Island of Brač is one of the foremost spots of tourism in Croatia
Highway network in Croatia
Pelješac Bridge connects the peninsula of Pelješac and through it the southernmost part including Dubrovnik with the Croatian mainland
HŽ series 6112 manufactured by the Croatian company Končar Group, operated by Croatian Railways
2011 Croatian population density by county in persons per km
2.
Religious believers according to the 2011 census
Map of the Shtokavian, Chakavian and Kajkavian dialects in Croatia by municipality
The Baška tablet is the oldest Glagolitic monument in Croatia. It documents the donation of land gifted by Croatian King Dmitar Zvonimir to the Benedictine monastery of St Lucy
University of Zagreb is the largest Croatian university and the oldest university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of Southeastern Europe (1669)
National and University Library
University Hospital Centre Zagreb is the largest hospital in Croatia and the teaching hospital of the University of Zagreb
Historic centre of Trogir has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Site since 1997
[283] Euphrasian Basilica in Poreč, example of early Byzantine architecture, on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1997.
Historical nucleus of Split with the 4th-century Diocletian's Palace was inscribed on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1979
Radio Zagreb, now a part of Croatian Radiotelevision, was the first public radio station in Southeast Europe.
[314] Teran wine from Istria region
Croatia national football team came in second at the 2018 World Cup in Russia
, kroh-AY-shə; Croatian: Hrvatska, pronounced [xř̩ʋaːtskaː]), officially the Republic of Croatia (Croatian: Republika Hrvatska, (listen)