There is lots of history in Croatia. Like in Slovenia, but unlike in the other Balkan countries, many of the castles in Croatia have been beautifully restored. There are lots of old churches that are nicely restored.

All pictures are © Dr. Günther Eichhorn, unless otherwise noted.

Veliki Tabor Castle

Dvor Veliki Tabor (Veliki Tabor Castle) is a castle and museum in northwest Croatia, dating from the middle of 15th century. The castle's present appearance dates back to the 16th century.

Most of the castle was built by the Hungarian noble family of Ráttkay, in whose ownership it remained until 1793.

It is the best-preserved medieval castle in Croatia. It houses a small museum of artifacts of daily life.

Veliki Tabor Castle
Veliki Tabor Castle. (661k)
Veliki Tabor Castle
Veliki Tabor Castle. (840k)
Veliki Tabor Castle
Veliki Tabor Castle. (764k)
West Side Towers Curtain
West side towers and curtain wall. (970k)
South Side Tower Curtain
South side tower and curtain wall. (914k)
Southeast Corner Tower According
Southeast corner tower. According to my guide, the protruding structure on the left side was used as an outhouse. (763k)
Inner Courtyard
Inner courtyard. (680k)
Inner Courtyard
Inner courtyard. (1181k)
Inner Courtyard
Inner courtyard. (767k)
Well Courtyard
Well in the courtyard. (1116k)
Banquet Hall
Banquet hall. (700k)
Wine Cellar
Wine cellar. (644k)
Tiled Stove
Tiled stove. (810k)
Relief Petar Ii Ráttkay
Relief of Petar II Ráttkay (born 1586), one of the early owners of the castle. (687k)
Knight's Armor
Knight's armor. (635k)
Carriage
Carriage. (761k)
Carriage
Carriage. (655k)
Stocks Reportedly Used Display
Stocks. Reportedly they were used to display convicted criminals. (770k)
Singer Sewing Machine
Singer sewing machine. (660k)
Pfaff Sewing Machine
Pfaff sewing machine. (701k)

Museum Staro Selo in Kumrovec

Staro Selo (Old Village) is an Open Air Museum. It contains 40 preserved residential, commercial, and ancillary buildings, including the birth place of Marshal Tito.

View Old Village
View of the Old Village. (1456k)
View Old Village
View of the Old Village. (1.5M)
View Old Village
View of the Old Village. (1199k)
Marshal Tito's Birth Place
Marshal Tito's birth place. (1159k)
Houses Old Village
Houses in the Old Village. (1277k)
House Old Village
House in the Old Village. (1.5M)
House Old Village
House in the Old Village. (1.5M)
Water Pump Fire Fighting
Water pump for fire fighting. (1029k)
Agricultural Plows
Agricultural plows. (917k)

Defensive Wall at Ston

From the Ston entry in Wikipedia:

Because of its geopolitical and strategic position, Ston has had a rich history since antiquity. Located at the gates of the peninsula, surrounded by three seas, protected by four hills, rich in fresh water and saltwater, fertile plains, it has been an important political, cultural and ecclesiastical center. It is possible that there was a bishop in Ston as early as at the end of the 7th century or the beginning of the 8th century.

Initially it was an Illyrian settlement until the Romans established their own colony there in 167 BCE.

In 533, at Salona, a diocese was established in Sarsenterum for the Zahumlje or Hum area, which belonged to the church in Ston (Pardui). Later Sarsenterum was destroyed (most likely at the time of Avar's campaign). Since Ston was not reached by Avar's, it was spared and became the seat of the local župa. As the secular and ecclesial powers grew, it is assumed that after the disappearance of Sarsenterum, Ston became the ecclesiastical center. We see the diocese first mentioned in 877 as the institution from an older times, and the bishop is listed as a suffragan of the Split metropolis. By setting up a metropolis in Dubrovnik, Ston became a suffragan of Dubrovnik.

Upon the arrival of the South Slavs, the area of the Neretva (from the northern Herzegovina mountains to Rijeka Dubrovačka) was organized as the principality of Zahumlje - same as Neretva, Primorje and Zahulje, which also belonged to Ston with Rat (Peljesac) and Mljet. Local rulers acknowledged the supremacy of Byzantine Empire. After Mihajlo Višević, who acknowledged the authority of Bulgarian Simeon, Zahumlje was ruled over by different dynasties. Around 950, it was briefly ruled by duke Časlav. At the end of the 10th century, Samuilo was the Lord of Zahumlje, and the dukedom belonged to king Ivan Vladimir. In 1168, the dukedom and Zahumlje were conquered by Stefan Nemanja. Thirty years later, Zahumlje was invaded by Andrija, the Duke of Croatia and Dalmatia. In 1254, Béla IV of Hungary conquered Bosnia and Zahumlje. From 1304, Zahumlje was ruled by Mladen II Šubić, then again for a short period by Serbian župan, and then became part of the medieval Bosnian state, acquired by Stjepan Kotromanić in 1325, until it was finally sold to Dubrovnik.

The original old town was demolished in the earthquake of 1252. With the arrival of the Republic, a new city was built on today's location. When renovations were made at the church of St. Michael at the top of the hill, fragments of Roman decorative plaster, Roman tombstones and antique ceramics were found, confirming this assumption. According to some sources, Ston experienced a destructive civil war in 1250, and in these conflicts the city suffered a great deal of destruction.

The turbulent times at the beginning of the 14th century spread across the entire country of Zahumlje. The usurpation by the Branivojević brothers, forced the people of Dubrovnik to fight them in 1326 with the help of Stjepan Kotromanić. That year, Dubrovnik occupied Ston. The Dubrovnik people immediately began to build and establish a new Ston, to defend the Pelješac peninsula and protect the slaves from which they had earned big revenue. Since the conflict between the Bosnian Ban and the king of Zahumlje, the Dubrovniks purchased Pelješac with Ston from both rulers in 1333.

In 1333, Dubrovnik started with the planned construction of the fortresses of Ston (Veliki Ston) and Little Ston (Mali Ston) at the present site. The cladding between the two towns along their entire length were made of large walls that were supposed to defend the Dubrovnik estate - Pelješac. This entire fortification complex, which is unique to Europe was built over a short period of time.

The downfall of the Republic of Dubrovnik took place due to the sudden and often incomprehensible operations in the 19th century. The city walls of Little Ston were demolished to suppress malaria. The monumental stone fortification complex of Ston suddenly collapsed in preparation for the official visit by Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph - the stones became a quarry for nearby new outcrops and foundations. The restoration of the stone monuments and the reconstruction of the fortifications and the tower resumed only after 1945, however they were again damaged in the Croatian War of Independence (1991-1995), followed by the devastating earthquake of 1996. Recently, thanks to the Society of Friends of the Dubrovnik Walls, the stone forts and towers are being reconstructed, so that the monumental stonewall complex now begins to live again in its old dignity.

Fort Kaštio
Fort Kaštio. (811k)
Fort Kaštio
Fort Kaštio. (1290k)
Saint Blaise's Church
Saint Blaise's Church. (946k)
Saint Nicholas Monastery
Saint Nicholas Monastery. (1.5M)
View Ston Wall
View of Ston from the wall. (1.6M)
View Ston Salt Evaporation
View of Ston and the salt evaporation ponds beyond. (1291k)
View East Side Wall
View of the east side of the wall from the top tower. (1268k)
Lower Portion East Side
Lower portion of the east side of the wall. (1468k)
View West Side Wall
View of the west side of the wall from the top tower. (1311k)
East Side Wall
East side of the wall. (1296k)
East Side Wall
East side of the wall. (1391k)
Room Wall Tower
Room in the wall tower. (1064k)
Arrow Slit Wall
Arrow slit in the wall. (1102k)
Western Part Wall Between
Western part of the wall between Ston and Little Ston. (1228k)
Eastern Part Wall Between
Eastern part of the wall between Ston and Little Ston. (952k)

Miscellaneous

Diocletian Aqueduct Split Late
Diocletian Aqueduct near Split, late 3rd to early 4th century CE. (1043k)
Saint Peter's Church Omiš
Saint Peter's Church in Omiš, well preserved from 10th century, more than 1000 years old!! (883k)
Starigrad Fortress 15th-century Fortress
Starigrad Fortress, a 15th-century fortress above Omiš. (1168k)

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Croatia
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Page last updated on Thu Jun 16 11:42:08 2022 (Mountain Standard Time)


History in Croatia on aerobaticsweb.org


© Dr. Günther Eichhorn
Retired
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