History of Croatia
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{{History of Croatia}}
[[Croatia]] first appeared as a [[duchy]] in the 7th century and then as a [[Monarchy|kingdom]] in the 10th century. For the next ten centuries, it remained a distinct state with its ruler (''[[ban]]'') and [[Croatian Parliament|parliament]], but it obeyed the kings and emperors of various neighboring powers, primarily [[Kingdom of Hungary|Hungary]] and [[Habsburg|Austria]]. The period from the 15th to the 17th centuries was marked by bitter struggles with the [[Ottoman Empire]]. After being incorporated in [[Yugoslavia]] for most of the 20th century, Croatia regained independence in 1991.
The '''history of Croatia''' was divided into a series of separate historical articles navigable through the list to the right. For information on today's Croatia, see [[Croatia]].
== Croatian lands before the Croats (until 7th c.) ==
{{main|Croatia before the Croats}}
The area known as Croatia today has been inhabited throughout the prehistoric period, since the [[Stone Age]]. In the middle [[Paleolithic]], [[Neanderthals]] lived in Krapina. In the early [[Neolithic]] period, the [[Starčevo-Körös|Starčevo]], [[Vučedol culture|Vučedol]] and [[Hvar culture|Hvar]] cultures were scattered around the region. The [[Iron Age]] left traces of the [[Hallstatt culture]] (early [[Illyrians]]) and the [[La Tène culture]] (Celts).
In recorded history, the area was inhabited by the [[Illyria]]ns, and since the 4th century BC also colonized in the north by the [[Celts]] and along the coast by the [[Greek colonies|Greeks]]. The Southern Illyrian kingdom, [[Illyris]], was a sovereign state in modern day Montenegro and [[Albania]] until the [[Roman Empire|Romans]] conquered it in 168 BC. The Western Empire organized the [[Roman province|provinces]] of [[Pannonia]] and Dalmatia, which after its downfall passed to the [[Huns]], the [[Ostrogoths]] and then to the [[Byzantine Empire]]. The forebearers of Croatia's current [[Slavic peoples|Slav]] population settled there in the early 7th century.
==Medieval Croatian state (until 925)==
{{main|Medieval Croatian state}}
[[Image:Oton Ivekovic, Dolazak Hrvata na Jadran.jpg|thumb|right|[[Oton Iveković]], ''The Croats arrival at the Adriatic Sea'']]
The Croats arrived in what is today Croatia in the seventh century. They organized into two [[dukedom]]s; the duchy of [[Pannonian Croatia]] in the north and the duchy of [[Littoral Croatia]] in the south. The biggest part of [[Christianization]] of the Croats ended in the 9th century.
Croatian duke [[Trpimir I of Croatia|Trpimir I]] (845–864), founder of [[Trpimirović dynasty]], fought successfully against Bulgarians, and against Byzantine ''[[strategos]]'' in [[Zadar]]. He expanded his state in east to the [[Drina River]].
The first native Croatian ruler recognized by a [[pope]] was duke [[Branimir of Croatia|Branimir]], whom [[Pope John VIII]] called ''dux Croatorum'' in 879.
[[Image:Branimir.jpg|thumb|200px|right|The inscription of duke [[Branimir]], around 888.]]
==Kingdom of Croatia (925-1102)==
{{main|Kingdom of Croatia (Medieval)}}
The first [[List of rulers of Croatia|King of Croatia]], [[Tomislav]] (910–928) of the Trpimirović dynasty, was crowned in 925. Tomislav, ''rex Croatorum'', united the Pannonian and Dalmatian duchies and created a sizeable state. He defeated Bulgarian Tsar [[Simeon I of Bulgaria|Simeon I]] in [[battle of the Bosnian Highlands]]. The [[medieval]] Croatian kingdom reached its peak during the reign of King [[Petar Krešimir IV of Croatia|Petar Krešimir IV]] (1058–1074).
Following the disappearance of the major native dynasty by the end of the 11th century in the [[Battle of Gvozd Mountain]], the Croats eventually recognized the Hungarian ruler [[Coloman of Hungary|Coloman]] as the common king for Croatia and Hungary in a treaty of 1102 (often referred to as the ''[[Pacta conventa (Croatia)|Pacta conventa]]'').
==Personal union with Hungary (1102–1526)==
{{main|Croatia in the union with Hungary}}
The consequences of the change to the Hungarian king included the introduction of [[feudalism]] and the rise of the native noble families such as [[Frankopan]] and [[Šubić]]. The later kings sought to restore some of their previously lost influence by giving certain privileges to the towns. The primary governor of Croatian provinces was the ''[[ban (title)|ban]]''.
The princes of Bribir from the Šubić family became particularly influential, asserting control over large parts of Dalmatia, [[Slavonia]] and Bosnia. Later, however, the [[Angevin]]es intervened and restored royal power. They also sold the whole of Dalmatia to [[Republic of Venice|Venice]] in 1409.
As the [[Ottoman Empire|Turkish]] incursion into Europe started, Croatia once again became a border area. The Croats fought an increasing number of battles and gradually lost increasing swaths of territory to the Ottoman Empire ([[Battle of Krbava field]]).
== Habsburg Empire, Venice and the Ottomans (1527–1918) ==
{{main|Croatia in the Habsburg Empire}}
[[Image:Ivan Zasche, Portret bana Josipa Jelacica.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Ban Josip Jelačić.]]
The 1526 [[Battle of Mohács]] and the death of King [[Louis II of Hungary|Louis II]] meant the end of Hungarian authority over Croatia, replaced by the [[Habsburg Monarchy]] signed by Croatian nobles at Cetingrad assembly. The Ottoman Empire further expanded in the 16th century to include most of Slavonia, western Bosnia and [[Lika]].
Later in the same century, large areas of Croatia and Slavonia adjacent to the Ottoman Empire were carved out into the [[Military Frontier]] (''Vojna Krajina'', ''German'' Militaergrenze) and ruled directly from Vienna military headquarters. The area became rather deserted and was subsequently settled by [[Serbs]], [[Vlachs]], Croats and [[Ethnic German|Germans]] and others. As a result of their compulsory military service to the Habsburg Empire during conflict with the Ottoman Empire, the population in the Military Frontier was free of serfdom and enjoyed much political autonomy unlike the population living in the parts ruled by Hungary.
After the [[Bihać]] fort finally fell in 1592, only small parts of Croatia remained unconquered. The remaining 16,800 km² were referred to as the ''remnants of the remnants of the once great Croatian kingdom''. The Ottoman army was successfully repelled for the first time on the territory of Croatia following the [[battle of Sisak]] in 1593. The lost territory was mostly restored, except for large parts of today's [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]].
By the 1700s, the Ottoman Empire was driven out of [[Hungary]] and Croatia, and [[Austria]] brought the empire under central control. Empress [[Maria Theresa of Austria|Maria Theresia]] was supported by the Croatians in the [[War of Austrian Succession]] of 1741–1748 and subsequently made significant contributions to Croatian matters.
With the fall of the [[Venetian Republic]] in 1797, its possessions in eastern [[Adriatic]] became subject to a dispute between France and Austria. The Habsburgs eventually secured them (by 1815) and Dalmatia and Istria became part of the empire, though they were in [[Cisleithania]] while Croatia and Slavonia were under Hungary.
Croatian [[romantic nationalism]] emerged in mid-19th century to counteract the apparent Germanization and Magyarization of Croatia. The [[Illyrian movement]] attracted a number of influential figures from 1830s on, and produced some important advances in the [[Croatian language]] and culture.
In the [[the Revolutions of 1848 in Habsburg areas|Revolutions of 1848]] Croatia, driven by fear of Magyar nationalism, supported the Habsburg court against Hungarian revolutionary forces. However, despite the contributions of its ban [[Josip Jelačić|Jelačić]] in quenching the [[Hungarian Revolution of 1848|Hungarian war of independence]], Croatia, not treated any more favourably by Vienna than the Hungarians themselves, lost its domestic autonomy. In 1867 the [[Austria-Hungary|Dual Monarchy]] was [[Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867|created]]; Croatian autonomy was restored in 1868 with the Hungarian–Croatian Settlement which was not particularly favourable for the Croatians.
== Kingdom of Yugoslavia (1918–1941) ==
{{main|Croatia in the first Yugoslavia}}
Shortly before the end of the [[First World War]] in 1918, the [[Croatian Parliament]] severed relations with Austria-Hungary as the [[Little Entente|Entente]] armies defeated those of the Habsburgs. ''Croatia and Slavonia'' became a part of the [[State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs]] composed out of all Southern Slavic territories of the now former [[Austro-Hungarian Monarchy]] with a transitional government headed in [[Zagreb]]. Although the state inherited much of Austro-Hungary's military arsenal, including the entire fleet, the Kingdom of Italy moved rapidly to annex the state's most western territories, promised to her by the [[Treaty of London, 1915|Treaty of London]] of 1915. An Italian Army eventually took [[Istria]], started to annex the Adriatic islands one by one, and even landed in Zadar. After [[Srijem]] left ''Croatia and Slavonia'' and joined Serbia together with Vojvodina, which was shortly followed by a referendum to join Bosnia and Herzegovina to Serbia, the People's Council (''Narodno vijeće'') of the state, guided by what was by that time a half a century long tradition of [[pan-Slavism]] and without sanction of the Croatian [[sabor]], joined the [[History of Serbia|Kingdom of Serbia]] into the [[Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes]]. The territory of Croatia largely comprised the territories of the [[Sava Banate|Sava]] and [[Littoral Banate]]s.
The Kingdom underwent a crucial change in 1921 to the dismay of Croatia's largest political party, the [[Croatian Peasant Party]] (Hrvatska seljačka stranka). The new constitution abolished the historical/political entities, including Croatia and Slavonia, centralizing authority in the capital of [[Belgrade]]. The Croatian Peasant Party boycotted the government of the Serbian [[People's Radical Party]] throughout the period, except for a brief interlude between 1925 and 1927, when external Italian expansionism was at hand with her allies, [[Albania]], Hungary, [[Romania]] and [[Bulgaria]] that threatened Yugoslavia as a whole.
In the early 1920s the Yugoslav government of Serbian prime minister [[Nikola Pasic]] used police pressure over voters and ethnic minorities, confiscation of opposition pamphlets<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,846181,00.html Balkan Politics], ''[[TIME Magazine]]'', March 31, 1923</ref> and other measures of [[rigged election|election rigging]] to keep the opposition, and mainly the [[Croatian Peasant Party]] and its allies in minority in Yugoslav parliament.<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,719894,00.html Elections], ''[[TIME Magazine]]'', February 23, 1925</ref> Pasic believed that Yugoslavia should be as centralized as possible, creating in place of distinct regional governments and identities a [[Greater Serbia]]n national concept of concentrated power in the hands of Belgrade.<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,720153,00.html The Opposition], ''[[TIME Magazine]]'', April 06, 1925</ref>
During a Parliament session in 1928, the Croatian Peasant Party's leader [[Stjepan Radić]] was mortally wounded by [[Puniša Račić]], a deputy of the Serbian Radical People's Party, which caused further upsets among the Croatian elite. In 1929, King [[Alexander of Yugoslavia|Aleksandar]] proclaimed a dictatorship and imposed a new constitution which, among other things, renamed the country the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Political parties were banned from the start and the royal dictatorship took on an increasingly harsh character. [[Vladko Maček]], who had succeeded Radić as leader of the Croatian Peasant Party, the largest political party in Croatia, was imprisoned, and members of a newly emerging insurgent movement, the [[Ustaše]], went into exile. According to the British hostorian [[Misha Glenny]] the murder in March 1929 of Toni Schlegel, editor of a pro-Yugoslavian newspaper ''Novosti'', brought a "furious response" from the regime. In [[Lika]] and west [[Herzegovina]] in particular, which he described as "hotbeds of Croatian separatism," he wrote that the majority-Serb police acted "with no restraining authority whatsoever."<ref>Misha Glenny, ''The Balkans 1804-1999'', Granta Books, London 1345, pp. 431-432</ref> And in the words of a prominent Croatian writer, Shlegel's death became the pretext for terror in all forms. Politics was soon "indistinguishable from gangsterism."<ref>Josip Horvat, ''Politička povijest Hrvatske 1918-1929'' (Political History of Croatia 1918-1929), Zagreb, 1938</ref> Even in this oppressive climate, few rallied to the Ustaša cause and the movement was never able to organise within Croatia. But its leaders did manage to convince the [[Communist Party of Yugoslavia|Communist Party]] that it was a progressive movement. The party's newspaper ''Proleter'' (December 1932) stated: "[We] salute the Ustaša movement of the peasants of Lika and Dalmatia and fully support them."
In 1934, King Aleksandar was [[assassination|assassinated]] abroad, in [[Marseilles]], by a coalition of the Ustaše and a similarly radical movement, the Macedonian pro-Bulgarian [[VMORO]]. The Serbian-[[Croats|Croatian]] [[Dragiša Cvetković|Cvetković]]-Maček government that came to power, distanced Yugoslavia's former allies of [[France]] and the [[United Kingdom]], and moved closer to Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany in the period of 1935-1941. A national [[Banovina of Croatia]] was created in 1939 out of the two Banates, as well as parts of the Zeta, [[Vrbas Banovina|Vrbas]], [[Drina Banovina|Drina]] and Danube Banates. It had a reconstructed Croatian Parliament which would choose a Croatian [[Ban (title)|Ban]] and Viceban. This Croatia included a part of [[Bosnia (region)]], most of [[Herzegovina]] and the city of [[Dubrovnik]] and the surroundings.
== World War II ==
{{main|Independent State of Croatia}}
The [[Axis powers|Axis]] occupation of Yugoslavia in 1941 allowed the Croatian radical right Ustaše to come into power, forming the "[[Independent State of Croatia]]", led by [[Ante Pavelić]], who assumed the role of '''''Poglavnik''' Nezavisne Drzave Hrvatske'' (i.e. Leader of the Independent State of Croatia). Following the pattern of other fascist regimes in Europe, the Ustashi enacted racial laws, formed eight concentration camps targeting minority Serbs, [[Roma People|Roma]]s and [[Jews|Jewish]] populations. The biggest concentration camp was [[Jasenovac concentration camp|Jasenovac]] in Croatia. The NDH had a program, formulated by [[Mile Budak]], to purge Croatia of [[Serbs]], by “killing one third, expelling the other third and [[Cultural assimilation|assimilating]] the remaining third”. The first part of this program began during WWII with a planned [[genocide]] in [[Jasenovac]] and other locations in the NDH<ref>Glenny, Misha. Balkans: Nationalism, War and the Great Powers, 1804-1999. New York, USA: Penguin Books, 2001. Pp. 431 <br>USTASHE. "With the financial assistance of Italian government, Pavelic set about the construction of two main training camps, one in Hungary, one in Italy..."</ref>
The main targets for persecution, however, were the Serbs. Hundreds of thousands of Serbs were killed.
The all-Yugoslav communist [[Partisans (Yugoslavia)|anti-fascist partisan movement]] emerged in Croatia early in 1941, under the command of Croat [[Josip Broz Tito]], spreading quickly into the other parts of [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]]. As the movement began to gain popularity, Tito's partisans came to encompass Serbs, Bosniaks, Slovenes and Macedonians who believed in a unified Yugoslav state.
By 1943, the Partisan resistance movement had gained the upper hand, against the odds, and in 1945, with help from the Soviet [[Red Army]] (passing only through small parts such as [[Vojvodina]]), expelled the Axis forces and local supporters. The ''ZAVNOH'', state anti-fascist council of people's liberation of Croatia, functioned since 1944 and formed an interim civil government.NDH's ministers of War and Inter safety Mladen Lorković and Ante Vokić tried to switch to Allied side.Poglavnik was in the beginning supporting them but when he found that he would need to leave his position he prisoned them in Lepoglava prison where they were killed.After that NDH's was more bondaged to faith of Third Reich.
By the end of 1941 Ustashas seriously negotiated with the Partisans about organising combined Ustashi-Communist government but that failed when Axis states attacked SSSR.
Following the defeat of the Independent fascist State of Croatia at the end of the war a large number of presumed [[Nazi]] supporters, known as Ustaše, and civilians supporting them (ranging from sympathisers, young conscripts, anti-communists, and ordinary serfs who were motivated by Partisan atrocities) attempted to flee in the direction of Austria hoping to surrender to British forces and to be given refuge. They were instead interned by British forces and then returned to the Partisans. A large number of these persons were killed in what has come to be called the [[Bleiburg massacre]].
== SFR Yugoslavia (1945–1991) ==
{{main|Socialist Republic of Croatia}}
Croatia was a [[Socialist Republic]] part of a six-part Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia. Under the new communist system, privately owned factories and estates were [[nationalization|nationalized]], and the economy was based on a type of planned [[market socialism]]. The country underwent a rebuilding process, recovered from World War II, went through [[industrialization]] and started developing tourism.
The country's [[socialist]] system also provided free [[apartments]] from big companies, which with the [[workers' self-management]] [[investments]] paid for the living spaces. From 1963, the citizens of Yugoslavia were allowed to [[travel]] to almost any country because of the neutral politics. No visas were required to travel to eastern or western countries, capitalist or communist nations.<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,942012,00.html Socialism of Sorts] June 10, 1966</ref> Such free travel was unheard of at the time in the [[Eastern Bloc]] countries, and in some western countries as well (eg. [[Spain]] or [[Portugal]], both dictatorships at the time). This proved to be very helpful for Croatia's inhabitants who found working in [[foreign]] countries more financially rewarding. Upon retirement, a popular plan was to return to live in Croatia (then Yugoslavia) to buy a more expensive [[property]].
In Yugoslavia, the people of Croatia were guaranteed free [[healthcare]], free [[dental care]], and secure [[pensions]]. The older generation found this very comforting as pensions would sometimes exceed their former [[payroll|paychecks]]. Free [[trade]] and travel within the country also helped Croatian [[industries]] that [[imported]] and [[exported]] throughout all the former republics. Students and military personnel were encouraged to visit other republics to learn more about the country, and all levels of education, especially [[secondary education]] and [[higher education]], were gratis.
The economy developed into a type of [[socialism]] called ''samoupravljanje'' (self-management), in which workers controlled socially-owned enterprises. This kind of market socialism created significantly better economic conditions than in the Eastern Bloc countries. Croatia went through intensive industrialization in the 1960s and 1970s with industrial output increasing several-fold and with Zagreb surpassing Belgrade for the amount of [[industry]]. Factories and other organizations were often named after [[Partisans (Yugoslavia)|Partisans]] who were declared [[People's Hero of Yugoslavia|national heroes]]. This practice also spread to street names, names of parks and buildings and some more trivial features.
[[Image:Tito-gadafi.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Tito meets with [[Libya]]n leader [[Muammar al-Gaddafi]] in 1975.]]
Before World War II, Croatia's industry was not significant, with the vast majority of the people employed in agriculture. By 1991 the country was completely transformed into a modern industrialized state. By the same time, the Croatian [[Adriatic coast]] had taken shape as an internationally popular [[tourism|tourist destination]], all coastal republics (but mostly SR Croatia) profited greatly from this, as tourist numbers reached levels still unsurpassed in modern Croatia. The government brought unprecedented economic and industrial growth, high levels of social security and a very low crime rate. The country completely recovered from WW2 and achieved a very high GDP and economic growth rate, significantly higher than the present-day [[Republic]].
The constitution of 1963 balanced the power in the country between the Croats and the Serbs, and alleviated the fact that the Croats were again in a minority. Trends after 1965 (like the fall of [[OZNA]] and [[UDBA]] chief [[Aleksandar Ranković]] from power in 1966<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,905720,00.html The Specter of Separatism], ''[[TIME Magazine]]'', February 07, 1972</ref>), however, led to the [[Croatian Spring]] of 1970–71, when students in Zagreb organized demonstrations for greater civil liberties and greater Croatian autonomy. The regime stifled the public protest and incarcerated the leaders, but this led to the ratification of a new Constitution in 1974, giving more rights to the individual republics.
At that time, radical [[Ustaše]] cells of Croatian émigrés in Western Europe<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,905959,00.html Conspiratorial Croats], ''[[TIME Magazine]]'', June 05, 1972</ref> planned and guerilla acts inside Yugoslavia, but they were largely countered.<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,906151,00.html Battle in Bosnia], ''[[TIME Magazine]]'', July 24, 1972</ref>
In 1980, after Tito's death, economic, political, and religious difficulties started to mount and the federal government began to crumble. The crisis in [[Kosovo]] and, in 1986, the emergence of [[Slobodan Milošević]] in Serbia provoked a very negative reaction in Croatia and [[Slovenia]]; politicians from both republics feared that his motives would threaten their republics' autonomy. With the climate of change throughout Eastern Europe during the 1980s, the communist hegemony was challenged (at the same time, the Milošević government began to gradually [[Anti-bureaucratic revolution|concentrate Yugoslav power in Serbia]]) and calls for free multi-party elections were becoming louder.
==Republic of Croatia==
===Yugoslav Wars (1991-1995)===
{{main|Croatian War of Independence}}
In 1990, the [[Croatian parliamentary election, 1990|first free elections]] were held. A people's movement called the [[Croatian Democratic Union]] (HDZ) won out by a relatively slim margin against the reformed communist [[Social Democratic Party of Croatia|Party of Democratic Change]] (SDP), led by [[Franjo Tuđman]] (former general in Tito's Partisan movement) and Ivica Račan (former president of Croatia's League of Communists, the SKH ) respectively. However, Croatia's British-style [[first-past-the-post]] election system enabled Tuđman to form the government relatively independently. The HDZ's intentions were to secure independence for Croatia, contrary to the wishes of a part of the ethnic Serbs in the republic, and official politics of Belgrade. The excessively polarized climate soon escalated into complete estrangement between the two nations and even sectarian violence.
In the summer of 1990, Serbs from the mountainous areas where they constituted a majority rebelled and formed a new entity, the so-called ''Autonomous Region of the Serb Krajina'' (later the ''[[Republic of Serbian Krajina]]''); neither were recognised by a single country outside of their proposed borders. Any intervention by the Croatian police was obstructed by the [[Yugoslav People's Army]] (JNA), now containing a significantly larger percentage of Serbs. The conflict culminated with the ''log revolution'', in which the Krajina Serbs blocked the roads to the tourist destinations in [[Dalmatia]].
Some saw the Croatian government's declaration of independence from Yugoslavia on [[June 25]], 1991, as an act of hypocrisy especially considering that the same rights of independence and self determination were not granted to the Serbs of Croatia.{{Fact|date=April 2008}}{{Dubious|date=May 2008}} The Yugoslav National Army (JNA) initially used as a buffer between the two conflicting sides began military actions in defense of the ethnic Serb minority after several massacres of Serbian civilians occurred at the hands of Croatian paramilitary groups{{Fact|Mat 2008|date=May 2008}}{{Dubious|date=May 2008}}, manly of whom openly promoting their fascist intentions.{{Fact|date=May 2008}} Many Croatian cities, notably [[Vukovar]] and Dubrovnik, came under a joint attack from joint Yugoslav forces and Serbs local to the region. The Croatian Parliament cut all remaining ties with Yugoslavia on [[October 8]], 1991.
The civilian population fled the areas of armed conflict ''en masse'': generally speaking, hundreds of thousands of Croats moved away from the Bosnian and Serbian border areas, while thousands of Serbs moved towards it. In many places, masses of civilians were forced out by the Yugoslav National Army (JNA), who consisted mostly of conscripts from Serbia and Montenegro, and irregulars from Serbia, in what became known as [[ethnic cleansing]]. Ethnic Serbs in Croatian-dominated parts of Croatia were similarly forced out by the Croatian army and irregular forces.{{Fact|date=April 2008}}
The border city of Vukovar underwent a three month siege — the [[Battle of Vukovar]] — during which most of the city was destroyed and a majority of the population was forced to flee. The city fell to the Serbian forces on [[November 18]], [[1991]] and the [[Vukovar massacre]] occurred.Some historians believe that the city could have been spared and defended, but was left to "fend for itself" to gain sympathy from the west<ref>http://www.virovitica.net/clanak.asp?clanakID=6666</ref>
Subsequent [[United Nations|UN]]-sponsored cease-fires followed, and the warring parties mostly entrenched. The Yugoslav People's Army retreated from Croatia into Bosnia and Herzegovina where a new cycle of tensions were escalating: the [[Bosnian War]] was to start. During 1992 and 1993, Croatia also handled an estimated 700,000 refugees from Bosnia, mainly Bosnian Muslims.
Armed conflict in Croatia remained intermittent and mostly on a small scale until 1995. In early August, Croatia embarked on [[Operation Storm]], this action, thou illegal under the UN{{Fact|date=May 2008}}, would not have been initiated if not for the approval from the United States. The Croatian attack quickly reconquered most of the territories from the Republic of Serbian Krajina authorities, leading to a mass exodus of the Serbian population. An estimated 90,000-350,000 Serbs fled shortly before<ref>[http://www.unhchr.ch/Huridocda/Huridoca.nsf/0/d0cd11bdf1350357802566d60046e3b7?Opendocument Croatian report from 1995]</ref><ref>[http://www.amnesty.org/en/report/info/EUR64/002/2005 Amnesty International report]</ref> , during and after the operation. As a result of this operation, a few months later the war ended with the negotiation of the [[Dayton Agreement]]. A peaceful integration of the remaining Serbian-controlled territories in Eastern Slavonia was completed in 1998 under [[UN]] supervision. Majority of the Serbs who fled from the former Krajina have not returned due to fear of being killed, and the Croatian government has done little to encourage Serbs to return.<ref>[http://www.predsjednik.hr/default.asp?ru=317&gl=200705160000004&sid=&jezik=2 Statement of Croatian president]</ref><ref>http://hrw.org/croatian/docs/2007/01/11/croati14916.htm Human rights report from 2006 on Croatian</ref>
From an economic view, the Republic (as well as the remainder of Yugoslavia) experienced a serious depression. President Tuđman initiated the process of privatization and de-nationalization in Croatia, however, this was far from transparent and fully legal. The fact that the new government's legal system was inefficient and slow, as well as the wider context of the [[Yugoslav wars]] caused numerous incidents known collectively in Croatia as the "Privatization robbery" ([[Croatian language|Croatian]]: ''"privatizacijska pljačka"''). [[Nepotism]] was endemic and during this period many influential individuals with the backing of the authorities acquired state-owned property and companies at extremely low prices, afterwards selling them off piecemeal to the highest bidder for much larger sums. This proved very lucrative for the new owners, but in the vast majority of cases this (along with the separation from the previously secured Yugoslav [[market]]s) also caused the [[bankruptcy]] of the (previously successful) firm, causing the [[unemployment]] of thousands of citizens, a problem Croatia still struggles with to this day. <br>
This was all helped, not just by the (allegedly purposeful) inadequacy of legal restrictions, but also by the apparently active support of the new Croatia's authorities, ultimately controlled by Tuđman from his strong presidential position. In the end this shed an increasingly negative light, and cast a shadow on his notable successes as a strategist and wartime statesman. Excluding the mostly rural rebel-occupied areas (the so-called [[Republic of Serbian Krajina]]), in the last two years of Tuđman's first tenure the detrimental effects of "wild" and unrestricted [[capitalism]] had become strikingly visible, with more than 400,000 unemployed citizens, and a significant drop in the [[GDP per capita]], problems Croatia struggles with to this day.
=== Croatia in the 1990s - Republic of Croatia ===
The modern period in [[Croatia]]n history begins in 1990 with the country's change of political and economic system as well as achieving independence from [[Yugoslavia]] in 1991.
Following the end of the war, [[Franjo Tuđman]]'s government started to lose popularity as it was criticized (among other things) for its involvement in suspicious [[privatization]] deals of the early 1990s. In 1995, the opposition surprisingly won in the capital of [[Zagreb]], which led to the [[Zagreb Crisis]] when Tuđman refused to accept this victory.
Croatia became a member of the [[Council of Europe]] on [[November 6]], [[1996]]. 1996 and 1997 were a period of post-war recovery and improving economic conditions.
The remaining part of former "Krajina", areas adjacent to [[Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|FR Yugoslavia]], negotiated a peaceful reintegration process with the Croatian Government. The so-called Erdut Agreement made the area a temporary protectorate of the [[UN Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium]]. The area was formally re-integrated into Croatia on [[January 15]]th, 1998.
===Post-Tuđman era===
Tuđman died in 1999 and in the early [[Croatian parliamentary election, 2000|2000 parliamentary elections]], the nationalist [[Croatian Democratic Union|HDZ]] government was replaced by a center-left coalition, with [[Ivica Račan]] as prime minister. At the same time, [[Croatian presidential election, 2000|presidential elections]] were held which were won by a moderate, [[Stjepan Mesić]].
The new Račan government amended the [[Constitution]], changing the political system from a [[presidential system]] to a [[parliamentary system]], transferring most executive presidential powers from the president onto the institutions of the [[Parliament]] and the [[Prime Minister]]. The new government also started several large building projects, including state-sponsored [[house|housing]] and the building of the vital [[Zagreb]]-[[Split]] [[Highway]].
The country rebounded from a mild [[recession]] in 1998/1999 and achieved notable economic growth during the following years. The [[unemployment]] rate would continue to rise until 2001 when it finally started falling. Return of refugees accelerated as many homes were rebuilt by the government; most Croats had already returned (except for some in [[Vukovar]]), whereas only a third of the Serbs had done so, impeded by unfavorable property laws as well as ethnic and economic issues.
The Račan government is often credited with bringing Croatia out of semi-isolation of the Tuđman era. Croatia became a [[World Trade Organization]] (WTO) member on [[November 30]], [[2000]]. The country signed an association agreement with the [[European Union]] in October 2001, and applied for membership in February/March 2003.
===Later events===
In late 2003, [[Croatian parliamentary election, 2003|new parliamentary elections]] were held and a reformed HDZ party won under leadership of [[Ivo Sanader]], who became prime minister. After some delay caused by controversy over extradition of army generals to the ICTY, in 2004 the [[European Commission]] finally issued a recommendation that the accession negotiations with Croatia should begin. Its report on Croatia described it as a modern democratic society with a competent economy and the ability to take on further obligations, provided it continued the reform process.
The country was given EU applicant status on [[June 18]], [[2004]] and a negotiations framework was set up in March 2005. Actual negotiations began after the capture of general [[Ante Gotovina]] in December 2005, which resolved outstanding issues with the [[ICTY]] in the Hague.
Further issues notwithstanding, the Croatian government and the European Union expect Croatia to become a member of the EU between 2009 and 2010.
In August 2007, Croatia experienced its worst post-war tragedy. During the [[2007 Croatian coast fires|fires that ravaged its coast]], 12 firemen died as a result of a fire on Kornat island.
==See also==
*[[Culture of Croatia]]
*[[Economy of Croatia]]
*[[List of rulers of Croatia]]
*[[History of Dalmatia]]
*[[History of Zagreb]]
*[[History of present-day nations and states]]
*[[History of Europe]]
*[[History of the Mediterranean]]
*[[History of the Mediterranean region]]
*[[History of Hungary]]
*[[History of the Balkans]]
*[[Central Europe]]
*[[Austria-Hungary]]
*[[NDH]]
*[[History of Yugoslavia]]
*[[Balkans]]
==References==
{{Reflist}}
== External links ==
*[http://www.croatianacademy.org/journal.htm Journal of Croatian Studies]
*[http://croatia.mons.hr/croatia/history.htm Short History of Croatia]
*[http://www.hr/darko/etf/etfss.html Overview of History, Culture and Science of Croatia]
*[http://vlib.iue.it/history/europe/croatia.html WWW-VL History:Croatia]
*[http://mirror.veus.hr/myth/ Dr. Michael McAdams: Croatia — Myth and Reality]
*[http://www.geocities.com/tegetthoff66/vukovar/intro.html History of Croatia as an introduction to the battle of Vukovar]
*[http://www.felbar.com/siteindex/create.php?lang=en&rtype=1&mnav=maps&ext=htm Historical Maps of Croatia]
*[http://www.geocities.com/hrvatskapovijest/img/09.gif Croatia under Tomislav -from Nada Klaic book]
*The History Files: [http://www.historyfiles.co.uk/KingListsEurope/EasternCroatia.htm]
{{History of Europe}}
[[Category:History of Croatia|History of Croatia]]
[[Category:National histories|Croatia]]
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