Medieval Croatia

The history of Croatia in the Middle Ages is initiated with the conquest of South Slavic tribes in the 7th century and ends with the Battle of Mohács ( 1526). An important section is the independent Croatian kingdom ( 925-1102 ).

Croatian Kingdom (925-1102)

From the 7th century Croatia today was from South Slavic tribes ( Croats ) have been settled. Trpimir ( 845-864 ) was a Croatian prince, the parts of Slavonia and Dalmatian cities subjugated. His grandson Tomislav was crowned in the year 925, Tomislav degrees from the legate John X as the first king of Croatia (reigned 910-928 ). The Conquest of the Magyars in the Pannonian Basin during his reign resulted in the division of the Slavs in North and East Slavs on the one hand, and South Slavs on the other hand, which played a significant role in the further development of European history.

King Tomislav was his country - consisting of central Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia and parts of Bosnia - to successfully defend against the Hungarians. But he still had more far-reaching goals. He built up an army, which included 100,000 foot soldiers, 60,000 horsemen and 180 warships, according to Constantine VII. The Byzantines took the Croats as allies against the Bulgarians. The Bulgarians in turn had subjected the not yet united in a Principality of Serbia, which ( as later against the Turks ) led to the first Serbian mass flight to Croatia. Through the alliance with Byzantium Croatia also got the Adriatic islands and the cities of Spalato / Split, maid / Trogir and Zara / Zadar awarded, which had been until then formally under Byzantine rule. This state comprised thus to Istria on all of today's Croatian territories. Originally called this land " Chorbatia ".

The Croats as part of the Holy Roman Church

The Christianization of the Croats was already in the 7th century. This is confirmed by a letter from Pope John X from the year 925 to Tomislav, King of the Croats ( " Rex Croatorum "). The Pope says that the Dalmatian Slavs because of their long association with the holy Roman Church their " specialissimi filii " are. He therefore calls on the genuine sons of Rome to celebrate the Mass is not in the Slavonic, but in the Latin language. Although King Tomislav met the Pope the central desire and allowed the recovery of the Dalmatian diocese with its seat in Split ( under the direction of Rome ), the use of the Croatian Church Slavonic - in show could / but he did not want to stop. ( In the 13th century Glagolitic liturgy - Croatian was recognized by papal decisions again. )

The language- related Serbians who were part of the Bulgarian Empire, the Orthodox Christianity turned to shortly thereafter. A final distinction between Eastern and Western Church took place, however, until the 11th century.

In addition to the controlled Rome Slavs mission of Aquileia and the influence of the old established Christians of the coastal cities, the St. Cyril and Methodius made an important contribution to the Christianization of the Croats. Others thought the Glagolitic alphabet, a special Slavic script which regional survived on the northern Adriatic to the 19th century.

The period after Tomislav

928 King Tomislav disappeared without a trace. Under his successors Croatia's position of power has been weakened. Favored by internal disputes, the migration period in the Romanesque remaining coastal cities made independently and sought contact with Venice, which thus reached its supremacy in the Adriatic. Only Ragusa ( Dubrovnik) remained independent and could persist until the Napoleonic era as town by skillfully Republic taring with the major powers Venice, later Austria and the Ottoman Empire.

However, under King Stefan Držislav ( Dirzislaiv ) ( 969-997 ) spoke Byzantium Croatia for a renewed alliance again the sovereignty of Dalmatia to. Držislav recognized 994 the Greek Emperor as his overlords at. At that time, appeared for the first time, still used today Croatian national emblem: a red and white checkerboard pattern, the Sahovnica. In today's version, it is adorned with a crown of five regional coat of arms.

In the following time Croatia came through Venice in the west and Hungary to the east, more and more under pressure. The Byzantine politics shifted more to the relations with Venice, and weakened by disputes about Croatia was left to itself. The Byzantine emperor Basil II transferred the administration of Dalmatia, a former Eastern Roman theme, on Venice. In May 1000 defeated a Venetian fleet of Croatia; Zadar, Trogir and Split were placed under Venetian administration, and concluded with a contract Dubrovnik. King Krešimir III. picked up the already only formally existing pay tribute Venice, recognized the Venetian Doge Peter Orseolo as Prince of Dalmatia and also had to deliver his son as a hostage.

Petar Krešimir, one of the greatest Croatian national hero, enlarged his kingdom by sea and by land, and also called himself " King of Dalmatia " (1050 ), what did his successor Dmitar Zvonimir ( 1075-1089 ).

But the struggle to Dalmatia was so not over. Dmitar Zvonimir, the last king of Croatian descent, managed an advance to the coast, and the capital was relocated na Moru Biograd. After Zvonimir, who was married to a Hungarian princess, died childless, Hungary introduced hereditary claims on Croatia. With Stephan ( Držislav ) II, the nephew of Krešimir II, who for a short time came to the throne in 1089, went out of the branch of the ancient Croatian kings.

Personal union with Hungary

→ Main article Croatia in personal union with Hungary

After Stephen's death in 1091 marched Hungarian King Ladislaus, brother of his widow, without greater resistance to Biograd na moru, the royal residence on the Dalmatian coast. However, because of a Cuman - incidence in Hungary, he had to return home quickly. On the way back he founded the Bishopric of Zagreb, which was placed under the Hungarian ecclesiastical province of Kalocsa. He appointed his nephew Álmos to the Croatian king, but could not prevail. 1093 Petar Svačić was elected king. Petar died in 1097 at the Battle of Gvozd, as if to deny a troupe of Hungarian king Koloman the passage to Biograd. King Ladislaus I and his successor Koloman defeated anti -Hungarian alliance of local nobility. Koloman but was limited in the " pacta conventa " instead of inclusion at a personal union. The administration took over a local representative, the " Ban ". The Hungarian kings took the title "King of Hungary, Croatia and Dalmatia " to, but Dalmatia was almost completely controls the latest Venetian from the year 1202. After Koloman his son Stephen II, was in turn followed Béla II as King of Hungary (as Béla I. Croatia) followed. He married Helena, the daughter of the Serbian prince Urosch I.

Only in the 13th century, Croatia had again own princes, but were princes of the Hungarian royal family. Since the end of the 15th century there were repeated to Turkish invasions. With the Battle of Krbava field in 1493 and the defeat of the Croats and Hungarians at the Battle of Mohács in 1526, the north-western Croatia was under Habsburg rule to Zagreb, Croatia with the rest of Hungary, a sanjak of the Ottoman Empire.