Editing Croatia (section)

== History ==

The territory of present-day Croatia was inhabited during prehistoric times. Illyrian communities occupied much of the eastern Adriatic region, while Greek settlers established colonies on several islands and coastal sites. Roman expansion brought the area under Roman rule and divided it mainly between the provinces of Dalmatia and Pannonia. Roads and ports connected the Adriatic coast with the Danube basin and the wider Roman transport system.<ref name="balkans-history"/>

After the decline of Roman authority, the coastal cities remained under varying degrees of Byzantine control. Slavic groups, including the Croats, settled across the region during the sixth and seventh centuries. Croatian principalities developed in Dalmatia and Pannonia. Duke Tomislav united much of the territory and was recognised as king around 925, establishing the medieval Kingdom of Croatia.

A succession crisis followed the death of King Demetrius Zvonimir and the end of the native Trpimirović dynasty. Croatia entered a dynastic union with the [[Kingdom of Hungary]] in 1102. Croatian lands retained institutions including the [[Sabor]], the office of ban, and a separate territorial administration, although the Hungarian monarch also held the Croatian crown.

Venice controlled several coastal cities and islands during parts of the medieval period. The [[Republic of Ragusa]], centred on Dubrovnik, developed as an independent maritime republic and commercial centre. Its merchants operated across the Adriatic, Mediterranean, Balkans, and Ottoman territories.

Ottoman expansion during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries reduced Croatian-controlled territory and caused repeated warfare along the eastern frontier. Croatian nobles selected Ferdinand I of Habsburg as king in 1527. The Habsburg authorities organised the [[Military Frontier]] along the Ottoman border, while civilian Croatia and Slavonia remained under the ban and the Sabor. Dalmatian coastal possessions were divided between Venice, the Habsburg monarchy, and the Republic of Ragusa.

The Ottoman frontier moved eastward during the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The Republic of Venice was dissolved in 1797, after which its former Dalmatian possessions passed between Austrian and French control. From 1809 to 1813, parts of the coast formed part of the French-controlled [[Illyrian Provinces]]. Austrian authority was restored following the defeat of Napoleon.

The Croatian national revival developed during the nineteenth century through language reform, publishing, education, and political organisation. The Illyrian movement promoted the use of Croatian and closer cultural cooperation among South Slavic peoples. During the revolutions of 1848, Ban [[Josip Jelačić]] supported the Habsburg monarchy against the Hungarian revolutionary government while also seeking greater authority for Croatian institutions.

The creation of Austria-Hungary in 1867 divided Croatian-speaking territories between the two parts of the dual monarchy. The Croatian–Hungarian Settlement of 1868 established the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia within the Hungarian half and granted limited autonomy over internal administration, education, religion, and justice. Dalmatia and Istria remained in the Austrian half, while Rijeka was administered separately under Hungarian authority.

Austria-Hungary dissolved at the end of the [[First World War]]. On 29 October 1918, the Croatian Parliament ended its constitutional ties with Austria and Hungary and joined the [[State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs]]. The new state united with the Kingdom of Serbia on 1 December 1918 to form the [[Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes]], which was renamed the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929.<ref name="slovenia-history"/>

Political disputes developed over the centralisation of the Yugoslav state and the position of Croatian institutions. Croatian Peasant Party leader [[Stjepan Radić]] was shot in the Yugoslav parliament on 20 June 1928 and died on 8 August. King Alexander I established a royal dictatorship on 6 January 1929 and reorganised the country into administrative provinces that did not follow historic Croatian borders.

Axis forces invaded Yugoslavia on 6 April 1941 during the [[Second World War]]. The Axis-supported [[Independent State of Croatia]] was proclaimed on 10 April under the Ustaše movement. The regime governed most of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina and conducted systematic persecution and killings of Serbs, Jews, Roma, political opponents, and members of the resistance. Italy directly controlled or occupied parts of the Adriatic coast until its surrender in September 1943.<ref name="second-world-war"/>

The Yugoslav Partisans organised armed resistance against the occupying forces and collaborating authorities. The State Anti-fascist Council for the National Liberation of Croatia established Croatia as a federal unit within the future Yugoslav state. Partisan forces entered Zagreb on 8 May 1945, ending the wartime Croatian state.

Croatia became the Socialist Republic of Croatia within federal Yugoslavia after the war. The government expanded industry, public education, healthcare, housing, road construction, and coastal tourism. Zagreb, Rijeka, Split, Osijek, and other cities grew as industrial and administrative centres. The Adriatic coast developed into one of Yugoslavia's main tourism regions.

The Croatian Spring reform movement demanded greater economic and political authority for Croatia during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Yugoslav authorities suppressed the movement in December 1971 and removed its principal leaders from office. Constitutional changes adopted in 1974 later increased the authority of the Yugoslav republics.

Political and economic disagreements intensified during the 1980s. Multiparty elections were held in April and May 1990. The Croatian Parliament adopted the current constitution on 22 December 1990. An independence referendum held on 19 May 1991 produced a majority in favour of leaving Yugoslavia.

Croatia declared independence on 25 June 1991. Implementation was suspended under the [[Brioni Agreement]] of 7 July and took effect on 8 October. Fighting developed between Croatian forces, the [[Yugoslav People's Army]], and Serb forces controlling parts of eastern and central Croatia. Croatia received international recognition on 15 January 1992.

Croatian forces retook western Slavonia during Operation Flash in May 1995 and most remaining Serb-controlled territory during Operation Storm in August. The Erdut Agreement of 12 November 1995 established a process for the peaceful return of eastern Slavonia, Baranja, and western Syrmia to Croatian administration. Reintegration was completed on 15 January 1998.

Post-war governments rebuilt damaged settlements, transport systems, public services, and the tourism sector. The road network between Zagreb, the Adriatic coast, and eastern Croatia expanded during the following decades. The Croatian kuna remained the national currency until the euro replaced it on 1 January 2023.<ref name="euro-history"/>