eurel     Sociological and legal data on religions in Europe and beyond
You are here : Home » Croatia » Historical highlights » Chronology » Some Key dates

Some Key dates

Early 7th century: Arrival of Croats in the territory of today’s Croatia.
Early 9th century: Two Croatian dukedoms are formed which were under Byzantine and Frankish rule.
879: Duke Branimir is recognized by Pope John VIII as a Croatian ruler, and Croatia as an independent state. The papal recognition marked the end of the process of Christianization of Croats.
910-928: Rule of Duke Tomislav who became a king in 925 and Croatia a kingdom. King Tomislav defended Croatia from Hungarian and later Bulgarian invasion and consequently spread its territory and established Croatia as the most powerful kingdom between German Empire and Byzantium.
1076: Demetrius Zvonimir is crowned king by a representative of Pope Gregory VII. Zvonimir promises loyalty to the Pope in the years following the East-West schism of 1054.
1102: Croatia enters a personal union with Hungary, in which Croatia accepted the Hungarian kings but kept its internal autonomy.
15th-16th century: The Republic of Venice occupies parts of Croatia, mainly Dalmatia, while Croatia was under the pressure of Ottoman invasions.
16th century: Spread of Protestantism in Croatia from neighbouring lands, mainly Slovenia, Hungary, and Venice. The first Protestant Synod was held in Tordinci (a place in eastern Croatia) in 1555. However, the spread of Protestantism was suppressed because the Croatian Parliament kept the article against tolerance and due to the work of Jesuits, who had been active in Croatia since 1606.
1527: Croatia becomes a part of the Habsburg Empire. It preserved its internal administration but lost further parts of its territory due to the constant invasion of the Ottomans. In 1538 it was divided into civilian and military territories.
1781: The Patent of Toleration issued by Joseph II, valid also in Croatia.
1797-1813: Parts of Croatia fall under French influence and rule. In 1809 Napoleon’s Army established the so-called Illyrian province across the majority of today’s Croatia, which ceased to exist in 1813 and its territory became again part of the Habsburg Empire, together with the territory which previously belonged to Venice and a small territory which previously formed the independent Republic of Dubrovnik.
1830s and 1840s –National renewal movement and flourishing of ideas on the unity of all South Slavs.
1847: Croatian becomes the official language in the Croatian Parliament, replacing the Latin language.
1867: Reorganization of the state into the Austria-Hungarian Empire. Croatia became part of the Hungarian side of the Empire, while Dalmatia remained under Austrian control. The Croatian-Hungarian Settlement of 1868 recognized the Croatian internal autonomy.
1915: The Croatian Parliament recognizes Islam as an equal religion.
29 October 1918: The Croatian Parliament declares independence from the Austria-Hungarian Empire and forms the State of Slovenes, Croats, and Serbs.
1 December 1918: The newly formed State of Slovenes, Croats, and Serbs, enters into union with the Kingdom of Serbia forming the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, which was renamed the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929.
1941-1945: After the Germans occupied Yugoslavia in April 1941, it collapsed and an Independent State of Croatia was formed on the territory of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina as a Nazi puppet state, while parts of Croatia were occupied by Italy and Hungary. During the war a partisan movement evolved, mainly led by Communists which managed to regain a part of the territory in 1943 proclaiming their state and establishing the National Anti-Fascist Council, which later became the Croatian Parliament.
1945-1991: Croatia is one of the six republics of the communist Yugoslavia.
Late 1940s and early 1950s – The most repressive period against religion and Church. The Archbishop (and later Cardinal) of Zagreb, Alojzije Stepinac, was imprisoned in 1946, being accused of alleged cooperation with the Nazi puppet state during the war, while Yugoslavia ended diplomatic relations with the Holy See in 1952.
1966: Diplomatic relations between Yugoslavia and the Holy See are re-established.
May 1990: Communists lose in the first free elections.
1991: Confessional instruction was introduced in public schools as an optional subject.
1991: Croatia declares its independence from the former Yugoslavia and the rebellion of Serbs ensues, particularly in the areas of their dominance, followed by military attack from Serbia and the Yugoslav Army.
1992: Croatia is recognized as an independent state by the international community.
1995: Croatia regains most of its occupied territory by military action.
1998: Croatia regains the last part of its occupied territory by a peaceful reintegration process.
1996 and 1998: Croatia signs four agreements with the Holy See on the position and rights of the Catholic Church in Croatia.
2002: Law on the Legal Status of Religious Communities is adopted by the Croatian Parliament.
2013: Croatia becomes an EU member state.
2023: Croatia becomes a member of the Euro and Schengen area.

D 11 April 2023    ASiniša Zrinščak

CNRS Unistra Dres Gsrl

Follow us:
© 2002-2024 eurel - Contact