Fallow deer in Brijuni National Park. Apart from its unspoiled nature, this park is also a place steeped in history, since the Declaration establishing the Non-Aligned Movement was signed there in 1956, during the Cold War.

The crowning of the Croatian king Tomislav, Oton Iveković (detail, 1904-1905). Tomislav was crowned as the first Croatian king in 925.

A prototype of a regional electric train by Končar – an electric vehicles transport company founded in 1921. Končar now has about 4,000 employees. Its annual turnover is approximately €320 million, of which more than half is made through export.

Banski Dvori, the seat of the Government, on St. Mark’s Square in Zagreb; this historical building was the residence of the Croatian bans (governors) until 1918. Until the shelling in 1991, during the Homeland War, Banski Dvori was the seat of the President of the Republic. According to 'Twiplomacy 2013', an annual global study of world leaders on Twitter by Burson-Marsteller, with 33.8 tweets per day, the Croatian Government (@ VladaRH) is third in the world among the most active on Twitter.

Miroslav Krleža (1893–1981), one of the most significant authors of Croatian literature in the 20th century and originator of many cultural initiatives based on raising the critical awareness of society, which made his opus one of the central points of reference for the evolution of modern Croatia.

Fine arts

Works preserved from the oldest stylistic periods bear witness to the continuity of creativity and to the talents of local people, and place the Croatian art and architecture heritage on an equal footing with the main components of world creative output ...

Judicial power

Judicial power is exercised by the courts, which are autonomous and independent. According to the law, bodies of state authority are obliged to protect the Constitution and laws confirmed by the legal order of the Republic of Croatia and to guarantee the uniform ...

Language

The Croatian language belongs to the South Slavic group of languages. It is the official language of the Republic of Croatia, and is also spoken by Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia (Vojvodina), Montenegro (Bay of Kotor), Austria ...

Sport

Croatians are a sporting nation; sport is part of the compulsory curriculum in schools at all levels of education. Many children and young people take part in extracurricular sporting activities, which are also seen as a way of life in recreational terms ...

Climate

Thanks to its position in the moderate climate belt along the 45th parallel, Croatia enjoys a predominantly moderate climate, with four clearly marked seasons. Local climate differences are determined primarily by the diversity of the relief ...

Major companies

In Croatia there are several large companies under private ownership which play a significant role in foreign trade. Some of them are significant technological innovators ...

The Prehistoric period

The earliest traces of human presence on Croatian soil date back to the Palaeolithic Age. In Šandalja Cave near Pula, and in Punikve near Ivanec, flints made by pre-Neanderthal people have been found, while the remains of Neanderthal prehistoric ...

Croatia in brief

Croatia has been present on the contemporary international political stage since its independence from the Yugoslav Federation, i.e. for a little over two decades, but in terms of history and culture, is one of the oldest European countries ...