Sinj | |
|---|---|
| Grad Sinj Town of Sinj | |
 Aerial view of Sinj | |
 Flag  Seal | |
 Interactive map of Sinj | |
  Sinj Location of Sinj in Croatia | |
| Coordinates:43°42′9″N16°38′17″E / 43.70250°N 16.63806°E /43.70250; 16.63806 | |
| Country |  Croatia |
| Region | Dalmatia (Dalmatian Hinterland) |
| County |  Split-Dalmatia |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor-Council |
| • Mayor | Miro Bulj (Most) |
| • Town Council | |
| Area | |
• Town | 193.4 km2 (74.7 sq mi) |
| • Urban | 7.7 km2 (3.0 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 326 m (1,070 ft) |
| Population (2021)[2] | |
• Town | 23,452 |
| • Density | 121.3/km2 (314.1/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 10,771 |
| • Urban density | 1,400/km2 (3,600/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 21230 |
| Area code | +385 021 |
| Vehicle registration | ST |
| Website | sinj |
Sinj (Croatian:[sîːɲ]) is atown in the continental part ofSplit-Dalmatia County,Croatia. As of the2021 census, the population was 23,500 people, of which 10,800 inhabited itsurban core.
Sinj is known for a knights' tournament ofSinjska alka,[3] which has been held since the beginning of the 18th century as a sign of victory over theOttoman Empire, and for the shrine ofOur Lady of Sinj. The urban center of Sinj is aprotected cultural heritage site.[4]
Sinj is located inDalmatia, in the region historically known asCetinska Krajina, a group of settlements situated around a fertilekarstic field ofSinjsko Polje (300 mAMSL), once shaped by the flood waters of theCetina river. The field lies between the mountains ofSvilaja (1508 m),Dinara (1913 m),Kamešnica (1855 m) andVisoka (890 m). Further south, the mountainMosor (1339 m) separates Sinj from theAdriatic sea.
The mountains give Sinj its specific sub-Mediterranean climate, with a total annual rainfall of about 1300 mm.[5] Winters are wet and cold, especially in the mornings, when temperatures can drop below -10 °C, whereas summers are hot and dry, with temperatures surpassing +40 °C.[5] Partly due to its location in a valley, Sinj is one of the coldestDalmatian towns in winter and one of the warmest in summer.
Since records began in 1950, the highest temperature recorded at the local weather station was 40.5 °C (104.9 °F), on 3 August 2017.[6] The coldest temperature was −24.2 °C (−11.6 °F), on 17 February 1956.[7]
Several stone weapons and tools discovered in Cetinska Krajina attest to the area's population dating back to theMesolithic.[5][8] Manycaves anddugouts contain evidence of laterNeolithic settlements. About 1000 years BC, the area was inhabited by theIllyrian tribeDalmatae. They were settled in the area between the rivers ofKrka andCetina, where they clashed with theRomans in the period of wars from 156 BC to 9 AD, ending with their complete defeat under the leadership ofBato the Daesitiate.[5]
In Roman times, there were two important localities in the vicinity of Sinj:Colonia Claudia Aequum near today's village ofČitluk, andTilurium, today'sGardun nearTrilj.
Aequum was probably founded byEmperor Augustus asOppidum Civium Romanorum. Among the various monuments, the famous statue ofHekate (Diana) and the head ofHeracles were discovered there, which are kept in the archaeological collection of the Franciscan monastery. This is the birthplace of Roman generalSextus Julius Severus, who suppressed the Jewish uprising and destroyedJerusalem in 135 AD.
During the long period of peace (Pax Romana), the Romans built roads in the area, fortified Osinium (Sinj), on Illyrian foundations, andTilurium on the southernmost edge of thepolje of Sinj; they built a bridge on Cetina (Pons Tilurii) and numerousvilla rusticas.[5] Tilurium was once home to theRoman 7th legion, followed by Roman auxiliary units.
Since the fall of theWestern Roman Empire in 476, the Cetina region had been ruled by theByzantine Empire.
It is unknown when theCroats settled in the area. The Byzantine EmperorConstantine VII mentions the County of Cetina among the Croatian administrative units in his 10th centuryDe Administrando Imperio.
Over time, a settlement developed beneath the old fortress. It was initially referred to asCetina, after the nearby river, but the name of the old town of Sinj was eventually transferred to it. Following the extinction of theTrpimirović dynasty in 1102, the country was united with Hungary under theÁrpád dynasty, but Cetina was ruled almost independently by the Domaldo family, then by the powerful CroatianŠubić family from the end of the 13th century, falling under the rule of theNelipić family in the middle of the 14th century. It was ruled by theTalovci beginning in the middle of the 15th century, followed by general discord and internal conflicts until it fell to theOttoman Turks.[5]
In 1513[citation needed] Sinj was conquered by the Ottoman army. It eventually lost its importance and became a small settlement on the road connectingBosnia to theAdriatic Sea. Part of the Croatian population fled, part remained, and the smallest part converted toIslam. At the time, the fortress and its suburb had about a hundred houses and about a thousand inhabitants.[5]
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With the return of power of theRepublic of Venice to nearbyFortress of Klis in 1648, Sinj regained its old importance as the last Turkish outpost towards the Venetian possessions. After several failed attempts to break free from Turkish rule, the new provisorGirolamo Cornaro with about 7,000 fighters[citation needed] captured the fortress on September 25, 1686.
Due to harsh living conditions and constant oppression under Ottoman rule, the domicile population declined, so Venetian authorities attempted to attract people from western Bosnia. The most massive migration took place in 1687, led by theFranciscans from theRama monastery. In August 1715, during theSecond Morean War, the Turks tried to retake Sinj and kept it under siege. The siege was unsuccessful, owing primarily to the collapse of Ottoman logistics,[9] hunger and the outbreak of dysentery;[10] on the night of August 15, the Turks fled toLivno. Contrary to popular belief, it appears that Venetian professional army units bore the majority of the burden in the conflict with Ottoman forces, rather than local fighters.[9] The "Diary of the Siege of Sinj" is a written Venetian account of the events;[11] no Turkish sources mentioning the siege or battle have been discovered thus far.[9]
Following theTreaty of Požarevac in 1718, the entire region fell under theVenetian Republic. The period is considered one of poor prospects, although the town began to develop as a result of increased trade with Bosnia. The settlement was moved from the old and unsuitable fortress to the plain, where a new church, a monastery and the first residential houses were built soon after.
The Republic of Venice and its possessions were abolished by the agreement betweenNapoleon andHoly Roman Empire (Austria) on October 17, 1797. Napoleon ceded the Venetian possessions to Austria, and in July the first Austrian troops arrived in Cetinska Krajina. This marked the beginning of the first Austrian occupation of Dalmatia, which would last for eight years. As a result of new Austrian policies, Sinj's first public elementary school opened in 1798.[5]
With the defeat in the Battle of Austerlitz in 1805, Austria was forced to hand over all former Venetian possessions to Napoleon, giving the region a new master at the beginning of 1806. A tumultuous and significant period of French rule began that would last seven years. In 1811, the French established the Municipality of Sinj. The French administration canceled state subsidies wherever it was possible, thus canceling the support for Alka. Following Napoleon's defeat in Russia and near Leipzig in 1813, the Austrian army reoccupied Dalmatia, and Sinj. After theCongress of Vienna in 1815 and until 1918, the town was part of theAustrian monarchy (Austria side after thecompromise of 1867), head of the district of the same name, one of the 13Bezirkshauptmannschaften in theKingdom of Dalmatia.[12]
To get to know the newly acquired properties, Austrian EmperorFrancis II takes a journey through Dalmatia in 1818, and visits Sinj. The people of Sinj use the opportunity to organize the tournament of Alka, which Francis II liked so much that he established a permanent annual financial support.
DespiteGermanisation and Austrian bureaucracy, Sinj made significant progress under the Austrians.[5] In 1854, the first public high school in Dalmatia with Croatian as the language of instruction was founded in Sinj by theFranciscan Province of Split.[5] Due to its favorable strategic position, Sinj become an important Austrian military center in Dalmatia. The bridges over the Cetina river were built between 1849 and 1851;sewerage was installed in 1878, and by the end of the century, the town had taken on its current urban form; in 1891, an important tobacco trade center opened.[5] With the town's economic growth, which was based on trade with its neighbors and beyond, it was granted a railway connection to Split. In 1898, a major earthquake struck the town, causing widespread damage. In 1912, the town received a water supply system that provided drinking water from the Kosinackarst spring.[10] TheFirst World War began in 1914, with significant casualties in the Cetina region.
After the defeat of Austria in WWI, a new union was created in 1918, theKingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. The new state under the rule of theKarađorđević dynasty failed to meet public expectations. WhenStjepan Radić was assassinated in theNational Assembly in Belgrade in 1928, the town sent an Alka delegation to his funeral inZagreb. Between the two world wars, the town developed a vibrant and diverse cultural life: two amateur theater groups, large choirs, two brass bands, and a philharmonic orchestra were established, and a large number of local intellectuals receivedclassical (est. 1854) and real (est. 1921) high school education.
The city center was first electrified around 1922.[5]
The town and nearby settlements were under the rule of military forces of the Independent State of Croatia, Italian, and German armies. This resulted in the spread of the idea ofPartisan resistance, followed by frequent reprisals by the fascist regime against the local population. Thepeople's liberation army included approximately 500 soldiers from the town of Sinj. In total, 1338 partisans died in the fighting, 143 of whom were killed in theBattle on Sutjeska . The occupiers killed 1,888 people and set fire to 2,933 homes in 59 villages across the region. Eight partizans were declaredNational Heroes of Yugoslavia.[13] In the famousBattle of the Neretva, nineteen-year-old Bruno Vuletić from Sinj commanded the 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Dalmatian Brigade, some of which were the first to cross the collapsed bridge and attack theAxis-alignedChetniks.
On October 25, 1944, the town was liberated by the forces of the20th Division of the Yugoslav Army.[14]
During the war, 479 residents of the Sinj region were interned in concentration camps, the majority of whom never returned.[14] On April 22, 1945,Ante Bakotić from Sinj led the escape of male prisoners from theJasenovac Concentration Camp, shortly before the end of WWII. Many of the 1,073 detainees at the time, including Bakotić, did not survive the flight.
Following WWII, there was extensive work to increaseliteracy,emancipate women, and accelerateindustrial development. Dalmatinka cotton processing factory was established in 1951, along with Trnovača agricultural plant, Cetinka factory, Naprijed wood processing company, and Autoprijevoz, a freight and bus transport company. Three hydroelectric plants were built along the Cetina river:Peruća (1960),Orlovac (1972), and Đale (1989).[15] Comprehensive healthcare was established,[16] and a health center with a maternity ward was built. A variety of sports, art, and technical clubs, as well as the town's scout organization, were formed. In 1959, the town's music school began offering lessons insolfeggio,piano,violin, andwind instruments.[17]
The city was rapidly expanding through planned construction, which began with housing for workers at the newly established megafactory Dalmatinka; the town's Olympic swimming pool was built in parallel with the building of the factory.[16][18][10] Sinjski skojevci Elementary School opened (in 1977), as well as with a new large sports hall, a hotel, a hippodrome for the1979 Mediterranean Games, and a large high school building. The construction of the Split-Zagreb state road (1963) improves traffic connections,[15] but the narrow-gauge railway known as Sinjska rera, which connected the town toSplit, was discontinued in 1962.
Since the summer of 1991, a large part of the old Municipality of Sinj was occupied, and Sinj was within artillery range of the rebel Serbs' positions, about 6 km away; some 3,000 shells were fired at the city.[5] Along with the rest of Dalmatia, Sinj was cut off from the motherland in terms of transportation and energy.
In modern Croatia, Sinj has regressed economically: industry from the socialist period either collapsed or was destroyed by war and tycoon privatization during the war.[15] Most of the economy consists of service activities. The city promotes the development of agriculture, transport, tourism, and industry, so far with limited success.[15][19]
As of the 2021 census, the total population of the municipality was 23 452, distributed across the followingsettlements:[20]
| population | 7600 | 8256 | 9025 | 10089 | 11543 | 13205 | 13770 | 14829 | 15526 | 16864 | 18687 | 20598 | 23849 | 25985 | 25373 | 24826 | 23452 |
| 1857 | 1869 | 1880 | 1890 | 1900 | 1910 | 1921 | 1931 | 1948 | 1953 | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 | 2011 | 2021 |
Sinj is well-known forSinjska alka, a knights' tournament that is now onUNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.[3] Taking place in early August, it is a tourist attraction, and receives extensive media coverage and Croatia'spolitical establishment attention. Sinj is also a pilgrimage site, with thousands ofChristian worshippers visiting on the feast of theAssumption to participate in the procession with the painting ofOur Lady of Sinj.
Sinj is home to theMuseum of the Cetinska Krajina Region,[21] Museum of Alka,[22] Archaeological Collection of the Franciscan Monastery,[23] and two galleries.
The local chapter of theHPS isHPD "Svilaja", which had 32 members in 1936. At the time, the chapter had lain dormant for several years, until its 1118dinar debt was paid off that year.[24] Membership rose to 52 in 1937 under the Šimun Bradić presidency.[25]: 250 It was liquidated on 20 January 1939.[26]: 240
Sinj istwinned with:
Montemarciano, ItalySansepolcro, ItalyBarban, CroatiaĐakovo, CroatiaVukovar, CroatiaŠibenik, CroatiaTrogir, Croatia
Prozor-Rama, Bosnia and HerzegovinaPrnjavor, Bosnia and Herzegovina
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
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