The nameVukovar means "town on the Vuka River" (Vuko from the Vuka River, andvár from theHungarian word for 'fortress'). The river was called "Ulca" in antiquity, probably from an Illyrian language. Its name might be related to the name of the river "Volga".[4] In other languages, the city in German is known asWukowar and in Hungarian asVukovár orValkóvár. In the late 17th century, the medieval Croatian name Vukovo was supplanted by the HungarianVukovár.[5]
In theMiddle Ages, Vukovar was the seat of the greatVukovo County, which was first mentioned in 1220 as "Comitatus de Wolcou".On the right bank of the Vuka was the royal fortress castrum Walkow.A settlement developed in its suburb (suburbium), which was granted the privileges of a free royal city in 1231 by Duke Slavonia Koloman.Until the 14th century, the city was recorded in documents as Walco, Vlcou, Volkow, Walko, Wlkoy, and then the Hungarian variant of the city's name – Wolcowar (for the first time in 1323) was mentioned more and more often.Since 1691, the town has been developing on the right bank of the Vuka, initially under the name Vukovarski otok (Insula Vukovariensis); since then, the Hungarian name Vukovar has supplanted the medieval Croatian name of the city.[6][7]
The municipal area is divided into 9 local self-administration units, so-called local boards (Croatian: "mjesni odbor"): seven in Vukovar proper (Mitnica, Centar, Sajmište, Lužac, Trokut, Borovo naselje, Trpinjska cesta) and Sotin and Lipovača.[10]
InSFR Yugoslavia, the municipalities were generally larger, and the Vukovar municipality spanned the region fromVera andBorovo in the north,Ilok in the east andTovarnik in the south, but it has since been divided into several municipalities.
Historically, Vukovar was divided into the Old Vukovar, New Vukovar and former workers' Bata village withBata Shoes (now Borovo) factory, today known as the Vukovar suburb Borovo Naselje.
The city is positioned on important transport routes. Since time immemorial transport routes from the northwest to the southeast were active in the Danube Valley through the Vukovar area.
After steam ships were introduced in the mid-19th century, and with the arrival of present-day tourist ships, Vukovar is connected with Budapest andVienna upstream and all the way to Romania downstream. The Vukovar harbour is an important import and export station. The Danube has always been and remains the connection of the people of Vukovar with Europe and the world.
Vukovar is located 20 km (12 mi) northeast of Vinkovci and 36 km (22 mi) southeast ofOsijek, with an elevation of 108 m (354 ft). Vukovar is located on the main roadD2 Osijek—Vukovar—Ilok and on the Vinkovci—Vukovar railway (and roadD55).
Since records began in 1999, the highest temperature recorded at the local weather station was 39.8 °C (103.6 °F), on 6 August 2012.[11] The lowest temperature was −21.8 °C (−7.2 °F), on 9 February 2012.[12]
The area of Vukovar has been continuously inhabited for five thousand years, which we know based on numerous archaeological sites. The Vučedol culture, which developed in theVučedol locality, is particularly significant for the Vukovar area. In 1938, the Vučedol dove was found at that location, which later became a symbol of the town. The Vučedol Orion, also found on Vučedol, is equally important and is considered the oldest Indo-European calendar. In the area of Vukovar, there are numerous archaeological sites from theBronze, Early and YoungerIron Ages, from which we can see the way of life of theIllyrians andCelts, the original inhabitants of the Vukovar area. During the last decades of the BC era, the Romans reached theDanube in theirconquests and built manyforts on the border (the so-calledDanube limes) as a protection against thebarbariantribes.
The Romans influenced the economy of the Vukovar region because they planted the first vineyards and drained the swamps.[13] OneScordisci archaeological site in Vukovar dating back to lateLa Tène culture wasexcavated in the 1970s and 1980s as a part ofrescue excavations in eastern Croatia.[14] Archaeological site was a part of the settlement network of Scordisci in the area of Vinkovci.[14]
The history of today's Vukovar begins very early, according to archaeological data.[15]Slavic tribes settled in this area in the 6th century. In the 9th century the region was part of the SlavicPrincipality of Lower Pannonia ruled by princePribina, and part of theBulgarian Empire. In the first half of the 10th century, theVukovo fortress was looted by theHungarians.[15] In the 11th–12th century, the region was part of theKingdom of Croatia; from the 13th to 16th century part of theKingdom of Hungary; and between 1526 and 1687[16] underOttoman rule.
Vukovar was mentioned first in the 13th century asVolko,Walk,Wolkov, Wolcou, Walkov and numerous other versions (original Croatian/Slavic name of the town wasVukovo). All these different forms of the city's name were used until the 14th century, when the name Vukovar began to be used more and more, to which theHungarian suffix -var was added, which denotes a fortress.[17] In 1231, Vukovo obtained its first privileges and later the right to levy taxes on passages along the Danube and the Vuka.[18] In 1231, Vukovar received the status of aroyal free city. DukeKoloman gave Vukovar the status of a free royal city, to encourage further development of the city. His charter meant that the residents of Vukovar were directly subject to the king, not the landowner.[17] Thecharter ofDuke Koloman confirmed the privileges that protected the people of Vukovar.[15] From the contents of the charter, it can be seen that at that moment, an ethnically diverse population was already living in Vukovar. The inhabitants of Vukovar were engaged in trade and crafts. Vukovo County was quite densely populated in the Middle Ages. Vukovar entered the Middle Ages as a suburb with roads, and then a fortress was built. The royal administration is important for the further development of the city. The citizens of Vukovar received privileges from King Ludovik of Anjou, which included the holding of weekly fairs, which led to further stronger economic growth. Due to trade levies, the city's income also increases. The county was densely populated, and according to written sources, it had 33 forts, 34 shops and 1,182 villages, settlements and inhabited estates. Vukovar was an important church seat and a fortified city. The city occupied between 20 and 25 hectares (49 and 62 acres) of the city area. At the end of the 14th century, Vukovar was one of the largest medieval Slavonic towns with 350 houses and 2,000 to 2,500 inhabitants.[17] During administration of the medievalKingdom of Hungary, the town was a seat of Valkó (Croatian: Vuka) county, which was located between theDrava andSava rivers, while during Ottoman administration it was part of theSanjak of Syrmia. The Turkish rule brought great changes to the Vukovar region. On their campaign in 1526, the Turks occupied Ilok and Vukovar. Vukovar lost its significance, but still remained an important trade center on an important trade route. Before liberation from the Turks, Vukovar had close to 3,000 inhabitants.[15]
Vukovar was left with an almost empty town, with only about fifty houses. The indigenous population is returning to the devastated area, as well as new residents. Because of the need for labor, OrthodoxSerbs are settling. In the 18th and 19th centuries, a considerable number ofGermans,Hungarians, Jews,Ruthenians,Slovaks andUkrainians arrived. Thus, Vukovar becomes a multinational city.[15]
After the end of theOttoman domination (in the 16th and 17th centuries), theGerman Counts ofEltz bought a large part of the Vukovar area which was known as theLordship of Vukovar and for the next two centuries they would have a great influence on the economy and culture of Vukovar.[13]
Townhouses with arches in the center of the city
CountsEltz, German nobility, come into possession of the manor in Vukovar. Philip Karl Eltz, Archbishop ofMainz, in 1736 buys this huge property with more than 30 inhabited places.
At the beginning of this period, almost half of the inhabitants of Vukovar were craftsmen and merchants. Crafts, trade, shipbuilding are developing. Goods are shipped to the Danube countries by ship. Numerousguild organizations were founded to protect craftsmen. Vukovar is the main center of trade for the entire western Srijem.
The Vukovar area has very good conditions for agriculture. Almost 80% of the population lived from agriculture. In addition to basic grain production, viticulture is also important, and horse studs are also famous.[citation needed]
Since 1840, Vukovar has had permanentsteamboat lines on the Danube, and since 1878 it has been connected to the railway. The port of Vukovar is the largest port in Croatia. The industry developed slowly due to lack of capital.
According to the population census from 1900, Vukovar has 10,400 inhabitants, including about 4,000 Croats, 3,500 Germans, about 1,600 Serbs, 950 Hungarians, etc.[15] In 1905, the first major industrial enterprise, the spinning mill, began operating in Vukovar.[15]
In 1918, Vukovar became part of the newly formedKingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (Yugoslavia in 1929). Between 1918 and 1922, Vukovar was the administrative seat of the county of Syrmia (Srijem), and between 1922 and 1929 it was the administrative seat ofSyrmia Oblast. Despite the status of administrative center the settlement will get the city status only on 23 November 1919, by the decision of regent of the new statePeter I of Serbia.[19] After the creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and in the wake of communism gaining popularity throughout Europe, Vukovar became the location of the 2nd congress of the Socialist Labor Party of Yugoslavia (Communists) (Socijalistička radnička partija Jugoslavije – komunista), where it was renamed theCommunist Party of Yugoslavia (Komunistička partija Jugoslavije). In 1920, ahead of the local elections, the Jewish Party was established in the town whileZionist Association was founded in 1926.[20] After 1929, Vukovar was part of theSava Banovina, and beginning in 1939 it was part of theBanovina of Croatia. Part of the Serb community in the town and neighbouring villages was dissatisfied with the inclusion in the new autonomous Banovina leading them to present their disagreement in the 1939Vukovar resolution.
Theinterwar period in Vukovar was marked with a significant growth of the shoe and textile industry that began operating in the town, including the shoe factory Bata in 1931, which was later renamedBorovo. This consequently led to a population growth–according to the 1948 census, Vukovar had over 17,000 inhabitants.[15]
Croats and Serbs tensions in the town escalated during the latter half of the 1930s.[21] An incident in 1937 involved a Serb student bringing a pistol to Vukovar High School and threatening to kill a Croat classmate.[21] At the time of1938 Yugoslavian parliamentary election, Vukovar'sUstaša used a slogan referencing an Ustaša paramilitary training camps in Hungary.[21] After the Croat-led coalition won the town election, a group of Croat high school students celebrated the victory by chanting pro-Croatian and anti-Yugoslav sentiments in the streets.[21] The local newspaperSrijemski Hrvat, which was published in Vukovar from November 1939 to January 1941, showed a clear increase in Ustašist influence as the Kingdom of Yugoslavia approached its collapse.[22] Although it was officially aligned with theCroatian Peasant Party (HSS), its editor, Luka Puljiz, was a committed Ustaša and leader in the movement's local cell.[22] On 15 November 1939Srijemski Hrvat discussed local Germans' support for the central government in Belgrade and invited them to back the Croatian Peasant Party-led regime in Zagreb instead.[23] While it mentioned Germans, Hungarians, Czechs, Ukrainians, and Slovaks as relevant national minorities, Jews, Serbs, and Roma were notably excluded.[23] On 5 November 1939Nikola Andrić gave a speech asserting that Croatian ethnic songs were not only better than Serbian ones but also the best among all the world's cultures.[24]
After 1941Yugoslav coup d'état Luka Puljiz, editor ofSrijemski Hrvat, received advance instructions on the procedure of the town capture following theInvasion of Yugoslavia.[25] When theIndependent State of Croatia was declared on 10 April 1941, following morning Puljiz group took control of Vukovar by seizing key locations such as the post office, police station, and town hall.[26] The Ustaša authorities across the NDH began issuing anti-Jewish and anti-Serb laws, effectively placing both groups outside the law.[24] On 10 April 1941, a decree barred Serbs and Jews from serving in the NDH army.[27] A subsequent decree on 17 April 1941, allowed for arrests based on "anti-Croat" activities without specifying exact crimes.[27] Further decrees on 18 April 1941, targeted Serbs and Jews, nullifying legal contracts involving Jews and preparing for the deportation of Serb agricultural colonists.[28] On 19 April 1941, the regime appointed commissioners to Jewish and Serb firms.[28] Additionally local Ustašas executed several individuals suspected of anti-Croat activities.[28] More decrees suspended judiciary staff and public employees, giving the state the power to dismiss Jews, Serbs, and Croats with Yugoslav affiliations.[29]Decree on the Prohibition of the Cyrillic Script was introduced on 25 April 1941.[30] Ustaša regime spread its ideology in Vukovar through various means, including the weekly newspaperHrvatski Borac ("Croat Fighter"), which circulated from December 1941 to June 1942.[31] The paper was edited by Dr. Vilko Anderlić, a Catholic priest from a nearby village ofSotin.[31]
In the Vukovar area, Ustaša authorities did not immediately launch large-scale killings against Serb communities in the first mass killing phase from April to May 1941 which targeted area that lacked significant economic value.[32] Wealthier regions such as Vukovar saw a more restrained approach, as peace and order were crucial for the continuity of industry and agriculture.[33] Mass shootings in town began in late July 1941 after the first act of resistance in the Serb village ofBobota.[33] The following day, the Ustaša forces encircled the village, interrogated and terrorized the inhabitants, and arrested 45 people.[34] Thirty of them were sent to theJadovno concentration camp, while 15 were sentenced to death by a hastily convened traveling summary court and execution being carried at the Dudik site.[34] Over 500 people will be executed at the site during the war with the place being turned into theDudik Memorial Park subsequently.[34] Repression led to further resistance and imprisonment of 500 residents of Bobota,Trpinja andVera in September 1941.[34]
DuringWorld War II the city was bombed by the Allies. The firstYugoslav Partisans uprising in the district (kotar) of Vukovar happened on 26 August 1941, in the village ofBobota with subsequent continued dominant role of ethnic Serbs in the uprising who will constitute 75% of Yugoslav Partisans in the area as of late 1943.[35] Today,Dudik Memorial Park commemorates 455 individuals who were executed by the authorities of the Independent State of Croatia during theWorld War II in Yugoslavia.[36] The monument at the Dudik Memorial Park, built from 1978 to 1980, is designed byBogdan Bogdanović, for which he won theInternational Piranesi Award.[37] At least 1,027 soldiers of theBulgarian Armed Forces who fought onSyrmian Front died during the liberation of Vukovar and related fights and are today commemorated at the localBulgarian Military Cemetery.[38] An additional monument was erected inBorovo Naselje to commemorate the soldiers of the Yugoslav and the Soviet Red Army who lost their lives in the liberation of the region between 8 and 12 April 1944.[39] The monument was built by workers from the Borovo factory.[39] Vukovar's memorial ossuary contains the remains of 388 victims transferred from the Dudik memorial area, including 155 soldiers from the Fifth Vojvodina Strike Brigade and 62 Red Army soldiers.[39] In 2008 an unexploded bomb was found in the city from this period.[40]
Between 1945 and 1991, Vukovar was part of theSocialist Republic of Croatia within the newSocialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. During this period Vukovar developed into a multicultural community and an important industrial centre with a standard of living among the highest in Yugoslavia.[41] One of the symbols of this industrialization was theBorovo company with over 22,000 employees in the late 1980s.[41] The company already reached its prewar employment levels in 1949, with the number of employees growing to 5,215 in 1955 and 10,572 in 1965, many of whom were from surrounding villages as well as from the rest of Slavonia, Vojvodina and other parts of Yugoslavia.[42] Separate production sites were open inPrijedor,Sombor,Donji Miholjac,Odžak andLovas with 622 shops all around the country.[43] At its peak, the company contributed 3/4 of the municipal tax revenue.[44] Following the1970s energy crisis the company started producing for other companies in the world including forPuma in 1979.[45]
Standard Bata factories and housing at "Bata-ville", Vukovar borough 1941. Today'sBorovo Naselje, local board, urban settlement 4 km (2.5 mi) from the Vukovar town center.
As the economic crisis in the country deepened workers from Borovo started their first strike action, which lasted between 19 and 24 August 1987.[46] The "Large Strike" (Croatian:Veliki štrajk) started on 2 July 1988, with daily rallies at the Republic Square in front of theWorkers’ Hall.[47] On evening of 5 July 1988, a group of workers decided to travel toBelgrade to share their dissatisfaction with the federal institutions, with formal union buses and trucks joining this action once the initial group already reachedTovarnik.[48] At 3 am next day a group of 1,500 workers arrived at theDom Sindikata where they kept trying to present their case until 9 am, to no avail. They decided to move their action to the nearby building of theParliament of Yugoslavia afterwards.[48] After nobody addressed them for hours the group decided to push through thepolice cordons and to enter the building of parliament while singing "Druže Tito, da ti je ustati, pa da vidiš kako narod pati" (ComradeTito if only you could raise and see how the people suffer).[49] They stayed in the building until 5 pm, meeting with the President of the Presidency from SR CroatiaIvo Latin, president of theTrade Union of YugoslaviaMarjan Orožen and the President of the AssemblyDušan Popovski. After that, they returned to Dom Sindikata from where they returned to Vukovar late at night.[50]
The conflict between Serbs and Croats spread to eastern Slavonia in early 1991. On 1 April, Serb villagers around Vukovar and other towns in eastern Slavonia began to erect barricades across main roads.[51] TheWhite Eagles, a Serbian paramilitary group led byVojislav Šešelj, moved into the Serb-populated village ofBorovo Selo just north of Vukovar.[52] On 2 May in theBattle of Borovo Selo, Serb paramilitaries ambushed two Croatian police buses in the centre of Borovo Selo, killing 12 policemen and injuring 22 more.[51] One Serb paramilitary was also killed.[53]
On 19 May 1991, aCroatian nationwide referendum on sovereignty was held in which 94% voted in favour. Violence in and around Vukovar worsened after the independence referendum, with gun and bomb attacks reported in the town and surrounding villages in June 1991.[54]Borovo Naselje, the Croatian-held northern suburb of Vukovar, sustained a significant shelling on 4 July.[55] Serb paramilitaries expelled thousands of non-Serbs from their homes in the municipality.[56]
In the summer of 1991,Tomislav Merčep, at the time a leading official in theCroatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and Secretary of People's Defense, was put in charge of the town. Ethnic Serbs in Vukovar were subjected toforced interrogations, kidnappings and summary executions in addition to having their homes and cafes blown up.[57] NGOs in the city state that a total of 86 Serbs were killed or disappeared during Merčep's control of the town.[57] Serbs have long voiced their concerns about the crimes committed against them in the months before theJNA took over the town after its fall in November of that year and the lack of accountability for the perpetrators.[57][58] The matter has remained unresolved, with Merčep only being sentenced in 2017 for crimes committed by his units elsewhere. He died in November 2020.
TheBattle of Vukovar began on 25 August 1991, and lasted until 18 November 1991. During the battle for the town, 1,800 self-organised lightly armed defenders and civilian volunteers (the army of Croatia was still in its infancy at this time) defended the city for 87 days against approximately 36,000 troops of the Serb-dominated JNA equipped with heavy armour and artillery who lost 110 vehicles and tanks and dozens of planes during the battle. The city suffered heavy damage during thesiege and was eventually overrun. It is estimated that 1,800 defenders of Vukovar and civilians were killed, 800 went missing and 22,000 civilians were forced into exile.[59] Several war crimes were committed by Serb forces after the battle, including theVukovar massacre of up to 264 wounded patients and medical staff, taken from the Vukovar hospital.[60] According to theCroatian Association of Prisoners in Serbian Concentration Camps, a total of 8,000 Croatian civilians andPOWs (many following the fall of Vukovar) went through Serb prison camps such asSremska Mitrovica camp,Velepromet camp,Stajićevo camp,Begejci camp,Niš camp and many others where many were heavily abused and tortured. A total of 300 people never returned from them.[61] A total of 4570 camp inmates have startedlegal action against the formerRepublic of Serbia and Montenegro (nowSerbia) for torture and abuse in the camps.[62]
The damage to Vukovar during the siege has been called the worst in Europe sinceWorld War II, drawing comparisons withStalingrad.[63][64] Thecity's water tower, riddled with bullet holes, was retained by city planners to serve as a testimony to the events of the early 1990s.
On 18 November 2006, approximately 25,000 people from all over the country gathered in Vukovar for the 15th anniversary of the fall of the city to commemorate those who were killed during the siege. A museum dedicated to the siege was opened in the basement of a now rebuilt hospital that had been damaged during the battle.[65]
On 27 September 2007, theInternational Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia convicted two former JNA officers,Mile Mrkšić andVeselin Šljivančanin, for their involvement in theVukovar massacre.[66] The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia's last remaining fugitive,[67] Goran Hadžić, was captured by Serbian authorities in 2011.[68] Hadžić was indicted on 14 counts, including multiple related to Vukovar.[69] The charges included criminal involvement in the "deportation or forcible transfer of tens of thousands of Croat and other non-Serb civilians" from Croatian territory between June 1991 and December 1993, including 20,000 from Vukovar; theforced labour of detainees; the "extermination or murder of hundreds of Croat and other non-Serb civilians" in ten Croatian towns and villages including Vukovar; and the "torture, beatings and killings of detainees", including 264 victims seized from Vukovar Hospital.[70][71] His trial was abandoned in 2014 after being diagnosed with terminalbrain cancer; he died two years later at the age of 57.
Vukovar under Serb control and subsequent UNTAES administration
The battle exhausted the JNA and proved a turning point in theCroatian War of Independence. A ceasefire was declared a few weeks later. Vukovar served as de facto seat of the self-proclaimedSerbian Autonomous Oblast of theSAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia, the entity which joined the separatist self-declaredproto-stateRepublic of Serbian Krajina (RSK) in 1992 as an exclave.Vojislav Stanimirović served as a mayor of Vukovar at that time. Croat refugees from the town were located at refugee centers around the country and the community published theVukovarske Novine (Vukovar Newspaper) outside of the town.[72] When the main portion of the RSK was defeated in 1995Operation Storm the new agreement was reached for peaceful settlement of the conflict in Vukovar and the rest of CroatianPodunavlje area known as theErdut Agreement. By 1996, Vukovar became demilitarised after local Serb units demobilised and transferred their heavy weapons across the border to Yugoslavia.[73] The agreement led to the establishment of theUnited Nations Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium (UNTAES) which effectively governed the region from its seat in Vukovar until 1998 when the region was fully reintegrated into Croatia.
UNTAES headquarters were initially located at theUnited Nations Protection Force headquarters inZagreb but the idea of priority of the administration was to move it toeastern Croatia. TheCroatian Government offeredOsijek for that purpose but the administration refused it since it wanted to locate it on the territory under its control leading to selection of Vukovar.[74] United States Secretary of StateMadeleine Albright visited Vukovar in early 1996 to express her support to the process of reintegration where she was attacked by the Serbian population with eggs and stones at the local market.[75] UNTAES facilitated reintegration by gradual transition and invitation of Croatian officials so that in late 1996 Croatian presidentFranjo Tuđman visited Vukovar for the first time where he participated in the meeting between Serb and Croat delegation.[76] Tuđman visited Vukovar again on 8 June 1997, in what was known as theTrain of Peace.
As a result of the conflict, a deep ethnic divide exists between the Croat and Serb populations. TheOSCE Mission to Croatia was active in Vukovar and surrounding areas until 2007.
In the years from 1948 until 1991 Vukovar's population increased quickly due to industrial development. Primarily it was immigration that fed the growth in the Vukovar region and in the town particularly. The region's population distribution changed notably too when the town ofIlok became the second largest town in the region.
The Central Memorial Cross was erected in honour of all fallen defenders for Croatian freedom in October 1998 at the estuary of river Vuka. The work of Šime Vidulin. It is symbolically made of stone fromBrač andIstria, with an inscription inglagolitic: "Navik on živi ki zgine pošteno" ("The one who dies honestly, lives forever "), verses sung byFran Krsto Frankopan, and the words, "To all the victims for Free Croatia".
The Croats were in the majority in most villages and in the region's eastern part, whereas the Serbs dominated in the northwest. Vukovar's population was ethnically mixed and had 28 ethnic groups before the war. Since the boundaries of the municipality have changed a few times, there are significant differences in the population census between 1961 and 1971, and 1991 and 2001.
Particularly since the war in Croatia, much of the native Croat population has moved to other areas of Croatia or emigrated to Western Europe (notably Germany or Austria) and many Serbs have either moved to Serbia or to Canada and Western Europe.
Fifteen years after the war, in 2006, the city's ethnic makeup showed equal percentages of Croat and Serb residents.[80] The city remains very divided, as a deeper sense of reconciliation has failed to take root. The ethnic communities remain separated by mistrust, divided institutions and disappointment. Separate schooling for Croat and Serb children remains in place. Incidents involving Croats and Serbs occur regularly, and public spaces have become identified not by the services they offer but by the ethnicity of those who gather there. Even coffee shops are identified as Croat or Serb.[81]
In 2013, the government's intention to implement in Vukovar the Constitutional Law on the Rights of Ethnic Minorities in Croatia that allowed for minorities, where they made up more than a third of a city's population, to be entitled to have their language used for official purposes,[82] provoked considerable popular opposition.[citation needed]
According to the2011 Croatian census, theSerb population of the city has exceeded one third, which is the legal prerequisite for theSerbian Cyrillic alphabet to gain constitutionally protected co-official status. In 2013, this re-ignited political discussion on the matter, which had already arisen in 2009 after the local promulgation of Serbian Cyrillic as available for public use.[83] According to the 2021 census, Serbs make up less than one third which removes constitutional guarantees on the official status of Serbian Cyrillic in the town.[84] Croatian law, however, explicitly permits[85] local authorities to introduce co-official languages even when there is less than one third of minority population (notably, but not exclusively,Istria County[85]) with domestic and internal stakeholders calling upon the town of Vukovar to consider this option even before 2011 census.[86] Following the publication of 2021 census results, mayor of Vukovar nevertheless announced intention to scrap the minority language protections with some commentators criticizing the abolition of already acquired rights including the President of theConstitutional Court of CroatiaMiroslav Šeparović.[87] In November 2023, theGovernment of the Republic of Croatia decided to declare an end to mandatory bilingualism in Vukovar on the basis of the 2021 census, which showed the Serbian population fraction had fallen below the required one third, at 29.73%.[88]: 2 Preserving traditional Serbian place names and assigning street names to Serbian historical figures had been legally mandated and carried out.[88]: 135
Outside the town, on the banks of theDanube towardIlok, lies a notable archaeological site,Vučedol. The ritual vessel called theVučedol Dove (vučedolska golubica) is considered the symbol of Vukovar. Vučedol is also an excursion destination, frequented by anglers and bathers, especially the sandy beach onOrlov Otok (Eagle's Island).[citation needed]
Vukovar Synagogue was built in 1889, and was devastated by the Nazis in 1941. The ruins stood until they were demolished in 1958.
Palača pravde – Palace of justice, the County Court in Vukovar
Following the2021 Croatian local elections the Assembly of the City of Vukovar is composed of 19 elected representatives.[89] Out of a total of 23,138 eligible voters 11,160 or 48.23% participated in the elections and there were 10,808 or 96.85% valid ballots.[89] Right wing Ivan Penava's Independent List got 4,516 or 41.78% ballots and 9 elected representatives,Croatian Democratic Union got 2,347 or 21.71% ballots and 5 elected representatives,Independent Democratic Serb Party got 1,222 ballots or 11.30% and 2 elected representatives, former Social-Democrat major Želko Sabo's Independent List got 712 or 6.58% ballots and 1 elected representative,Democratic Alliance of Serbs got 631 or 5.83% ballots and 1 elected representative, coalition of theCroatian People's Party – Liberal Democrats,Croatian Peasant Party,Croatian Social Liberal Party and Active Independent Pensioners got 599 or 5.54% ballots and 1 elected representative.[89] Parties which failed to reach 5% of votes required for allocation of seats in the City Assembly were theSocial Democratic Party of Croatia with 3.91%, Serb politicianDragan Crnogorac's Independent List with 1.72% and Pavao Josić's Independent List with 1.59%.[89]
The mayor of Vukovar was elected in the second round of the elections after nobody among 5 candidates received over 50% of votes.[89] In the second round right wing candidate Ivan Penava was elected with 5,392 votes, while losing candidate from theCroatian Democratic Union Nikola Mažar got 4,529 votes.[89] Deputy Mayor from theSerbs of Vukovar community was elected in the first round withIndependent Democratic Serb Party's candidate Srđan Kolar receiving 1,128 votes and the losing candidate from theDemocratic Alliance of Serbs Srđan Milaković receiving 781 vote.[89]
Vukovar Municipal Museum[92] was founded in 1948 by a donation of Roman money, furniture, weapons, and paintings given to his city by Dr.Antun Bauer. The museum started in the Coach Post Building in the oldbaroque centre, but was moved toCastle Eltz in 1966. Up until 1991 the museum had about 50 thousand exhibits in four separate divisions:
The Heritage Museum displayed the history of Vukovar from prehistory to modern times and some of its most important collections included the items excavated at thearchaeological site Vučedol and the Culture and History Collection, which contained documents, furniture, and pieces of art, and provided an authentic display of the life of the citizens of Vukovar and theEltz family.
For its work on the cultural restoration of Vukovar, revitalizing the devastated city and involving the local community in its work, the Vukovar Municipal Museum received the prestigious European Silletto award – EMYA 2016, awarded by theEuropean Museum Forum in San Sebastian, Spain.[93]
Bauer Collection and Art Gallery contained the most complete overview of modern Croatian art from the end of the 19th and the early 20th century with special emphasis on the period between the two world wars. Among more than one thousand pieces of art the Collection contained the works ofVlaho Bukovac,Mato Celestin Medović, Ico Kršnjavi,Ivan Meštrović, Fran Kršinić,Emanuel Vidović, and many others.
Bauer Gallery on the banks of theDanube with the Old Red Water Tower, the oldest of the 3 Vukovar Water Towers
Memorial Museum of theNobel Prize Winner Lavoslav Ružička, located in the house where he was born, it displayed original documents and medals from the life and work of the Nobel Prize winner, who received this prestigious award in 1939 forchemistry.
DuringCroatian War of Independence, CastleEltz suffered significant damage and the collections which were kept there were also damaged: some of the exhibits were completely destroyed, some have disappeared and cannot be recovered, and some of them were taken to Serbia. After years of effort and diplomatic activity by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia that part of the collection was returned to Vukovar on 13 December 2001. In the period from 1991 to 1997 the Vukovar City Museum was operating in theMimara Museum inZagreb.
Near the end of 1992 a collection was founded with the name Vukovar Museum in Exile which began the creation of a collection of donations by Croatian, and soon after also European, artists for the City of Vukovar. To this day that collection has gathered over 1400 pieces of modern Croatian andEuropean art. This collection represented the beginning of the cultural restoration of Vukovar and it is displayed at the restored CastleEltz today, along with other museum collections which are part of the permanent collection of the museum.
Now that it is renovated, the Castle Eltz complex represents a unique museum andgallery, science, andmultimedia centre, which preserves and presentscultural heritage as an element ofnational identity and the continuity of life in this area.
In 2013 the Vukovar City Museum won a prestigious Anton Štifanić Award for special contributions to the development of tourism in the Republic of Croatia and in 2014 won the Simply the Best award.
TheVučedol Culture Museum and Archaeological Site bears testimony to one of the earliestIndo-European cultures. In 2022 museum was the winner of the prestigious European "Destination of Sustainable Cultural Tourism" award.[94]
The museum is positioned on one side almost at the veryDanube riverbank and on the other side, on four floors, in the hill, while its flat green roof is apromenade which leads to the archaeological site. As for the content, the permanent exhibition is displayed in 19 rooms on almost 1200 square metres. In addition to using state of the art technologies, multimedia and interactive content, the way of life on Vučedol culture localities, spreading through 12 European countries, is displayed.
In Vukovar during the year there are many cultural events. Certainly the most important is the Danube regionVukovar Film Festival.
TheVukovar Film Festival is unique due to many things. It is the only film festival of the community ofDanube region countries and the only one held literally on the Danube. It is designed to promote and spread the creative development of filmmakers from the region and it is organised with the intent to contribute to culturalrestoration in the city destroyed in theHomeland War. The theme of the festival, the films from the Danube region countries, is logically connected to Vukovar as a centre of the Croatian part of the community of the Danube region. Cultural influences have always spread along the Danube. Since the Vukovar film festival is the only film festival focused on this region, on the international level it seeks to connect filmmakers from the Danube region countries, whose film making industries are some of the most vital in the world.Winter port, Vukovar
TheVukovar Puppet Spring Festival was founded in 1996 as a national theatre conference. There are around 15 puppet theatres performing every year and in the five days of the festival they give around 100 performances in the towns and municipalities of Vukovarsko-Srijemska County. The centre of the festival is the town of Vukovar where 16 performances are played and where various workshops and an awards ceremony are held (for the award for life achievement in contribution to Croatian puppetry). The festival is held at the same time every year, the week before theHoly Week before Easter. In 2011 there were 16 puppet theatres from Croatia and abroad (Pecs,Mostar) that participated the festival.[96][97]
*Saint Vinko's Day in Vučedol is an event held traditionally every year on 22 January at the Goldschmidt farm grounds. This event marks the beginning of the year's work in thevineyards and it starts with a blessing of the vineyards. Sausages and other cured meat products are hung on the vines, because of a tradition that by hanging large sausages on the vines, the grape vines will be more fruitful and the grape clusters will be large. The same legend claims that if on that day, before noon, icicles or snow melts and creates puddles in which a sparrow can bathe, the year will be fruitful and there will be so much wine that people can bathe in it. Along with an accompanying culture and art programme, this event represents a true vineyard experience, with mulled wine and delicacies that thevisitors may taste or prepare for themselves, on the fire.
Bonofest is held every year in the middle of May. It is a festival ofspiritual music held in thechurch of Saint Filip and Jakov. The two evenings of the festival feature musicians who were selected by a committee of professionals.[98]
The Ethno fair is organised each year by the Vukovar City Tourist Board and takes place in September in the city centre in the "Hotel Grand" building. Variouscraftsmen,winemakers and other manufacturers sell their handmade products which represent the heritage of this part of Croatia.
The Vukovar Advent Festivities start four weeks during Advent during which a series of musical and performance events are organised. Each event is special as the traditional lighting of the candles is performed.
TheChristmas Fair is held a couple of days before Christmas.
‘SVI zaJEDNO HRVATSKO NAJ’, festival of non-material Croatian cultural heritage, held as part of the Vukovar City Day celebration at the beginning of May.[99]
Port of Vukovar is situated on 1,335 kilometres (830 miles) of the downstream flow of Danube river, on its right coast, and is the biggest official concessioner in the Vukovar region. The Company focuses its business on the transshipment of general and bulk cargo. The Port (850m long and 45m wide) is conveniently situated on the main current of the river, enabling navigation throughout the whole year regardless of water level.The Port recorded productivity growth and increase in cargo transshipment from 123,570 tons in 2009 to 295,199 tons in 2011. The majority of transshipment was in the category of bulk cargo (237,119 tons in 2011), while packaged goods and heavy cargo accounted for a total of 58,080 tons.
The economy of Vukovar is based on agriculture, trade,viticulture,food industry,textile industry, building materials industry, footwear industry and tourism. Vukovar is the largest Croatian town and river port on theDanube. Its economy is based on trade, farming,viticulture, livestock breeding, textiles, the food-processing industry, the footwear industry and tourism.
Startas sport shoes, theflagship brand of theBorovo shoe manufacturer. former member of the famousGroup Bata, the world first shoe producer. Brand Startas was born in 1976 thanks to the new techniques of rubbervulcanization invented in the 70s. Historically designed for Table tennis players.
However, the port infrastructure in Vukovar, only partly reconstructed, still does not meet the requirements of the market. The layout of the port area, particularly the access to railway tracks and the quay operational area, are technologically inappropriate and not compatible with market standards. There is also a lack of warehouse capacity. Altogether, it affects the quality of the service provided in the Port and thus decreases the port competitiveness.[100]
Borovo, a manufacturer of footwear located in Vukovar, ended up devastated and demolished in 1991 during the war. In its prime it employed 24,000 employees and tried to break into foreign markets with innovations in the manufacture of footwear, but today there are fewer than 1000 employees.
On 7 June 1931, Borovo was founded byCzech industrialistTomáš Baťa. Borovo Factory was one of the few Bata Shoes factories in the world. In 1933, the production of rubber and technical goods started, and Bata in the gum industry became one of the first companies in the then Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
Between 1947 and the end of the 1980s, Borovo grew into the largest and most economically most powerful company in the production and sale of footwear and rubber in this part of Europe. Borovo Factory produced more than 20 million pair ofshoes a year, thousands of tons of auto-rubber and rubber-technical goods, 22,000 people were employed at today's factories with more than 600 stores across the country. This time was marked by the significant export to European and other countries.
The Business Innovation Centre BIC-Vukovar is a rounded concept for the support of innovative, technologically oriented entrepreneurship independent of the size or maturity of the company. The goal of this centre is to attract or provide incentives for the creation and growth of technologically oriented companies in all phases of their life-cycle and provide them with a complete package of services to support their businesses, from workspaces, support for innovations, growth and export, as well as various intellectual and administrative services.[101]
Since the end of the war, much of the infrastructure in Vukovar has remained unrestored and unemployment is estimated to stand at 40 percent.[81] Vukovar is underdeveloped municipality which is statistically classified as theFirst Category Area of Special State Concern by theGovernment of Croatia.[102]
Vukovar is located in the northeastern part of the Republic of Croatia (45 ° 20 'north latitude and 16 ° 40' east longitude) and is the seat of the Vukovar-Srijem County. It lies at the mouth of the River Vuka in the Danube River (Luka Vukovar – Rkm 1335) and has a border position on the Danube River towards Serbia in Vojvodina. Due to the particularity of its geographical position, primarily marked by the international waterway – Danube River, Vukovar represents a significant traffic hub of the main roads.
There is a good traffic connection with the neighbouring countries of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary and Serbia. Vukovar is 16 km away from the town of Vinkovci, the largest railway hub in Croatia. It is well connected by state road D55 via Vinkovci, 39 km away from the node of Županja on the A3 Zagreb-Lipovac motorway. The 33 km distant Osijek is connected by the state road D2, via which Vukovar is connected to Corridor Vc (motorway A6).
WithOsijek Airport, 20 km north–west of Vukovar this area is also included in air traffic.
The city's position is very good for access to other markets within Central and South-Eastern Europe because it is located on or near the following trans-European corridors:
Pan-European Transport Corridor VII – RiverDanube (Luka Vukovar)
In accordance with its position in the economic andadministrative terms of Vukovar developed in educational, cultural and health centre. For the 1730th Vukovar has developed popular education. From theFranciscan School has developed elementary school in Old Vukovar. New Vukovar has its own school.
Palace Jirkovsky, Vukovar School of Economics
They worked and denominational schools for children andOrthodox Jewish religion, and schools in the German,SerbianOrthodox andHungarian. Apprentice school was established in 1886. year, a gymnasium 1891st.
The first doctor with a diploma has been working in Vukovar since 1763, and thepharmacy was opened in 1791. The first small hospital was opened only in 1857.
Printing was opened in 1867 when they first came out and Vukovar in German newspaperDer Syrmier-Bote.
Vukovar has seven primary schools and five high schools, including onegymnasium (Gymnasium Vukovar) and one music school. The city is also home to theLavoslav Ružička polytechnic, which offers study opportunities in the fields of economics and trade, law andkinesitherapy. Additionally, theUniversity of Split runs dislocated studies in information technology, economics and law in Vukovar. Similarly, theUniversity of Osijek offers programmes in economics and law.
In the period up to theFirst World War, about 30 societies were active in Vukovar. Singing,reading, sports and support societies had their own reading rooms, organized concerts and parties. Societies were often organized on a national basis. The first performance in the Croatian language was held in 1821, it was a dramatic work by the guardian of the Franciscan monastery Grga Cevapovic. The most influential Croatian society is the "Dunav" singing society. In 1922, the Croatian Home was opened in Vukovar, a place for all cultural events.[15]
Damir Martin Croatian rower, the double Olympic silver medalist, who was born in Vukovar, already had twoWorld Cup gold medals, winning in 2010 and 2013.
Major sports facilities in the city of Vukovar are:Borovo Sports Hall (capacity 3,000 spectators) opened for maintenance International Table TennisChampionship ofYugoslavia (Borovo 1978),[103]stadium FC Vukovar '91, sport and recreation center "Lijeva Bara" with a hall for martial arts, Borovo naselje Tennis Centre, Sports Centre "Hrgović", with tennis courts and horse riding, firing range, "Hill-7" as well as several football stadiums including Vukovar City Stadium and the FC Vuteks Sloga Stadium.[citation needed]
Currently the most modern swimming pool complex in Croatia is open in March 2017 in Vukovar. Pool complex is located about 5 km from city centre of Vukovar. Available is indoor swimming pool 50 x 25 metres. Also there are two smaller outdoor pools 22x12 metres and 25x12 metres. Inside swimming complex is also fitness room, sauna, dressing rooms, restaurant. Inside same sport complex is also sport hall available for all indoor sports, boxing, gym, fitness, bowling.[citation needed]
Harrison's Flowers is a French war drama from 2000, directed by Elie Chouraqui based on the novel "Diable à l' avantage" byIsabel Ellsen. The story takes place during the battle of Vukovar, in the middle of which an American woman (Andie MacDowell) searches for her missing husband, a journalist named Harrison, who disappeared during the siege. The film was shot in the United States and the Czech Republic. Starring: Andie MacDowell,Elias Koteas,Brendan Gleeson,Adrien Brody andDavid Strathairn.
The 1991 siege andhospital massacre byJNA paramilitaries is remembered in Croatian singer-songwriterNenad Bach's song "Vukovar."
Dr.Luka Kovač, theER character played byGoran Višnjić, lived in Vukovar before his arrival in the US, which was motivated by deaths of his wife and children in theSiege of Vukovar.[105]
^Tucker, Spencer (2010).A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO, LLC. p. 2617.ISBN978-1-85109-667-1.
Barišić Bogišić, Lidija (2022).O neslavenskom stanovništvu na vukovarskom području. Hrvatska sveučilišna naklada.ISBN978-953-169-497-1.
Cresswell, Peterjon; Atkins, Ismay; Dunn, Lily (10 July 2006).Time Out Croatia (First ed.). London, Berkeley & Toronto: Time Out Group Ltd & Ebury Publishing,Random House Ltd.ISBN978-1-904978-70-1. Retrieved10 March 2010.
Filipović, Vladimir (2022)."Srpska pobuna u selima vukovarske općine 1990. - 1991" [Serb Rebelion in the Villages of Vukovar Municipality 1990. - 1991.].Scrinia Slavonica (in Croatian).22 (1). Department for the History of Slavonia, Srijem and Baranja of the Croatian Institute of History:291–319.doi:10.22586/ss.22.1.9.
Thompson, Mark (1999).Forging War: The Media in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Hercegovina. Luton, England: University of Luton Press.ISBN978-1-860-20552-1.
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