Drniš is a town in

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, located in inland

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

, about halfway between

Šibenik Šibenik () is a historic city in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is a political, educational, transport, industrial and tourist center of Šibenik-Knin County, and is also the ...

and

Knin Knin (, sr, link=no, Книн, it, link=no, Tenin) is a city in the Šibenik-Knin County of Croatia, located in the Dalmatian hinterland near the source of the river Krka, an important traffic junction on the rail and road routes between Zagr ...

History

The name Drniš was mentioned for the first time in a contract dated March 8, 1494. However, there are traces of older Middle Ages' fortress built by Croatian aristocrat family Nelipić at the site called Gradina dominating the landscape. The town was conquered by the

Ottoman Turks The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922). Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...

in 1522 due to its strategic location. Many buildings from this time period are still preserved today. During the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

period, the mosque built by the Turks was transformed into a church. In 1918 the town was occupied by

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

troops who remained there until a withdrawal in 1921, as a result of the

Treaty of Rapallo Following World War I there were two Treaties of Rapallo, both named after Rapallo, a resort on the Ligurian coast of Italy: * Treaty of Rapallo, 1920, an agreement between Italy and the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (the later Yugoslav ...

. The town subsequently became a part of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

. On September 16, 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence, Drniš was attacked by forces of the 9th Corpus of

Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska a ...

and militia of

SAO Krajina The Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Krajina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Srpska autonomna oblast Krajina, Српска аутономна област Крајина) or SAO Krajina () was a self-proclaimed Serbian autonomous region (oblast) wit ...

led by general

Ratko Mladić Ratko Mladić ( sr-Cyrl, Ратко Младић, ; born 12 March 1942) is a Bosnian Serb convicted war criminal and colonel-general who led the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) during the Yugoslav Wars. In 2017, he was found guilty of committing ...

. The Croatian population fled under mortar fire, and town was incorporated in

Republic of Serbian Krajina The Republic of Serbian Krajina or Serb Republic of Krajina ( sh, Република Српска Крајина, italics=no / or РСК / ''RSK'', ), known as the Serbian Krajina ( / ) or simply Krajina, was a self-proclaimed Serb proto-state, ...

. The town and surrounding Croatian villages suffered extensive demolition and looting in that period. In August 1995, Drniš was restored to Croatian government control during the military action

Operation Storm }) was the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence and a major factor in the outcome of the Bosnian War. It was a decisive victory for the Croatian Army (HV), which attacked across a front against the self-declared proto-state Re ...

, and the Serbian population fled to

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

Population

Heritage

The village of Otavice near Drniš is the place where the noted sculptor

Ivan Meštrović Ivan Meštrović (; 15 August 1883 – 16 January 1962) was a Croatian sculptor, architect, and writer. He was the most prominent modern Croatian sculptor and a leading artistic personality in contemporary Zagreb. He studied at Pavle Bilinić's ...

spent his childhood. A museum has been built which has an exhibition of the archeological rests from the

neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

eras, along with

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n history. The composer

Krsto Odak Krsto (Cyrillic script: Крсто), also Krste or Krǎstyo is a South Slavic masculine given name. *Krsto Papić * Krsto Ungnad * Krsto Zrnov Popović *Fran Krsto Frankopan * Vuk Krsto Frankopan * Krsto Hegedušić *Krste Crvenkovski *Krste Misir ...

(1888–1965) was born in Siverić near Drniš. The town has a memorial to Julijan Ramljak.Spomenik fra Julijanu Ramljaku

Slobodna Dalmacija ''Slobodna Dalmacija'' () is a Croatian daily newspaper published in Split. The first issue of ''Slobodna Dalmacija'' was published on 17 June 1943 by Tito's Partisans in an abandoned stone barn on Mosor, a mountain near Split, while the city ...

The area is also known for its agricultural orientation and a once notable mining center.

Municipal settlements

Badanj, Biočić, Bogatić, Brištane, Drinovci, Drniš, Kadina Glavica, Kanjane, Kaočine, Karalić, Ključ, Kričke, Lišnjak, Miočić, Nos Kalik, Pakovo Selo,

Parčić Parčić is a small village located in the region called Bukovica, 14 km northwest of Kistanje, in the continental part of Šibenik-Knin County, Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arm ...

, Pokrovnik, Radonić, Sedramić, Siverić, Širitovci, Štikovo, Tepljuh, Trbounje, Velušić, Žitnić.

Notable natives or residents

* Božidar Adžija, politician *

Dražen Budiša Dražen Budiša (born 25 July 1948) is a Croatian politician who used to be a leading opposition figure in the 1990s and a two-time presidential candidate. As president of the Croatian Social Liberal Party through the 1990s he remains to date the ...

, politician *

Mihovil Nakić Mihovil Nakić-Vojnović (born 31 July 1955) is a Croatian former professional basketball player. Standing at , he played as a small forward. Club career Nakić spent most of his club career in Cibona, which he helped win back-to-back EuroLeag ...

, basketball player *

Ecija Ojdanić Ecija Ojdanić (born 26 June 1974) is a Croatian theatre, film and television actress.Ecija Ojdanić< ...

, actress *

Milka Planinc Milka Planinc ( Malada; ; 21 November 1924 – 7 October 2010) was a Croatian politician active in SFR Yugoslavia. She served as Prime Minister of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1982 to 1986, the first and only woman to hold this ...

, politician;

Prime Minister of Yugoslavia The prime minister of Yugoslavia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Премијер Југославије, Premijer Jugoslavije) was the head of government of the Yugoslavia, Yugoslav state, from the Creation of Yugoslavia, creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croa ...

(1982–86) *

Stojko Vranković Stojan "Stojko" Vranković (born 22 January 1964) is a Croatian professional basketball executive and former player. He served as the president of the Croatian Basketball Federation from 2016 to 2022. A 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) center (basketball) ...

, basketball player *

, sculptor

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Drnis Cities and towns in Croatia Populated places in Šibenik-Knin County