The ''Josephina'' ( hr, Jozefina or , german: Josefiner Straße) is a historic road 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 ...

that connects

Senj Senj (; it, Segna, la, Senia, Hungarian language, Hungarian and german: Zengg) is a town on the upper Adriatic coast in Croatia, in the foothills of the Mala Kapela and Velebit mountains. The symbol of the town is the Nehaj Fortress ( hr, Tvr ...

and thus the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

coast and

Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. According to the 2011 census, its population was 55,705. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located on the Zagreb- Rijeka highway and railway line, south-west of Zagre ...

and the

Pannonian plain The Pannonian Basin, or Carpathian Basin, is a large basin situated in south-east Central Europe. The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense, with only the ...

. It crosses the

Dinaric Alps The Dinaric Alps (), also Dinarides, are a mountain range in Southern and Southcentral Europe, separating the continental Balkan Peninsula from the Adriatic Sea. They stretch from Italy in the northwest through Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herz ...

via the Vratnik pass (

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

) between Senj and Brinje and the Kapela Pass between Brinje and

Josipdol Josipdol is a village and municipality in Karlovac County, Croatia. It is part of Lika region. Geography Josipdol is situated in the Ogulin-Plaški valley which together with Lika and Gorski Kotar forms Mountainous Croatia. The town is locat ...

. Vratnik pass, currently a part of the D23 road, was already in use during Roman time as a

salt road A salt road (also known as a salt route, salt way, saltway, or salt trading route) refers to any of the prehistoric and historical trade routes by which essential salt was transported to regions that lacked it. From the Bronze Age (in the 2nd m ...

, and it became important for timber and other goods in the Middle Ages. However, the first well documented road built along the route was ''Via Josephina'' named after

Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 unt ...

who commissioned its construction in 1775. Latin inscriptions carved in rock along the original Via Josephina route completed in 1779 testify that the Emperor travelled through the Vratnik pass on horseback when he realized that the route between

, as a major fortress on

coast, and the hinterland was nearly impassable. Legend has it that this happened when he fell from his horse near Vratnik Pass. Even though the incident is impossible to verify, the town of

to the east of the mountain pass is named after the Holy Roman Emperor. In 1775, Joseph II indeed commissioned construction of the route, exactly long, from Vincenc Struppi, a military engineer, and the road, named after the Emperor, was completed in 1779. The original route comprised very steep sections and 20% inclines were not uncommon. There was even one climb at a 30% grade. Because of this the road was modified and extended by , in order to remove such steep sections. The first reconstruction was carried out as early as late 18th century, and another one between 1833 and 1845 managed by Field Marshal

Josip Filip Vukasović Baron Josef Philipp Vukassovich ( hr, Barun Josip Filip Vukasović; 1755 – 9 August 1809) was a Croats, Croatian soldier who joined the army of Habsburg monarchy and fought against both Ottoman Empire and the First French Republic. During ...

and

Josip Kajetan Knežić Josip () is a male given name found among Croats and Slovenes, a cognate of Joseph. In Croatia, the name Josip was the second most common masculine given name in the decades up to 1959, and has stayed among the top ten most common ones throughout 2 ...

respectively. Subsequent modifications were not as significant. The road was paved in 1950, when the last minor modifications of the route were executed. The route was distinguished by mile markers along the route, an obelisk in

marking the beginning of the road and a specially built gate in

marking its end. Most remarkably the original road included a stone bridge across three spans in

Tounj Tounj is a village and a municipality in Karlovac County, Croatia. In the 2011 census, the total population was 1,150, in the following naselje, settlements: * Gerovo Tounjsko, population 55 * Kamenica Skradnička, population 266 * Potok Tounjsk ...

, which was expanded during the reconstruction of 1845 and now has two levels. The upper level was destroyed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, but it was rebuilt in the 1950s.

References

External links

*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Josephina (Road) Lika-Senj County Roads in Croatia