Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and the Day of Croatian Defenders ( hr, Dan pobjede i domovinske zahvalnosti i Dan hrvatskih branitelja) is a

public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Sovereign nations and territories observe holidays based on events of significance to their history, ...

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 is celebrated annually on 5 August, commemorating the

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...

. On that date in 1995 the Croatian Army took the city of Knin during Operation Storm, which effectively brought an end to

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, ...

proto-state A quasi-state (some times referred to as state-like entity or proto-state) is a political entity that does not represent a fully institutionalised or autonomous sovereign state. The precise definition of ''quasi-state'' in political literature f ...

. In 2008, the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sabor ...

also assigned the name Day of Croatian Defenders ( hr, Dan hrvatskih branitelja) to the holiday, which honors the current service members and veterans of the Armed Forces of Croatia.

Celebrations

The main celebration is centered in Knin where there are festivities commemorating the event, beginning with a

mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

and laying of wreaths in honour of those who died in the war, and continuing with parades and concerts. The event is attended by thousands, including the country's leading politicians. The Flag of Croatia on Knin Fortress is ceremonially raised as part of the celebrations.

2015 parade

A special military parade of the Armed Forces in honor of Victory Day was held on 4 August 2015 in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

, celebrating the twentieth anniversary of Operation Storm. The parade was opened by the Honor Guard Battalion on the lawns of the

National and University Library The National and University Library (french: Bibliothèque nationale et universitaire; abbreviated BNU) is a public library in Strasbourg, France. It is located on Place de la République, the former ''Kaiserplatz'', and faces the ''Palais du ...

, with three MiG-21's flying over the city. " Lijepa naša domovino" was performed by the 12-year-old

Mia Negovetić Mia Negovetić (born 5 October 2002) is a Croatian singer-songwriter and voice actress. She is known for winning season one of RTL Televizija's ''Zvjezdice''. Career Negovetić auditioned for the first series of RTL Televizija's ''Zvjezdice'' in 2 ...

, accompanied by the

Croatian Armed Forces Band The Croatian Armed Forces Band is a special military unit that performs military music for the ceremonial and national events involving the service personnel and veterans of the Croatian Armed Forces, as well as provide musical accompaniment for o ...

and the

Croatian Navy , image = Seal of Croatian Navy.png , caption = Emblem of the Croatian Navy , start_date = 1991 , country = , allegiance = , branch = , type = Navy , role = , size = 1,36330 vessels , command_structure = Armed Forces of Croatia , gar ...

's vocal ensemble. It aroused great public interest considering that the last military parade in Croatia was organized in 1997. About 100,000 spectators attended the parade, additional sound systems were installed at the last minute until the intersection of City of Vukovar and Savska Streets.Krešimir Žabec, Rozita Vuković
"Foto: Hrvatska vojska i narod su jedno! Metropolom stupali vojnici, prolazili tenkovi, nebo parali MiG-ovi, građani im klicali"
''Jutarnji list'', 4. kolovoza 2015. The editorial board of the Zagreb-based '' Jutarnji list'', gave a positive review of the parade, demanding the introduction of regular parades for Victory Day.Gordanka Jureško
Komentar Jutarnjeg. Mimohod treba postati obveza za sve buduće generacije. Možda bi zakonom trebalo obvezati vlast da postane tradicija
''Jutarnji list'', objavljeno: 5. kolovoza 2015. Military analyst Igor Tabak praised the event, while criticizing the inauthenticity of certain "historical units".Igor Tabak
"Što zapamtiti od mimohoda u Zagrebu?"
obris.org, 18. kolovoza 2015.

Silver jubilee

On the silver jubilee in 2020, the celebrations were attended for the first time ever by an ethnic Serb political representative,

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

Boris Milošević Boris Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Борис Милошевић, ; born 5 November 1974) is a Croatian lawyer and politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia between 2020 and 2022. He is a member of the Independent Democratic Serb Party ...

, a move which was applauded across the political spectrum, with

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Andrej Plenković among others stating that it will "send a new message for Croatian society". On top of this, Plenković, as well as

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Zoran Milanović sent messages of peace to the people of

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 ...

. Opposition to the move from the Deputy Prime Minister came from members of the political

far-right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...

such as the

Homeland Movement ''Homeland Movement'' is the debut studio album by Australian rock band Yothu Yindi that was released in April 1989 on the Mushroom Records label. The album peaked at number 59 on the ARIA Chart in 1992. Background and release Following a tou ...

and the

Croatian Defence Forces The Croatian Defence Forces ( hr, Hrvatske obrambene snage or HOS) were the paramilitary arm of the Croatian Party of Rights (HSP) from 1991 to 1992, during the first stages of the Yugoslav wars. During the Croatian War of Independence, the HOS ...

, as well as from politicians from Serbia and

Republika Srpska Republika Srpska ( sr-Cyrl, Република Српска, lit=Serb Republic, also known as Republic of Srpska, ) is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Feder ...

References

{{Reflist, 30em Public holidays in Croatia August observances Homeland thanksgiving Croatian War of Independence Annual events in Croatia Summer events in Croatia

Celebrations

2015 parade

Silver jubilee

See also

References