Mrkopalj - Ski Čelimbaša 116686714
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Mrkopalj () is a village and a
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...
in the mountainous part of
Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...
in the region of
Gorski Kotar Gorski Kotar () is the mountainous region in Croatia between Karlovac and Rijeka. Because 63% of its surface is forested it is popularly called ''the green lungs of Croatia'' or ''Croatian Switzerland''. The European route E65, which connects B ...
, located south-east of
Delnice Delnice () is a town in western Croatia, the largest settlement in the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar, in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. The town has a population of 3861, and total municipality population is 5135 (2021). Delnice is Gorsk ...
and some 50 km east of
Rijeka Rijeka (; Fiume ( fjuːme in Italian and in Fiuman dialect, Fiuman Venetian) is the principal seaport and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, third-largest city in Croatia. It is located in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County on Kvarner Ba ...
and 831 meters above sea level.


History

On 14 February 1776, the was created by
Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...
, named after Severin, with
Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. In the 2021 census, its population was 49,377. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located southwest of Zagreb and northeast of Rijeka, and is connected to them via the ...
as its capital, although county assemblies were sometimes held in Mrkopalj or
Rijeka Rijeka (; Fiume ( fjuːme in Italian and in Fiuman dialect, Fiuman Venetian) is the principal seaport and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, third-largest city in Croatia. It is located in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County on Kvarner Ba ...
. It was created after a 1765 decree called for the restoration of the ancient Vinodol County. It was abolished on 20 March 1786 by
Joseph II Joseph II (13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from 18 August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 29 November 1780 until his death. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Emperor F ...
. The
volunteer fire department A volunteer fire department (VFD) is a fire department of volunteers who perform fire suppression and other related emergency services for a local jurisdiction. Volunteer and retained (on-call) firefighters are expected to be on call to respo ...
DVD Mrkopalj was founded in 1898, and is today part of the ''VZ općine Fužine''. Its current commander is Emil Vlahović.


Kingdom of Yugoslavia

The winter of 1931–1932 was particularly harsh in Čabar and surrounding areas. The lack of
livestock feed Fodder (), also called provender (), is any agriculture, agricultural foodstuff used specifically to feed domesticated livestock, such as cattle, domestic rabbit, rabbits, sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. "Fodder" refers particularly to food ...
caused a sharp decrease in livestock price. In the spring, a lack of supplies threatened to collapse the resale and even financial sectors locally. On 30 April 20, the emergency Law on the Protection of Farmers () came into force, which prevented forcible sale of farmland until 20 October.


WWII


1941

On 11 April 1941, the new
NDH The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, after the invasion by the Axis powers. Its territory cons ...
authorities made Mrkopalj-born , a Frankist, administrator of the kotar of
Ogulin Ogulin () is a town in central Croatia, in Karlovac County. It has a population of 7,389 (2021) (it was 8,216 in 2011), and a total municipal population of 12,251 (2021). Ogulin is known for its historic stone castle, known as Kula, and the nearby ...
. When
Ante Pavelić Ante Pavelić (; 14 July 1889 – 28 December 1959) was a Croatian politician who founded and headed the fascist ultranationalist organization known as the Ustaše in 1929 and was dictator of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH), a fasc ...
arrived in
Delnice Delnice () is a town in western Croatia, the largest settlement in the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar, in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. The town has a population of 3861, and total municipality population is 5135 (2021). Delnice is Gorsk ...
on 13 April 1941, he was awaited by a small group of Frankists. Along with
Ravna Gora Ravna Gora (Slavic meaning "flat hill") may refer to several places: Serbia * Ravna Gora (highland), a highland in Serbia known for its relation with the Chetnik movement * Ravna Gora (Ivanjica), a village near Ivanjica * Ravna Gora (Vlasotince), ...
and
Vrbovsko Vrbovsko ( sr-Cyrl, Врбовско) is a town in western Croatia, situated at the far east of the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County; on its 280 square kilometers area, Vrbovsko features 60 settlements and a t ...
, Mrkopalj was one of the only places in
Gorski Kotar Gorski Kotar () is the mountainous region in Croatia between Karlovac and Rijeka. Because 63% of its surface is forested it is popularly called ''the green lungs of Croatia'' or ''Croatian Switzerland''. The European route E65, which connects B ...
that already had
Ustaše The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian fascist and ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaša – Croatian Revolutionar ...
. They asked Pavelić for assistance against some
Royal Yugoslav Army The Yugoslav Army ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Jugoslovenska vojska, JV, Југословенска војска, ЈВ), commonly the Royal Yugoslav Army, was the principal Army, ground force of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. It existed from the establishment of ...
soldiers who were in the hills nearby, and received from Pavelić a number of Ustaše in response. More concretely, a large group of Yugoslav soldiers had been retreating from the Italian border through
Jelenje Jelenje is a village and municipality in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County in western Croatia. As of 2021, the municipality had a population of 5,096 with 94.6% Croats. The village itself had an urban population of 395. History After the Lujzijan ...
, Lokve, Mrkopalj and Jasenak. Upon entering Mrkopalj, they were met by a Croat force belonging to , but the Yugoslav soldiers refused to disarm. During the mass arrests of late May and early June, the Ustaša administration of
Delnice Delnice () is a town in western Croatia, the largest settlement in the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar, in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. The town has a population of 3861, and total municipality population is 5135 (2021). Delnice is Gorsk ...
kotar was more tolerant of Serbs than in the neighbouring
Vrbovsko Vrbovsko ( sr-Cyrl, Врбовско) is a town in western Croatia, situated at the far east of the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County; on its 280 square kilometers area, Vrbovsko features 60 settlements and a t ...
and
Ogulin Ogulin () is a town in central Croatia, in Karlovac County. It has a population of 7,389 (2021) (it was 8,216 in 2011), and a total municipal population of 12,251 (2021). Ogulin is known for its historic stone castle, known as Kula, and the nearby ...
kotars. Tuk Vojni was the only Serbian village in Delnice kotar. The Ustaše had a list of 15 prominent Serbs in Tuk that they needed to arrest, but thanks to JRZ members of Mrkopalj and the
notary A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems. A notary, while a legal professional, is distin ...
they were not jailed. On 9 June, Lovro Sušić, by that time Minister of People's Economy, wrote to in ''Hrvatski narod'', "We don't want a bloody cleansing," () but "the Serbs must move" ().


1942

The Italians withdrew from Mrkopalj on 15 March 1942, on the same day as
Sunger Sunger is a village in Croatia, in the Mrkopalj municipality, in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. History The volunteer fire department DVD Sunger was founded in 1906, and is today part of the ''VZ općine Fužine''. Its current commander is Mladen ...
and
Ravna Gora Ravna Gora (Slavic meaning "flat hill") may refer to several places: Serbia * Ravna Gora (highland), a highland in Serbia known for its relation with the Chetnik movement * Ravna Gora (Ivanjica), a village near Ivanjica * Ravna Gora (Vlasotince), ...
. The Italians did not leave those towns along the railway, which they fortified with barbed wire. On 20 March 1942, the Partisans entered and took Mrkopalj. In May 1942, following the success of arming Serbs to form auxiliary chete in Moravice,
Gomirje Gomirje is a settlement in north-western Croatia, situated at the far east of the mountainous region of Gorski kotar in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. It is part of the Vrbovsko municipality. The population is 343 (as of the 2011 census). H ...
and
Lička Jesenica Lička Jesenica is a settlement in the Lika region of Croatia, in the municipality of Saborsko, Karlovac County. History In 1933, Chetnik formations were organised on the territory of Srpske Moravice, Gomirje and Lička Jesenica. They had a mi ...
, the Italian army decided to form similar armed groups from among the Croats of Mrkopalj and
Ravna Gora Ravna Gora (Slavic meaning "flat hill") may refer to several places: Serbia * Ravna Gora (highland), a highland in Serbia known for its relation with the Chetnik movement * Ravna Gora (Ivanjica), a village near Ivanjica * Ravna Gora (Vlasotince), ...
.


Recent

On 10 March 2009 at around 4:15, a bread delivery driver noticed the house of 77 year old Bogumir Starčević was on fire. He loudly banged on his door to wake him up. Starčević immediately ran outside and called the fire department. ''DVD Mrkopalj'', ''DVD Sunger'', ''DVD Delnice'' and ''JVP Delnice'' responded, but the fire was exceptionally strong and they could not put it out until long after the house had burned down, at 9:20. From 31 January to 2 February 2014, while S and SW
geostrophic wind In atmospheric science, geostrophic flow () is the theoretical wind that would result from an exact balance between the Coriolis force and the pressure gradient force. This condition is called '' geostrophic equilibrium'' or ''geostrophic balanc ...
dominated,
freezing rain Freezing rain is rain maintained at temperatures below melting point, freezing by the ambient air mass that causes freezing on contact with surfaces. Unlike rain and snow mixed, a mixture of rain and snow or ice pellets, freezing rain is made en ...
fell on Gorski Kotar, glazing the entire region. It wrecked roofs, power lines an forests, causing power loss for about 14,000 households households in Gorski Kotar, or about 80% of its population. It took about 10 days to restore essential infrastructure to the region, and within months electricity was back in most of its former range, but at a cost of about 84.4 million HRK to HEP. At the time it was the largest peacetime damage since its Secession from Yugoslavia, even without counting the forestry losses. The ''Šumarija Mrkopalj'' lost 6% of its wood mass. Clearing blocked forestry roads and forest paths would take years, and thanks to the declining population some were never cleared.


Climate

A weather station exists there at an elevation of , although under a shelter that compromises the applicability to surroundings. The minimum recorded temperature for the winter of 2024–2025 was , on February 20th.


Demographics

In 1870, Mrkopalj općina, in
Delnice Delnice () is a town in western Croatia, the largest settlement in the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar, in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. The town has a population of 3861, and total municipality population is 5135 (2021). Delnice is Gorsk ...
''podžupanija'', had 391 houses, with a population of 2718. Its 3 villages were divided into 2 ''porezne obćine'' for taxation purposes. Mrkopalj had its own parish. In 1895, the ''obćina'' of Mrkopalj (court at Mrkopalj), with an area of , belonged to the ''kotar'' of Delnice (Delnice court and
electoral district An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...
) in the ''županija'' of Modruš-Rieka (
Ogulin Ogulin () is a town in central Croatia, in Karlovac County. It has a population of 7,389 (2021) (it was 8,216 in 2011), and a total municipal population of 12,251 (2021). Ogulin is known for its historic stone castle, known as Kula, and the nearby ...
court and financial board). There were 650 houses, with a population of 3628. Its 5 villages and 1 hamlet were divided for taxation purposes into 3 ''porezne obćine'', under the Delnice office. Mrkopalj had the only statistical market in the kotar. In the 2011 census, the municipality had 1,214 inhabitants, in the following settlements:


Villages

* Begovo Razdolje, population 36 * Brestova Draga, population 47 * Mrkopalj, population 557 *
Sunger Sunger is a village in Croatia, in the Mrkopalj municipality, in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. History The volunteer fire department DVD Sunger was founded in 1906, and is today part of the ''VZ općine Fužine''. Its current commander is Mladen ...
, population 262 *
Tuk Mrkopaljski Tuk Mrkopaljski is a village in Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the north ...
, population 1 *
Tuk Vojni Tuk Vojni or Vojni Tuk is a village in Croatia, in the Mrkopalj municipality, in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. History During the mass arrests of late May and early June, the Ustaša administration of Delnice kotar was more tolerant of Serbs ...
, population 21 In the 2011 census, over 98% of the population were
Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...
.


Economy

There was a
sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...
in Mrkopalj.


Governance


National

At the
1920 Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes Constitutional Assembly election in Modruš-Rijeka County Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * ''19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * ''Dician ...
, Mrkopalj voted mainly for the
Croatian People's Peasant Party The Croatian Peasant Party (, HSS) is an agrarianism, agrarian List of political parties in Croatia, political party in Croatia founded on 22 December 1904 by Antun Radić, Antun and Stjepan Radić as Croatian Peoples' Peasant Party (HPSS). The ...
.


Local

Representatives of the Mrkopalj
market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...
at the
Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament () or the Sabor is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Croatia. Under the terms of the Constitution of Croatia, Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the nation, people and is vested with legislative power. ...
: * Tomislav Cuculić (1848, 1861–1865) *
Ante Starčević Ante Starčević ( ; 23 May 1823 – 28 February 1896) was a Croatian politician and writer. His policies centered around Croatian state law, the integrity of Croatian lands, and the right of Croats, his people to self-determination. As an import ...
(1865), SP * Mijo Mance (1865)


Judiciary

In 1875, the kotar court of
Delnice Delnice () is a town in western Croatia, the largest settlement in the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar, in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. The town has a population of 3861, and total municipality population is 5135 (2021). Delnice is Gorsk ...
encompassed a population of 28,347, being responsible for the općine: Delnice, Lokve, Fužine, Mrkopalj,
Ravna Gora Ravna Gora (Slavic meaning "flat hill") may refer to several places: Serbia * Ravna Gora (highland), a highland in Serbia known for its relation with the Chetnik movement * Ravna Gora (Ivanjica), a village near Ivanjica * Ravna Gora (Vlasotince), ...
, Brod,
Skrad Skrad is a village and a municipality in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County in western Croatia. History Skrad was first mentioned on 22 February 1481 in a document freeing the citizens of Grič from tariffs in Skrad and elsewhere, unless the oth ...
,
Vrbovsko Vrbovsko ( sr-Cyrl, Врбовско) is a town in western Croatia, situated at the far east of the mountainous region of Gorski Kotar in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County; on its 280 square kilometers area, Vrbovsko features 60 settlements and a t ...
.


Industry

Mrkopalj was once a relatively important trading town in the
Gorski Kotar Gorski Kotar () is the mountainous region in Croatia between Karlovac and Rijeka. Because 63% of its surface is forested it is popularly called ''the green lungs of Croatia'' or ''Croatian Switzerland''. The European route E65, which connects B ...
highlands, where timber and sheep are the main resources. Mountain snow sports are popular.


Coat of arms

Emperor
Joseph II Joseph II (13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from 18 August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 29 November 1780 until his death. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Emperor F ...
granted the coat of arms and the status of a free royal market town in 1785. The grant of arms is similar in style with others granted in the period, including the aquarel picture of the coat of arms within a ring containing the inscription (thus making it a seal) and set in a baroque scene with mountains, angel broquate covers, coats of arms of selected Habsburg lands. The shield is party
per fess In heraldry, the field (background) of a shield can be divided into more than one area, or subdivision, of different tinctures, usually following the lines of one of the ordinaries and carrying its name (e.g. a shield divided in the shape of a ch ...
chief per pale: first
chequy In heraldry, variations of the field are any of a number of ways that a field (or a charge) may be covered with a pattern, rather than a flat tincture or a simple division of the field. Patterning with ordinaries and subordinaries The diminut ...
gules and argent, second or a lamb passant below a fir tree vert trunked proper issuant from a base also vert, and third azure five cliff spikes argent. The modern community adopted (around 1995) the same coat of arms in a modernized artistic rendition as required by regulations. The decision on adoption of the coat of arms for Mrkopalj, and the flag was adopted on 12 March 1998 and this was issued in the official gazette in May 1998: ''Odluka o grbu i zastavi Opcine Mrkopalj, 12.03.1998, Službene novine Primorsko-goranske županije, br. 11/98, 29. svibnja 1998.'' The flag is dark blue with the coat of arms bordered yellow in the middle.


Sports

Beginning in 2013, the 7 stage long Cycling Trail of Gorski Kotar () passes through Mrkopalj. The "Gorski Kotar Bike Tour", held annually since 2012, sometimes goes through Mrkopalj, such as in the second leg for 2022 and the second leg for 2024.


Infrastructure

The forestry offices of Delnice
srez The ''srez'' ( sr-cyr, срез; / срезови) was a second-level administrative unit in the Principality of Serbia, Kingdom of Serbia and Yugoslavia. It was a district that included several town- or village municipalities. It was introduce ...
were in Mrkopalj and Fužine.


Notable residents

* , Ustaša politician *
Jakov Fak Jakov Fak (born 1 August 1987) is a Slovenian Biathlon, biathlete of Croats, Croat origin competing for Slovenia since 2010. As a member of the Croatian biathlon team, Fak won bronze medals at the Biathlon World Championships 2009, 2009 World C ...
, Olympic
biathlete The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not ti ...
*
Nada Birko Nada Birko (2 January 1931 – 1 September 2020) was a Croatian cross-country skier who competed for Yugoslavia during the 1950s. She finished 14th in the 10 km event at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo. She was born in Mrkopalj, and died in ...
, Olympic cross-country skier


In popular culture

American author Jennifer Wilson's 2011 non-fiction book, ''Running Away to Home: Our Family's Journey to Croatia in Search of Who We Are, Where We Came From, and What Really Matters'', takes place in Mrkopalj. She and her husband and two children spent seven months in the village, to reconnect to her immigrant maternal grandparents' relatives and culture.


Gallery

Mrkopalj s kose.jpg, Viewed from ''Kosa'' Off road track near Mrkopalj.jpg, Gravel road Overlooking a mountain near Matic Poljana.jpg, Near Matić poljana


Notes


References


Further reading


General

* * *


Biology

*


Dialectology

* ** Review: ** Review:


History

* * *


Tourism

* * * Republished as ** Also:


External links

* {{authority control Municipalities of Croatia Populated places in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County