Yes it is......

By Toma Polic

This book is a record in the lives of the Polich – Katavich families who struggled with a meagre existence in Yugoslavia before migrating to Australia.

It details their lives in Australia and the struggles that most migrant families endured in the period before and immediately after the Second World War
There is also a brief history of the country of their birth and its progress in the world after the defeat of the Austro – Hungarian and Nazi empires. It details also the extreme hardships of living in an occupied country.

The later part of the book describes the life of the author and his family and relations and the achievements attained as intended by their parents when they decided to migrate.

The title was derived from the answer to a question that the authors Grandmother posed to her daughter. Is the grass greener on the other side?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Balboa Press AU
• Release date: May 22, 2023
• ISBN: 9781982297367

Book preview

Yes it is......

TOMA POLIĆ

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Copyright © 2023 Toma Polić.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or

mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the

written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Balboa Press

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since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do

not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any technique as a form of

treatment for physical, emotional, or medical problems without the advice of a physician, either directly or

indirectly. The intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest

for emotional and spiritual well-being. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself,

which is your constitutional right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-9822-9735-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-9822-9736-7 (e)

Balboa Press rev. date:  08/10/2023

This

book is dedicated to my Father and Mother, my Brother Ivan

(Jack) and my Sister Joyce. Also my late wife Valerie, my children Jamie,

Duncan and Stuart who were the main focus of the story

All others of family are also recognised for their

contribution to this record of the Polić family.

The good people of the former Jugoslavia and modern day Croatia will

always be remembered for their fortitude and never-say- die attitude

towards their lives and ambitions to make a better life in Australia

CONTENTS

Introduction

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1     A brief overview of Croatian history

Chapter 2     History of Split, Vrgorac and Orah

Chapter 3     The history of the Woodline

Chapter 4     The origins of the Polic’s and Katavic’s

Chapter 5     Toma Polic’s family after the First World War

Chapter 6     Ante starts his journey to Australia

Chapter 7     The Katavic’s

Chapter 8     Iva’s arrival in Australia

Chapter 9     Leaving the Woodlines

Chapter 10   A place of their own at last

Chapter 11   The Children are growing up

Chapter 12   The children become teenagers

Chapter 13   Independence on the horizon

Chapter 14   Toma’s life changes to that of a married man

Chapter 15   Toma and Val settle down to married life

Chapter 16   Getting involved in Community activities

Chapter 17   Toma and Val’s children are growing up fast

Chapter 18   Gugeri Road Development

Chapter 19   World travels

APPENDICES

Appendix 1     Interpretations of one of Ante’s Diaries

Appendix 2     Iva Katavic

Appendix 3     Toma’s cousins Drago and Manda interviewed in 2008

Appendix 4     Interview with Mrs Neda Prnic

Appendix 5     Marija Jelavic – Tom’s first cousin

Appendix 6     Recollections of some Woodline residents

Appendix 7     Marija Jujnovic

Appendix 8     Olga Bondi

Appendix 9     Ljubica Grbavac

Appendix 10   Mary Radic

Appendix 11   Iko Katavic – Iva’s cousin

Appendix 12   Stanko Katavic – Iva’s brother

Appendix 13   Toma’s thoughts in 2006

Appendix 14   (New interview with Marija – Stanko’s daughter who was by chance visiting her father at this time)

Appendix 15   Second interview with Stanko - 2008

Appendix 16    Alison’s memories of her and Ivan – 1972 – 2008

Appendix 17   Common Croatian names in and around Vrgorac and Orah

Appendix 18   Notations of marriages between families of the surname of either Katavic or Polic

Appendix 19   The world according to Val

Appendix 20   List of alleged collaborators in and around Vrgorac who were executed after the end of the war.

Appendix 21   Baba’s recipes

Appendix 22   Granddaughter Sandra and her thoughts

Appendix 23   Donna Jefferson

Appendix 24   Transcription of Ante’s first diary

Appendix 25   Memories of Val by Sue Beebie

Appendix 26   Karen Gillings memoirs

Appendix 27   Memories of Val by her sister

Appendix 28   Memories of Iva and Ante’s granddaughter – Kate

INTRODUCTION

Australia’s population growth has almost exclusively relied on immigration ever since 1788 when European settlers began arriving after Captain Cook’s discovery of the Great South Land.

The potential of this Great Southern Land became a world-wide phenonemum when its riches were slowly discovered and immigrants came to Australia to search for their fortunes.

There have been numerous books written about the experiences of various immigrants over the 200 years plus since the permanent European population became established.

Each of these immigrant waves have added to the rich culture that is now Australia. Immigrants from almost every continent and country in the world have added their customs and features which now combine to make Australia the most acknowledged multi-cultural society in the world.

This is a perfect example to the rest of the world on how various races and cultures can combine to develop a harmonious community. Sure, there have been differences and some conflicts along the way but with the encouragement of assimilation these differences now fade into the annals of history as a mere occurrence.

The account of a migrant family featured in this book is probably in the same mould and format of other similar essays, but it adds a little more to the understanding of the community on how some of the immigrants faired in a new environment. This was often in extremely harsh conditions and many barriers to advancement and how they eventually overcame all of these obstacles and succeeded.

It was at the constant request of my three sons that I finally consented to put into a few words, some of the experiences of my Father and Mother. They had to endure many hardships in their journey in life in establishing themselves firmly as a start and then foremost for their children, a future and lifestyle which was better than the one they experienced.

This book endeavours to provide an account of the history of their birth country, now called Croatia, which was the background for their upbringing in the early 20th century.

There is an attempt to describe the most difficult living conditions in this country, which at the time, could easily have been described as a third world country. This country has had a horrid history of invasions and many attempts to establish some sovereignty. This history has been recorded over several millennia before Christ.

Like many of their countrymen and countrywomen, their arrival in Australia was not anywhere near ideal. In fact it was the opposite.

Work could only be found in labour intensive industries and this for many was a very difficult situation to face.

I concentrated on the plight of my parents and their fellow countrymen and women on the area just south of Boulder and Kalgoorlie in Western Australia

These areas were the providers of both green and dry timber for the deep mines of Kalgoorlie and Boulder. Some of the timber was also used by the electric power company prior to switching over to diesel powered engines.

The principal timber provider was the Lakewood Firewood Company, which employed the timber cutters and haulers and has its own railway lines.

While the modern day Croatia in the distant past may have been considered as a country without, the then modern technology, nevertheless their record keeping was better than most countries that experienced similar history and experiences.

The Polic family had been traced back to the mid- 18th century while the Katavic family could be traced back to the mid-17th century. For those records I am grateful for the information provided by the Catholic Church in Croatia.

I am also deeply indebted to Davor Jelavic, a resident of the town of Vrgorac, who made a magnificent study of the origins of the various families in the region. Davor also provided detailed information about the village of Orah, a location nearby to Vrgorac.

I have also tried to provide some details about both families of mine, and my siblings, origins and there is some information about both families – Polic’s and Katavic’s.

For the majority of their lives Ante and Iva Polic spent their days living and working in the Swan Valley, which was initially an equally difficult task without a home and land of their own and three children to raise. After all, the welfare of their future children was the reason both Ante and Iva came to Western Australia.

There is a short description on the development of their children and grandchildren, up to a point where, I would sincerely hope they could add further chapters to this story.

I was privileged to have obtained some voice recordings of various people connected to this story, both here in Australia and in Croatia which I hope will give the reader some additional perspective of how their lives were lived and some history of the backgrounds of these immigrants. These memories are attached as appendices to this book. It will be seen that the sort of problems encountered in Australia were quite similar for most immigrants, in general terms anyway.

For those recalling their lives and experiences in Croatia will fortify the experiences of Ante and Iva.

To record history and experiences, it is essential to note these in a written form, something that was a luxury to those in Croatia in the early 20th century. The written word will be a legacy for following generations and researchers to glean some live experiences from Australia’s early immigrants.

So when Ante and Iva considered their futures at a relatively young age, they had to give it a go. Ante may not have been aware of the adage that English speaking people used for many centuries. Iva certainly was as it was told to her by her Mother.

The answer to this adage is "Yes it is

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

To acknowledge everyone who has in some way contributed to this story is a very difficult task. Written and vocal contributions will be evident in the texts.

It was a privilege to speak with some of those immigrants who experienced the hardships of establishing themselves and their families in a new country. Those experiences are included in the appendices of this book and for their contributions I am eternally grateful. Unfortunately some have passed away since they recited their stories.

Then there are my relatives in Croatia who gave me their first hand experiences of their lives and associations with my parents which allowed me a small insight into their hardships and joys.

I was most fortunate to have recorded some of my mother’s thoughts about her life’s experiences in Western Australia and in the former Jugoslavia. She also left us with some of her recipes that tickled the fancy of her family and more particularly her grandchildren.

However, I am very much indebted to Davor Jelavic, a resident of the town of Vrgorac whose book Zupa, Orah, Bubnji. Prapatinice and Vrgorac provided very valuable leads to follow in my research.

From this book, written in the Croatian language, I was clearly able to trace the family trees of my parents. In addition Davor gave an outstanding commentary on the origins of the villages of Orah and Vrgorac, the main focus of the two families of which he gave a short expose of the Polic and Katavic families.

Then there are the thoughts and memories of the grandchildren that have also contributed to the story.

I must also thank those who assisted the typing up of this book from my hand written notes which has resulted in the production of a considerable record for the future. These hand written notes were made in exercise books of 120 pages and it took 16 of these books to record what I had written.

Lastly I would like to acknowledge the idea of my three sons, Jamie, Duncan and Stuart for asking me to provide information about their grandparents.

It has been a very satisfying experience to research and write about my parent’s history and experiences. I learnt a lot also about some of the events that were recorded in my parent’s country over many centuries. This would have otherwise been a vague recollection handed down word by word and probably lost over time as the whole story.

If it had not been for the Covid 19 lockdowns I may well have never started this project which has kept body and soul together during those lockdowns. In the end I am glad it has been finished and can now be enjoyed by any readers that care to pick up the book

"- the question is Is the grass greener on the other side

CHAPTER 1

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A brief overview of Croatian history

Early inhabitants; Romans and then Byzantium eras; the Slavs arrive; Croatian Kings and Christianity;

Jealous and covert neighbours; - Hungary and Venice; the Venetian rule; Napoleon’s attempt to influence the area; the Austro-Hungarian rule; the role of Tito and his partizans; so what became of Jugoslavia; Jugoslavia disintegrates; Croatia fights for its autonomy.

Modern Croatia, like many European countries has a long and chequered history.

Invasions and civil wars are a part of this history which has contributed in a peculiar way to the Croatia of today.

To understand the evolvement of this modern country, it is essential, in my opinion, to go back to what is almost the beginnings. I feel this gives the reader a feeling of the changes emanating from major events and how this has contributed to the modern day Croatia.

Croatia has a long and horrid history. Since recorded times people have come and gone in this country, invading, trading and settling. For a long period the Croats have been ruled by and fought off others – Venetians, Ottomans, Hungarians, Italians and the Hapsburgs to name a few. This troubled history has helped to define Croats and contributed considerably to the fabric of the country.

Early Inhabitants:

It is estimated that around 30,000 or so, years ago, Croatia was the haunt of Neanderthals who lumbered through the hills of Slavonia. The National Museum in Zagreb has a distinct display of this distant era and the outdoor prehistoric park at Kaprina has a good display on how the area would have been with Neanderthal life of the region.

So who are the Croats? While clearly related to other Slavic nations, the name by which they identify themselves HRVAT – is not a Slavic word. There is a common belief the word hrvat has its origins in Persia. The Croats are a Slavic tribe who were briefly ruled and named by a ruling Persian speaking Alans from Central Asia.

About 3,000 years BC the town of Vuchedal near Vukovar, became the base of a relatively advanced culture, which spread eventually throughout Central Europe and more markedly in what we now call Eastern Europe. Around the same time the island of Hvar in the Adriatic Ocean, saw the rise of an early and distinctively Mediterranean culture.

The Illyrians took centre stage in what is now defined as Croatia, Serbia and Albania by around 1000 BC. The Illyrian tribe Ardeiol gave its name to the Adriatic Ocean.

In this region the Illyarians also had to contend with the Greeks who were a much more advanced civilization. The Greeks established trading colonies on the island of Vis and on the coastal town of Trogir. At about the fourth Century BC the Celts had started pushing down from the North.

It is recorded that in 231BC the Illyrian Queen Zeuta decided to invade various Greek colonies which turned out to be a very grave tactical mistake. The Greeks responded by asking the Roman military to support them. As we know, the Romans, at this point in time in our history, were very powerful and had spread far and wide in the region. This gave the Romans the opportunity to push even wider in the Adriatic region. By 168BC they defeated the last Illyrian King, Gentries which resulted in the Illyrian population being gradually Latinized.

Rome, then the Byzantium eras.

After the defeat of Gentries the Romans swiftly established the Province of Illyricum and then broadened their territories by pushing eastward until they reached the River Danube. The Romans organised various regions and gave them names like, Upper and Lower Pannonia which together covered much of the interior of modern Croatia.

The Roman rule centred on a base called Salona, which today is the Croatian Town of Solen and there are many magnificent ruins of this era. Solen had a commanding position atop a hill which had 360 degree vision access. Other important Roman towns include Jader (modern Zadar) Parentician (Porech) and the Polensium (Pulos), the latter still has a magnificent Amphitheatre which was used in the same manner and for the purpose of the Coliseum in Rome – a lust for blood sports, although it was still early for the Christian sacrifices.

The Romans constructed a series of roads reaching from the Aegean and Black Seas and the Danube, to facilitate their trade and spread Roman culture. These roads are believed to have been instrumental in assisting the rapid spread of Christianity in these areas.

In the late Third Century AD two strong Roman emperors emerged. Diocletian became Emperor in AD285 and he divided the Unwieldly Empire into two administration halves. This action was the forerunner of later separations of land and became known as the Eastern and Western Roman empires.

In AD305 Diocletian retired to his palace – Splato (now Split) which now stands as the greatest Roman remnant in Eastern Europe.

The other was the last Roman leader to rule these territories by the name of Theodosius the Great who very smartly defied the threats of the Northern Visigoths. On his death in AD395 the empire of Theodosius was formally divided into Eastern and Western realms almost along the lines previously decided by Diocletian. The Eastern half became the Byzantine Empire which lasted right up to AD1453 and outlasted the Western Empire. The Western Empire was constantly being invaded by Visigoths, Huns and the Lomards and eventually disintegrated in the Fifth century AD.

The Slavs Arrive.

With the collapse of the Western Empire there was a vacuum created in this area and the Croats and other Slavic groups were quick to fill this void. They headed south from their former homelands north of the Carpathians.

Although no historical evidence exists it was commonly considered by historians this this move was made across the Danube in about the Seventh Century. Around the same time the Avars (Eurasian nomads) were gathering around the Balkan fringes of the Byzantine Empire. There is evidence that the Avars were responsible for ravaging the former Roman towns of Salona and Epidaurus whose fleeing inhabitants took refuge in Splato and Ragusa (now Dubrovnik) respectively,

By the middle of the seventh Century the Slavs in the Western Balkans had divided into two groups, quite distinct, as Croats who settled in Pannonia and Dalmatia forming communities around the town of Jader, Aeona (Nin) and Tragurium (Trogir) and the Serbs who settled in the central Balkans. This formation is very much like the situation is today.

By the Eighth Century the Dalmatian and Pannonian Croats organised themselves into two powerful tribal groups, each led by a Duke (Knez). The Avars in the meantime faded from the scene and did not feature as a powerful group anymore.

Croatian Kings and Christianity.

Charlemagne’s Franks who had gradually encroached on Central Europe, seized Dalmatia in approximately 800AD which led to mass baptisms of the previously pagan Croats

After Charlemagne’s death in 814AD the Pannonian Croats revolted unsuccessfully against Frankish rule without the support of the Dalmatian Croats whose major cities remained under the influence of the Byzantine Empire.

Trpimir, (Knez) from 843-864 is widely considered, and accepted, as having created the first Croatian Dynasty. His successors held their own among the jostling Adriatic powers of the time until Branimer revolted against the Byzantine Empire and control and in so doing won recognition for the Croats from Pope John VIII. This brought the Croats in the Vatican’s sphere of influence and ensured that Catholicism became a defining feature of Croatian national identity.

Tomislav was the first ruler to unite the Pannonian and Dalmatian Croatian communities. He rewarded himself in AD925 by crowning himself as the King of the Croats, whereas, before all his predecessors, the Dukes, had only worn this mantle. Tomislav’s realm included virtually all of modern Croatia and well as nowadays Bosnia and the coast of modern Montenegro. However, the vagaries of history sees the Byzantine and Venetian Empires re-imposing themselves on the Dalmatian coast in the 11th Century, while new threads emerged from the Hungarians who invaded the Pannonian Croats from the North. The bold King Kresimir IV (reigned 1058-1074) fought back doggedly and turned the tables on the invaders and regained control of Dalmatia, but this was only a temporary rebound.

Upon his death, Kresimir was succeeded by Zvonimir and Stjepan, both of whom failed to produce an heir and the Hungarians, by stealth and direct invasion, terminated the era of the Croat Kings towards the end of the 11th Century.

Jealous and Covert Neighbours – Hungary and Venice

The Hungarian King Koloman imposed a convention in 1102 which basically stated that the Hungarians would impose their rule on the Croats and this eventually marginalized the Croatian nobility as they did not kowtow to the Hungarians.

Under the Hungarians, Pannonia became known as Slovenia and the inland town of Zagreb, Vukovar and Varazdin became thriving centres of trade and culture. In 1107 Koloman talked around what was left of the Croatian nobility, thus bringing the coast, long desired by the Hungarians, of land locked Hungarian kings, into the realm of Koloman. His eagerness for some form of access to the sea meant he was reluctantly willing to grant Dalmatian cities more autonomy than his kingdom cities.

The Venetians who had been in the background for long periods of time, returned soon enough.

After Koloman died in 1116 the Venetians launched new assaults on Biograd and the Islands of Lesing, Pag, Rab and Krk.

The Venetian rule:

For almost 800 years the Venetians tried to control and exploit the Croatian coast.

The Coastal and island towns from Robeny in the North to Korcula in the South still show a marked Venetian influence in their infrastructure, but as in all previous Venetian occupations this one was also an unhappy one. It turned out to be a period of almost continuous economic exploitation.

The Venetians consistently denied the territories of timber for their ships. Also, they set take it or leave it low prices for olive oil, fish, salt, wine and figs to cater for their own populations to maintain an affordable lifestyle. The Croatians were left impoverished and barely enough to continue their miserable lives under these oppressions. The Venetians did not tolerate competition of any kind. They forbade building of ships, schools or any other infrastructure that would have benefited the Croatians.

While this was going on Zadar became a large and prosperous Dalmatian City. The city fathers successfully fended off two Venetian naval expeditions in the year 1190.

The Venetians carried out a revenge in 1202 by putting their paid army of soldiers to attack and ransack Zadar, after which they pushed on to Constantinople which suffered the same fate.

More trouble was on its way in 1242 when the marauding Mongols from Central Europe eventually rolled into Hungary whose King Bela IV, fled to Trogir. With the Croatian hinterland already ravaged, the crafty Venetians took advantage of the confusion to consolidate their hold on Zadar.

The Hungarian King helped the Croats to stop any further expansions but upon his death in 1270 and aided by a power struggle among the Croatians allowed the Venetians to take control of further territories including Sibenik and Trogir

The King of Hungary at that time, Ludovic I, who reigned between 1342-1382 re-establishes control over the country and eventually persuaded the Venetians to relinquish Dalmatia.

But as before, upon Ludovic’s death, the Croatian nobility could not work together and crowned Ladislav of Naples as their King. Ladislav was short of funds so he sold Zadar to the Venetians in 1403 for 100,000 ducats and renounced his rights to Dalmatia.

This consolidated the grip of the Venetians on the whole of Dalmatia and thus it remained until 1797 with the Napoleonic invasion. The only City to hold out on Napoleon was the modern day Dubrovnik. As if the Dalmatians didn’t have enough in the form of invasions, lurking in the east during the 14th century were the Ottoman Turks who rapidly swallowed up the Balkans with the Serbs the last to relinquish their territory in the battle of Kosovo Polje in 1389.

The Hungarians tried to stem the tide but to no avail. The bishopric Zagreb Cathedral at Kapitol was heavily fortified and remained untouched during the sweeping decimation of the Croatian Empire.

The Hungarians succumbed to the Ottomans which ended their domination of the Croats. The Croats turned to the Austrians for protection and were duly absorbed into the Hapsburg Empire, ruled from Vienna.

The Adriatic coast was continually threatened by the Ottomans but never succeeded and along with Dubrovnik remained independent.

The Turkish assaults, as one could imagine would cause massive havoc and disruptions with the cities and towns destroyed, people slaughtered and enslaved and forced to serve the Ottoman war machine.

The Hapsburgs started to build barriers against the Ottomans by constructing a series of forts which eventually stopped the advance of the Ottomans. The positions of the opposing armies stood pretty static for almost a century, at which time the Croats managed to muscle enough forces to turn the tables on the Turks.

At Sisak in 1593 the Hapsburg armies which had many Croats, inflicted a defeat on the Ottomans. In 1699 in Sremski Karlovac the Ottomans sued for peace for the first time and this was the beginning of the loosening of their stranglehold of Central Europe.

Napoleons attempt to influence the area

The intervention of Napoleon was influenced by the Hapsburgs support for the restoration of the French Monarchy in 1796 which provoked the intervention.

Napoleon conquered Venice in 1797 and agreed to transfer the Dalmatians to Austria, but the Hapsburgs did not go along with this thinking

The Austrian influence only lasted until 1805 when Napoleon defeated the Austrian and Prussian forces at Austerlitz which forced Austria to cede the Dalmatian coast to France.

Dubrovnik, a separate principality, surrendered to Napoleon who continued eastwards in his conquering ways. However he did not advance until he renamed his Dalmatian conquests as Illyrian provinces.

Napoleon did some good and one of his acts was to replant the barren landscapes with trees to make up for the rape of timber resources by the Venetians, other actions included setting up schools at all levels of education. Roads, hospitals and new crops introduced and despite these human efforts the French occupation remained unpopular because of the staunch opposition of the clergy and the heavy taxes on the populace to pay for these reforms.

Following the Russian campaign the Napoleonic regime ceased to exist and after this there was a Congress held in Vienna in 1815 which recognised Austria’s claim to Dalmatia. The rest of Croatia was placed under the protection of what became the Austro – Hungarian empire. The Dalmatians had been in this position previously and the northern Croats came under the severe pressure from the Hungarians having to use the Hungarian language and culture which was forced onto the population.

Traditionally upper class Dalmatians spoke Italian and the northern Croats spoke either Hungarian or German.

Napoleons wish in establishing the Illyrian regime came true when the first Illyrian newspaper was published in 1834 which was the catalyst for teaching the Slavic language in schools. The newspaper was written in the Zagreb dialect.

Following the 1848 revolution in Paris, the Croats saw this as a way of reclaiming some autonomy but the Hungarians took no notice and appointed a sympathizer, Josip Jelavic, to head the region and he obliged by declaring war on those agitators after an election. He remained a puppet of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

After the establishment of the dual monarchy in 1867 in the Austro – Hungarian empire, further divisions of the country took place. The regime separated Dalmatia under Austrian rule and the rest of Croatia was placed under Hungarian rule.

The old Illyarians formed the National Party which was dominated by Bishop Josip Juraf Strossmayer, a brilliant mind. He was the one who first thought about unity of these Slavonic states. His early attempts with unification between the Serbs and the Croats didn’t come to anything because of his favourtism of the Croat.

Hungary interfered regularly to put an end to this unity attempt which they saw as a threat to their dominance. The Hungarians saw that the Eastern Orthodox Church was a vessel they could use to maintain their differences. This eventually broke down during the Balkan wars of 1912 – 1913. This was the start of what would become Yugoslavia after World War I. It was these wars that effectively stopped the Ottoman Empire from further advances.

The idea of unification gathered momentum after World War I as the Austro-Hungarian Empire had collapsed with the defeat of Germany in the First World War.

The Croats were once again between opposing powers – the unification movement and the Italians who were quick to capture Zadar, Rijeka and Pula in November of 1918. The Croats eventually chose the Serbs who were driving the unification movement.

This decision caused problems for Croatia almost from the outset with many changes to their way of life being demanded by the Serbs. Yugoslavia eventually had the sieged cities returned to them after a treaty between Serbia and Italy was agreed.

Attempts to change the way things had developed resulted in the assassination of Stjepan Radic, a Croat leading the charge for some changes. Fearing a civil war, King Aleksander in Belgrade declared a royal dictatorship, abolished political parties and suspended Parliament.

Meanwhile the Yugoslav Communist Party came into prominence through Josip Broz Tito who was to become leader in 1937.

A Bosnian Croat, Ante Pavelic, set up the Ustase liberation movement in Zagreb. He fled to Bulgaria, fearing for his life but operated in clandestine fashion from there to gather support for his movement from other anti-Serb countries.

In 1934 the Macedonians succeeded in assassinating King Aleksander in France while he was on a State visit. When Germany invaded Yugoslavia in 1941, the exiled Ustase were very quickly installed by the Germans with the support of the Italians who were hoping to re-establish their claims to Dalmatcija

This endorsement by the Germans resulted in the proclamation of the Independent State of Croatia, headed by Pavelic. Alarmingly the issue of decrees to eliminate enemies meant the Jews, Romany and Serbs, The majority of Jews were rounded up between 1941 and 1945 and dispatched to extermination camps. Serbs also suffered severely on the basis of one third to be killed, one third expelled and one third converted forcibly to Catholicism – taking his cue from the Turkish Ottomans.

He also advocated that anti-fascist Croats should also be exterminated along with the others.

A notorious place was established for this grizzly task just south of Zagreb at a place called Jasenovac.

The role of Tito and his partizans

The Ustace regime drew most of its support from the Lika region south-west of Zagreb and western Hercegovina and the pay-off to the Italians for helping to establish the regime was to slice a good part of Dalmatia to them.

This was highly unpopular and had no support in the region of the Dalmatian coast

Armed resistance to these ideas started with the Serbs who formed a group which became to be known as the Chetniks. While originally starting off as an anti-fascist force it quickly retaliated to the massacre of the Serbs by inflicting similar atrocities against the Croats in Eastern Croatia and Bosnia.

The villages of Vrgorac and Veliki Orah were amongst the many that saw the wrath of the Chetniks

The most effective anti-fascist resistance was the National Liberation Partizan units led by Josip Tito. This organization had its deep roots in the Yugoslavian Communist Party. The Partizans attracted many long suffering Croats including many intellectuals and Croats disgusted with the Chetnik massacres, Serbs disgusted with Ustace massacres of both Croats and Serbs and anti-fascists of all kinds who were caught in the middle.

The Partizans gained popular support because of their Unity and envisioned views of uniting the country under the banner of Yugoslavia that would form a loose federation of different States or regions. The Allies were in a quandary of not being sure who to support. Three distinct groups, two fighting the Germans and one fighting with the Germans. How confusing and one must give a great deal of sympathy to the peasants on how they would react, not knowing at any moment which group would arrive in their village with the aim of massacring them.

Bearing in mind this was during the Second World War and the Allies had an interest in making it as difficult as possible for the invading Germans.

The Allies initially backed the Serbian Chetniks but it soon became apparent that the communist leaning Partizans were doing a far better job in harassing the Germans and making it as difficult as possible to achieve their aims. Their actions kept a good deal of German troops out of action by pursuing guerilla destruction which suited the Allies. In addition the Partizans showed an extraordinary determination to fight the Nazis.

The Partizans wanted no part of their country to be handed over to the Italians who for most of the time had occupied the Dalmatian coast from Venice down to Albania and parts of Greece.

With the military and diplomatic support of Churchill and other Allied powers, the Partizans controlled the majority of Croatia by 1943.

Tito could see the writing on the wall for the Germans and was instrumental in developing a vision for the part Yugoslavia would play in world affairs after World War 2. This vision led to the establishment of functioning local governments in the territories they seized for the advancement of his vision and transition to power.

The Partizans did not have an official agenda of liquidating enemies and their cardinal ideal was the "brotherhood and unity’ of all Yugoslav nations (the phrase became a motto for the new Yugoslavia).

The country suffered between 900,000 and 1.15 million civilian and military dead during the Axis occupation. Between 80,000 and 100,000 people were killed in the Partizan purges and at least 30,000 people killed in the Bleiburg killings. The Bleiburg killings were associated with the retreating columns of Chetniks and Slovene Home Guards. On October 20, 1944, the Partizans entered Belgrade alongside the Russian Red Army which had made rapid advancement from the eastern front. Pavelic was still ensconced in Belgrade for a little while longer but fled the City upon the Germans surrender in May, 1945.

The remnants of the Ustace desperate not to fall into the hands of either the Partizans or Chetniks tried to cross into Austria which had been liberated earlier. A British contingent met Pavelic and his 50,000 troops and promised to intern them outside Yugoslavia. This was a trick. The troops were forced onto trains and headed back to Yugoslavia where the Partizans eagerly awaited them to settle many scores. The ensuing massacre claimed at least 30,000 Ustace troops, although this is an estimate according to various reports, but it left a permanent note of distain on the Yugoslav government.

So what’s became of Jugoslavia?

Toto’s attempt to retain control of the Italian city of Trieste and parts of southern Austria faltered in the face of stiff Allied opposition to this plan, but Dalmatcia and most of Istria were made a permanent part of post war Jugoslavia.

Tito very much aware of ethnic discord and rivalries was determined to forge a state in which no ethnic group dominated the political landscape. Croatia became one of 6 republics in the Federation along with Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Hercegovina and Slovenia – a very tightly configured federation.

In Tito’s vision to keep all this together he created a one party state and vigorously stamped out all opposition.

During the 1960’s the concentration of power in Belgrade, the Capital of Serbia, was an increasingly thorn in the side of more prosperous states of Croatia and Slovenia. They could see their wealth was increasingly being distributed to the poorer autonomous regions of Kosovo and Hercegovina. This problem seemed particularly blatant in Croatia, which saw money from its increasingly prosperous tourist industry on the Adriatic coast flow to Belgrade.

At the same time Serbs living in Croatia were over represented in government, armed forces and police.

The discontent and unrest kept rising in Croatia and the inequities, and in 1971 the Croatian Spring reached its crescendo.

Led by reformers within the Communist Party of Croatia, intellectuals and students called for greater autonomy and constitutional reform to loosen Croatia’s ties with Jugoslavia. The Nationalist elements manifested themselves as well. Tito did not like this and fought back by clamping down on liberalism that had been gradually gaining momentum in Jugoslavia.

Serbs viewed the Nationalist movement as a return of Ustace and in turn jailed the reformers who blamed the Serbs for their troubles. The stage was quickly forming up to reflect the rise of Nationalism and a platform for the wars of the 1990’s, even though Tito’s 1974 constitution afforded the republics more autonomy than previously.

Jugoslavia disintegrates

Upon his death in 1980, Tito left a Federation that was at best shaky but in reality on the brink of collapse and worse still, on the eve of a future war. The economy was in a parlous state and the concept of a rotating Presidency could not compensate for his steady leadership.

The authority of the Central Government was sinking slowly but the National economy was sinking faster and the long suppressed mistrust among the ethnic groups of the Federation began to surface.

In 1989 there was widespread suppression of the Albanian majority in the Kosovo area. The Albanians had fled their homeland because of the near impossible living conditions there and the corrupt Communist Government of that country. This sparked renewed fears of Serbian dominance and was the catalyst of the end of the Jugoslav Federation. This coincided with the rapidly changing political situation in Eastern Europe – the Berlin wall destruction, split up of the USSR and the push for the autonomy of other previously communist dominated countries. With these changes Slovenia was the first to embark on the course of attaining independence. This led to many Croats feeling the same about this time to press for political and social changes.

A telling factor to support this proposed change was the Croatian election of April 1990 when Franjo Tudjman’s Croatian Democratic Union (the HDZ) recorded a vote of 40% compared with the Communist Party’s 30%. The support for the Communist Party was upheld by the loyalty of the Serbs as well as voters in Istria and Rijeka.

A new Croatian constitution was promulgated on 22 December 1990 changing the status of the Serbs in Croatia from that of a constituent nation to that of a national minority.

This change to the Constitution failed to guarantee minority rights and the mass dismissals of the Serbs from the Public Service, resulted in the 600,000 strong ethnic Serb communities within Croatia to demand autonomy.

In early 1991 Serb extremists in Croatia staged provocative actions which were designed to ensure that there was to be military intervention.

A referendum on whether Croatia should be an independent nation obtained a 93% vote in favour of such action. Understandably Croatian Serbs abstained from voting and indeed were encouraged by the Federal Government not to participate.

Croatian independence was proclaimed on 25 June 1991. On the same day the Serbian enclave of Krajina proclaimed its independence from Croatia.

In view of the centuries of ethnic rivalry and skirmishes over this time it was not hard to predict that some form of civil unrest was not too distant in the near future.

Croatia fights for its autonomy

The situation which was developing prompted the European Union to step in and pressure Croatia to declare a three month moratorium on its independence.

Heavy fighting had already broken out in the Krajina, Barnya and Slavonia regions which the Croatians named the Homeland War.

The Serb dominated Jugoslav People’s Army, began to intervene on its own authority in support of the Serb irregulars under the pretext of halting ethnic violence

The Croatian Government reacted by ordering a blockade of Federal Military establishments in the Republic, which was countermanded by the Serbs by using the Jugoslav National Navy to blockage the whole Adriatic coast and additionally laid siege to the strategic town of Vukovar on the River Danube.

Remember the military forces confronting the Croatians were prominently Serbs who had control of the Army, Navy and Airforce. The task for the Croatians seemed to be an almost impossible one with very few means of countering the might of the Federal military forces.

The effects of this majority of forces in the summer of 1991, was that a quarter of Croatia fell to Serb militias and the Serb led Jugoslav People Army.

In late 1991 the Federal Army and Montenegrin militia moved to conquer Dubrovnik, with the Federal Army and other militia further inland attacking the Presidential Palace in Zagreb which was hit by rockets fired from the Federal Airforce planes that appeared to be an assassination attempt on the Croatian President, Franjo Tudjman.

As soon as the three month moratorium ended Croatia declared full independence. Vukovar finally fell to the Jugoslav Army in one of the most blood thirsty of all wars fought on Yugoslav soil. The Army entered the Vukovar Hospital and removed 400 patients, staff and their families. 200 of these people were massacred near the village of Ovchara and their bodies dumped in a mass grave nearby.

Two Jugoslav Army officers, Mile Mrksic and Veselin Sljancanin were found guilty of this atrocity and only received prison sentences of 20 years and 5 years respectively.

It is estimated that 2000 people, of which 1100 were civilians, were killed in defence of Vukovar. Many other residents just disappeared and not heard of again.

During the six months of fighting in Croatia 10,000 people died, hundreds of thousands fled the danger and tens of thousands of homes were destroyed.

The United Nations stepped into the fray in early January of 1992 and the peace deal they proposed generally held up pretty well. Under this arrangement the Jugoslav Army withdrew from its bases in Croatia and with this tensions eased considerably. Germany then put pressure on the United Nations to recognise Croatia as a separate sovereign state and this was agreed to.

This move was quickly followed up by the United States of America and in May 1992, Croatia was admitted to the United Nations in its own right.

The peace plan proposed by the United Nations included the disarming of Serb para military formations, the repatriation of refugees and return of the region of Krajina to Croatian sovereignty. This caused a stalemate between the Serbs and the Croats.

In January 1993 the Croatian Army suddenly and unexpectedly launched an attack in the southern Krajina area pushing the Serbs back in some areas and recapturing strategic points. The Krajinian Serbs vowed they would never accept rule from Zagreb and voted accordingly in June 1993 to join Bosnian Serbs who continued with their ethnic cleansing which left only about 900 Croats in the Krajina region out of a population of 44,000 people.

Fighting continued spasmodically until 2004 when a comprehensive ceasefire and peace plan was presented to the warring armies. This led to the establishment of demilitarized zones.

The Bosnian border, neighboring the Krajina region, received the same harsh treatment from the Yugoslav Army and Serbian para-militaries

In Bosnia, the Croats and the Muslims formed a common bond to resist the treatment handed out by the Yugoslav Army, but later in1993 the two sides fell out with one another and fought each other.

With the support of Zagreb the Bosnian Croats were responsible for some horrific events which included the destruction of the century’s old icon bridge in Mostar.

The United States of America stepped in to sponsor the development of a Muslim- Croatian Federation in 1994 while the world only looked on with what was happening in Sarajevo.

All the while the Croatian Government was quietly accumulating weapons from other countries and on 1 May 1995 they occupied western Slavonia. The Krajina Serbs responded by shelling Zagreb that killed and wounded a number of people.

Serbs fled the Slavonia region as the Croats tightened their grip on the area.

The Krajina Serbs lost the support of Belgrade which only encouraged the Croats even more to advance their territorial claims.

This resulted in untold terror for the Serbs in their rebel Capital of Knin.

Eventually in December 1995 the Dayton Accord was signed in Paris recognizing Croatia’s previous borders and the transitions, where necessary, proceeded rather smoothly.

With the end of the war the separate countries got going about rebuilding their devastated countries. The European Union has given their support for some of these countries. As we now see Croatia has emerged as most popular holiday destination for many. This is true particularly for Europeans but also for Croatian ex-pats who work in some of the European countries.

By one count in 2019 it was commonly believed that the resident population of Croatia was around 4 million people with another 5 million scattered around the world. This has been going on since World War 2 when there wasn’t any work available for the locals so in order to keep their families the men folk and in some cases their wives would work in countries such as Germany, the most popular, in order to sustain their families and at the same time bring in much needed foreign exchange,

Croatia lacks any substantial manufacturing industries and relies heavily on the tourist attractions it offers, especially its many islands, said to count over a thousand.

The more common islands visited for holidays are centred on the middle of the Dalmatian coast with Split and Dubrovnik housing the largest populations where tourist usually base themselves.

These islands are considered to be ancient and archeological evidence points to some form of human habitation going back to 6000 BC. Notably on the island of Hvar, nowadays best known for its lavender industry, has evidence of a drawing of a sailboat on rocks.

These islands were usually the first to be invaded and conquered over the millennia when the country was overrun by other tribes and races.

It was on the island of Korcula that the famous explorer Marco Polo was born. The name is not a truly Slavonic one and probably stems from invaders from Venice which is now as part of Italy.

Various kingdoms on the coast and the islands played significant parts in holding back some invaders but because of the strategic situation of the area it was not always possible to retain its sovereignty.

The island of Vis, which is farthest away from the Dalmatian coast, played many vital naval roles. During the Napoleonic wars the British set up a substantial naval base on the island. With this establishment in 1848 the British introduced the game of cricket to the locals. This game has been played on the island continuously since that time. It now holds a six-a-side tournament each May/June and teams from all over the world contribute to the continuation of this event.

This island was also the location of a very important air base during WW 2 established by the United States of America and supported by the Partizans. This was within a comfortable distance of the Romanian oil fields upon which the Nazis relied heavily.

The Partizans fought tenaciously to impede any Nazi progress or consolidation of these islands.

The Yugoslav Government placed a heavy emphasis on developing the devastated islands to somewhere near their former glory.

As fishing returned to its former importance the development of fishing facilities began to gather pace, but also the traditional peasant activities of growing their own food, tending olive groves and vineyards slowly started to get back to some normality.

And so we have seen the slow buildup of what the islands offer the world today.

Tourism is by far the biggest income earner and consequently employer and tourists are well catered for. Visitors from all over the world enjoy the scenic area and it is a truly relaxing atmosphere that prevails in these regions

CHAPTER 2

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History of Split, Vrgorac and Orah

History of Split; Croatia today; Vrgorac and Orah – a brief history; Croatia today; more on Vrgorac.

History of Split

The modern-day Split is a mecca for world tourists and today is Croatia’s second largest City. It is the culture and industry centre for many inhabitants of the hinterland within a radius of some 150 km. It now has over 250,000 residents in the City and surrounds.

The City along with Dubrovnik and Rijeka are the central converging points for sea traffic. It has an excellent ferry service to the many islands and tourists using these are very well catered for.

The popular theory of how the City draws its name is that of a "spiny broom" believed to have originated during one of the Greek occupations.

Its name has many variations – dependent upon who was the conqueror at that time. The Romans called it Spalatum which was pronounced by the locals as Spalatro. The City was founded as a Greek colony in either the 2nd or 3rd century BC and was later to become the location for the Diocletian Palace built for the Roman Emperor of the same name in 305 AD.

When the previous Roman Capital of Salona was overrun by the Avars and Slavs, Split took on the mantle of the Roman Capital for its conquered territory. It was the centre of many struggles between Romans and other would be invaders right up to WW 1

The hinterland of Split is acknowledged as the home of the Croats and it is believed that the Croatian language was developed in these hinterland territories around the year 751 AD.

Early in the 19th century after some conflicts between Austria and France the City returned from French rule to be taken under the umbrella of the Illyrian provinces. This turned out to be a blessing for the City as streets were rebuilt and large fortifications erected. Some of the ruins of these fortifications still exist today as indeed does a good section of the walls that protected the City during earlier times.

The British in 1813 helped the Austrians to take possession, by force of course, and this continued for the next 100 years or so until the end of World War I when the Austro-Hungarian Empire disintegrated.

The City thus became a part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenians, later called Yugoslavia in 1929.

The second world war was no friend to the ‘ splitans’ as they were fervently patriotic and nationalistic and rejected any form of cooperation with the Nazis.

It is widely acknowledged that Split was the main centre of anti-fascist sentiment. The townspeople even organised several Partizan detachments ready to go to action when the guerilla Partizans asked them to.

Significant to note that the two football clubs HNK Hajduk and RNK Split suspended all their matches against the Italians who had included the two teams in the Italian league championship. In fact both teams, players and officials ‘en mass’ joined the Partisans. This was with the knowledge that the Ustace, Germany’s puppets, were made up of Croatians from many parts of the country.

In reprisals against the Italians joining forces with the Partizans and Allies after Italy’s capitulation, the Nazis set upon destroying all symbols of Italian Heritage including the lions of St Mark set up by the Venetians.

After World War 2 the Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia set about industrialising the City because of its adequate labour force and access to the sea. This industrialisation brought in many immigrants from the hinterland who came readily because of the growing difficulties in farming and raising families in prewar condition. Nothing had improved for them.

The ship building industry was successful and became very competent exponents of the art of ship building recognised around the world for its quality. It also became the headquarters of the Yugoslav Navy.

The civil war in the 1990’s caused some angst as many serving military were also Croats. So much so that the Yugoslav Government ordered the shelling of the City, the airport and the industrialised area between the airport and the City. The serving Croats refused to take part and were placed in the brig of a light frigate carrying out this operation.

In the years following 2000 Split finally gained momentum and started to develop again with the focus on its tremendous tourist potential.

Split enjoys what is commonly called a Mediterranean climate with the hottest months June- July – August having temperatures up to 30 degrees centigrade. The coolest months are January and February with average highs of 10 and 11 degrees. Its rainfall is confined to October, November and December. On its inland peaks and around Orah and Vrgorac there is ample snow to be seen in winter.

Split is quickly developing recognition as a centre of culture and the arts. The City was included in 1979 under the UNESCO list of world heritage sites.

For its relatively small population Split boasts of many renowned sports people in Tennis, Gymnastics, Rowing, Football, Water Polo, Sailing, Swimming, Handball, and Basketball. Residents prefer to call Split ‘the sportiest City in the World". On the water polo scene there appears the names of Damir Polic and Milovoy Bebic, two family names synonymous with the same names as in the Swan Valley in Western Australia. In local government the City of Split shares a sister status with the City of Cockburn in Western Australia.

Croatia Today

Following the disastrous civil war of the 1990’s the federation was once again split into is previous geographic and ethnic boundaries, with only minor variations. Slovenia and Croatia became independent nations and generally follow the western form of democracy. The remainder still identify themselves as the Federation of Yugoslavia. As many people from around the world would attest the country is the focal point for many as the ideal holiday destination. The economy of Croatia is now squarely dependent upon tourism, but it has had a number of spin –offs.

Having a large coastline has created a demand for boats and ships which ply between the many islands of the Adriatic. Farming plays an important part also and provides a livelihood for many in its hinterland. This now is more modernized so the numbers of people engaged in this activity is less that what the case was previously. Fishing and fish processing is considered as one of its main industries because of the crystal clear and unpolluted seas.

Croatia is developing in a manner which approximately matches that of medium sized developed countries in this part of Europe, but is far from satisfactory in the pace of progress as the locals would like.

Timber is developing in the interior as Croatia grasps the need to diversify and provide a wide range of productivity to sustain them in the ups and downs of world economics.

Since World War 2 many Croatians have sought their livelihood in other European countries.

When Germany was rebuilding and immediately following this period, it became a powerhouse of Europe and Croatians worked in their industries.

The migrant workers would send their money back home to sustain their families and at the same time add to the income of foreign exchange to the country’s overall benefit. The frugal Croats saved money in a way they had learnt from hard times past to enable them to buy luxuries and extra houses, which they often built themselves, land and motor vehicles which could never have been achieved within their own economy.

Croatia can be looked at from the perspective of three distinct regions. Each has its advantages and disadvantages but they combine very effectively to form the current republic. The eastern region which extends along the southern edge of the Pannonian plain is predominantly flat with a distinctly continental climate and is the granary of Croatia.

The central region is located around the republic’s Capital City – Zagreb – and includes the Sava Valley, Hrvatsko areas of Zagorje, Medjimurge, Banya and Kordun which represent the strongest industrial area of Croatia and indeed the whole region including Jugoslavia. The south west region is located on the North Adriatic, the whole Croatian coast and Istria and accounts for the vast majority of Croatia’s tourism trade.

All of these areas have over the centuries influenced the characteristics of these areas by their experiences in war and peace.

The eastern region still bears a large number of Austro-Hungarian buildings and some of their traditions.

The South West, because of its large exposure to the sea is heavily influenced by the Venetian or Italian occupations which introduced new culture and traditions.

In the modern Croatian language there are many words that are common with the Italian language and have exactly the same meaning.

Despite all the invasions and occupations, the Croatian national character has been largely preserved because of the Croats resistance and possibly rebelliousness that they stuck to their ways and would not succumb to these invaders.

It is of interest to note that the central core of the Croatian element was located in the coastal regions and it was not until early in the 19th century that the economic, political, social and cultural spheres were located in Zagreb. The population is 75% comprised of Croats and 11 ½% Serbs with a mixture of Slovenes, Muslims, Montenegrins, Macedonians, Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Italians and Romanies comprising the multi-national group.

Typically of the region of central Croatia are the many military fortifications dating from the wars with the Turks and especially so is the noble castle of Trakoscan.There are also stately Gothic Churches, baroque buildings of Varazdin, Zagreb’s Gothic Cathedral and the upper town of Zagreb the old Church of St. Mark and its stone gate. Similarly there are also remnants of military buildings in the town of Karlovac, which today is the centre for brewing one of Croatia finest beers. The Adriatic coast is virtually littered with marvelous buildings of the Classical, Roman and renaissance periods in towns such as Porec, Pula, Zadar, Sibenik, Split and Dubrovnik.

Croatia is developing rapidly as a centre for the arts with International Youth Music, film festivals, medieval music and historical dancing and art of ancient Croatia. The population while enjoying reasonable standards of living do not embrace the opulence of nearby