Klis

Description

Klis is a historical settlement named after the mountain on which the Kliška Fortress was built, one of the 2 most interesting fortresses in Croatian history. The second most interesting fortress is the Senj Fortress, and at that time it was of great importance in the defense of the Kliška Fortress in the long-term attempts of the Ottomans (Turks) to conquer it.

Kliška Fortress was built on a steep cliff between 2 hills Kozjak and Mosor, and in history it had a defensive position and controlled the road from the interior to Split and the sea.
The historic battle at Kliška Fortress took place in 1524 when the Turkish army surrounded the fortress and tried to conquer it.
This fight is known as the longest fight in the history of warfare. The warriors who defended Klis were called Klis Uskoks. The Turks wanted to conquer Klis to have free passage to the sea.

The Turks also conquered Klis, but one Klis warrior went to Senj for help and returned with ships and 1500 warriors and defeated the Turkish army. The war around the Kliška fortress lasted for 13 years. The Venetians also had problems and wanted to take Klis, but Pope Clementine and Pope Paul II helped Klis a lot, so the Turkish Emperor Suleiman said that Klis was a "Papal city".
Klis also had an important strategic role in Roman times because it was located near Salona (Solin today) which at that time was the center of Dalmatia but also the eastern part of the world because at that time it was the residence of Emperor Diocletian.
7th and 8th century Klis was inhabited by Croats, where the first solid foundations of the Croats were made in 852 with the arrival of Prince Trpimir, and since then Klis has been owned by Croatian feudal lords and noble families. Klis was the first Croatian city and the capital of the Trpimirović dynasty. To this day, throughout history, only the Croatian people have lived there.
Kliška Fortress is still well preserved and is a major tourist attraction.