|RNature and climate:|N Croatia comprises the historical provinces Croatia, Dalmatia and Slavonia.
Slavonia is the southern part of the fertile Hungarian puszta. Dalmatia comprises most of the former Yugoslavia's narrow coastline by the Adriatic Sea with the many islands, bordered in north to Bosnia by the Dinaric Alps. Croatia is the western part of the country with a coast to the Adriatic Sea, fertile plains in the north, and mountains between.
Average temperature in January 0°C in the north and +7°C by the coast and in July 20°C in the north and 25°C by the coast. Some degrees lower in the mountains.
Percipitation between 600 and 1000 mm in most of the country, but between 1000 and 2000 mm in the mountains.
|RPeople:|N 76% Croatian, 12% Serbs and more than 20 different small ethnic groups.
|REconomy:|N Most important crops are grains, maize, fruits, wine and olives. Stockraising is extensive.
Croatia have many minerals such as oil, bauxite, copper and coal.
Industry is well developed. most important are textiles, chemicals, aluminum products, paper, shipyards and tourism.
The civil war has closed many industries and tourism has ceased totally.
|RHistory:|N In the 7th century AD Croats, a south Slavic people, invaded this Roman province. About 900 they established an independent kingdom that in 1091 was united with Hungary in a personal union.
In the 16th century Croatia was step by step occupied by the Turks and in 1699 it was given to the house of Habsburg.
In 1918 it became a part of the kingdom Yugoslavia.
During World War II it was a nominally independent kingdom under Italian and German protection and after the war, in 1946, it became a part of the republic of Yugoslavia.
In 1991 Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia and immediately fighting began between ethnic Croats and Serbs. There are about 12% Serbs living in Croatia and they, with help of regular Yugoslavian troops, control about 30% of the Croatian land. In 1995 the Croatian army have forced away Serbs from several areas.
