Editing Požega, Croatia (section)

==History==
[[File:Medieval pozega.jpg|thumb|left|Fortress and city of Požega (early 18th century)<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lopašić |first=Radoslav |title=Dva hrvatska junaka: Marko Mesić i Luka Ibrišimović |publisher=Matica hrvatska |year=1989 |isbn=86-397-0073-7 |location=Zagreb |pages=123}}</ref>]]
[[File:Pozega - bishop palace.jpg|thumb|left|Bishop's Palace]]
The first mention of the city of Požega is found in the [[Gesta Hungarorum]], by an anonymous notary of [[Béla III]] (1172–1196) where he mentions the conquest of three forts in [[Slavonia]] - as the area between rivers [[Danube]] and [[Sutla]] was then called: [[Zagreb]], Vlco ([[Vukovar]]) and Posega. The fortress of Požega, an elongated hexagonal fortification located on a hill in the present-day city center, was probably built during the 11th century, although the first documents that clearly mention Požega county date from 1210, while the city of Požega was documented for the first time in a charter of [[Andrew II of Hungary|Andrew II]] on January 11, 1227.

Požega was originally the residential estate of the Croatian-Hungarian queen and was exempt from the authority of the viceroy and the county. Although no such charter survives, the privileges that citizens enjoyed fully corresponded to a free royal city.

The fortress doesn't exist anymore, and the irregularly-shaped central city square is Romanic in nature. Only fragments of walls remain to remind that there once stood a fortress. The remaining monuments from that age are the Church of St. Lawrence (first mentioned in 1303), and the Church of the [[Holy Spirit in Christianity|Holy Spirit]] (built in 1235).

By the late 14th century, the city started to decline economically due to insecurity from Ottoman raids. In the 15th century, city walls were built, replacing a moat that existed before. This proved an insufficient defense as the Turks seized Požega in 1537.

During the 150-year-long Ottoman rule, Požega was seat of a [[Sanjak of Pojega|Sanjak of Požega]] and given certain prominence. After a considerable economic decline, in 1537, at the time of the Ottoman conquest, Požega reportedly had 110 houses and 15 businesses. However, by 1579, there were 160 craftsmen in Požega as a result of improved security and an increase in population.

The death of [[Hasan Predojević]] the Požega Sanjak [[Bey]] in the [[Battle of Sisak]] in 1593, marked the first Ottoman defeat in Europe, and after years of steady decline, Ottoman rule grew weaker until Požega was finally liberated on 12 March 1688 by citizens led by friar Luka Ibrišimović. This day is now celebrated as the day of the city. However, Ottomans retook Požega in 1690 and held for 1 year.

After the liberation in 1691, Požega came under [[Habsburg]] rule, and in 1745, Požega county was restored and the city thus returned to the authority of Croatian viceroy. Požega underwent a period of vigorous development: In 1699, a grammar school opened - only the fifth in Croatia. In 1727, [[Jesuits]] built a theatre, and in 1740, the city's first pharmacy. Today the city theater ([[Požega City Theater]]) is located on Square of the Holy Trinity (''Trg Svetog Trojstva''). There used to be also a philosophical college for Franciscan novices - the first such institution in Slavonia since the Ottoman rule. Finally, the Academia Posegana opened in 1760, placing Požega, along with Zagreb, among the first Croatian centres of highest education.

In 1765, Empress [[Maria Theresa of Austria|Maria Theresa]] granted Požega a [[royal free city]] charter and supported the construction of the present-day [[Požega cathedral|Cathedral of St.Teresa of Ávila]].

In 1847, Požega was the first city in Croatia to introduce the Croatian language in official use, and the achievements of its notable citizens earned it the nickname of "Slavonian Athens".

In the late 19th century and early 20th century, Požega was the seat of the [[Požega County]] of the [[Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia]].

From 1941 to 1945, Požega was part of the [[Independent State of Croatia]]. During this period [[war crimes]] were committed against the [[Serb]] and [[Jew]]ish population, allegedly under former police chief [[Milivoj Ašner]].<ref name="iht">"[https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/28/world/europe/28iht-hungary.2970014.html Nazi hunters identify convicted war criminal]", Nicholas Wood, ''[[International Herald Tribune]]'', September 28, 2006</ref> The [[volunteer fire department|DVD]] Zvečevo of Požega was founded in 1942.<ref>{{cite web |date=2022 |first1=Nikola |last1=Jagodin |first2=Vedran |last2=Runjić |title=Popis vatrogasnih organizacija s datumima osnivanja |url=https://mhv.hr/popis-vatrogasnih-organizacija-s-datumima-osnivanja |website=Muzej hrvatskog vatrogastva |archive-date=2023-01-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130104803/https://mhv.hr/popis-vatrogasnih-organizacija-s-datumima-osnivanja |language=hr |trans-title=List of Firefighting Organisations with Date of Founding}}</ref>

On October 29, 1991, during the [[Croatian War of Independence]], 26 predominantly Serb villages in Požega were [[Požega villages massacre|targeted by Croatian forces]]. It is estimated that 44 Serbs were killed, thousands displaced and over 1,000 buildings and homes destroyed in the operation.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Milekic |first1=Sven |last2=Nikolic |first2=Ivana |title=Croatian Serbs' Killers Unpunished 24 Years On |url=https://balkaninsight.com/2015/10/29/croatian-serbs-mourn-1991-killings-10-29-2015/ |website=BalkanInsight |publisher=BIRN |date=29 October 2015}}</ref>

Požega County was abolished along with other Croatian counties in 1923, and was restored in 1993, following the independence of Croatia. Furthermore, in the footsteps of its tradition as an educational center as well as a church center, Požega became a [[Diocese|diocesan]] see in 1997, and a graduate-degree college was opened in 1998.