Bjelovar (Hungarian: Belovár, German: Bellowar, Czech: Bělovar or Bělovár, Kajkavian: Belovar, Latin: Bellovarium) is a city in the central Croatia, the administrative centre of Bjelovar-Bilogora County and bishoporic seat of the Diocese of Bjelovar-Križevci.
In the 2021 census, its population was 36,316.
Name
The origin of the modern name Bjelovar is a topic of debate; however, a prominent theory posits that the name is derived from the concept of "white land", a term historically used to describe land that was challenging to cultivate. Older records of names like Belublathya or Bjeloblaće (i.e. "white mud"), indicate this possibility.
The name of the city itself consists of the Croatian adjective bijel, meaning 'white', added to the Hungarian word vár or város, which roughly translates to 'city' or 'fortress'.
Name history
The name of a settlement similar to Bjelovar is mentioned several times in various historical records. In a letter dating to 13 April 1465, Belovarc (Belowarcz) was mentioned by the bans Emeric Zápolya and Nicholas of Ilok, addressed to the archbishop of Zagreb, about the return of said property, and in the archbishops reply to their letter.
In 1473, in a letter, King Matthias Corvinus gifted the properties of so-called "Belublathy" to several nobles.
In other documents from that period, the names Belowarcz, Beloblatje, and Bjeloblaće are mentioned. The same names are also mentioned around the years 1579 to 1611, where a small fortress or schloss was built along the Bjelovacka to defend against oncoming Turkish invasions. This fortress is recorded on various maps as a fortress: Belouac, Belouax, and Wellovar.
In 1756, with the establishment of the modern city and its subsequent promotion to the military center of the Varaždin Generalate, which was commanded by Baron Philipp Lewin von Beck. Bjelovar was founded and named as Novi Varaždin (lit. 'New Varaždin'), which the local population did not accept. Beck ordered that those who do not accept the name Novi Varaždin be punished.
Geography
Bjelovar sits on a plateau in the southern part of the Bilogora, a long, low elevation range with an average height of 150–200 m (highest point: Rajčevica, 309 m). The geology of the area consists of Pliocene sandy marl and sandstones with lesser layers of lignite. Older rocks do not appear on the surface in this area. Deeper down, crystalline rocks can be found. The city stands 135 meters above sea level. It is the capital of the Bjelovar-Bilogora county, and the natural, cultural, and political centre of the area.
Bjelovar sits at an intersection of roads in this area: the D28 intersects with the D43, and it lies on the road between Zagreb and west Slavonia, Podravina, and Osijek. Bjelovar is currently being connected by dual carriageway with Zagreb.
The city of Bjelovar has an area of 181.75 km2 (70.2 sq mi) and administratively includes 31 other settlements.
History
Neolithic and ancient history
The oldest Neolithic location in this area is in Ždralovi, a suburb of Bjelovar, where, while building a basement for the house of Josip Horvatić, a dugout was found and identified as belonging to the Starčevo culture (5000 – 4300 BC). Finds from Ždralovi belong to a regional subtype of a late variant of the Neolithic culture. It is designated the Ždralovi facies of the Starčevo culture, or the final-stage Starčevo. There are also relics of the Korenovo culture, Sopot culture, Lasinja culture, and Vučedol culture, as well as the Bronze and Iron Age cultures, which are found in the wider Bjelovar area.
Roman Empire
The more intensive development of the area began with the arrival of the Romans, who first came to the area between the Sava and Drava rivers in 229 BC. The intersection of two Roman roads was located exactly at the place where present-day Bjelovar developed, and in its immediate vicinity was a presumed military camp or station.
With the stabilization of the northern border of the Roman Empire, a collection of settlements probably developed here in the period from the second to fourth centuries, unrecorded on Roman itineraries but attested by archaeological remains in today's Matošev Square, Stjepan Radić Square, and findings in the wider city area, such as a Roman rural settlement in the forest and area of Lug.
Origin of the city
By the end of the 14th and beginning of the 15th century, many noble and church estates were located within the circle of modern Bjelovar, examples being the settlement Jakobove Sredice, the fort of Gudovačka Gradina, and church parishes in modern-day Veliko Korenovo, Međurača, and Nova Rača.
With the Turkish invasions in the 16th century, the modern-day Bjelovar region became a border area and a humanly and materially devastated region that constantly changed hands. The population had dispersed and life was largely carried out in small forts along the unstable border with the Ottomans. Only with the establishment of an administrative and military system of defense against the Turks, better known as the Croatian Military Frontier, within which the Bjelovar area was located, did the situation stabilize. In the 17th century, Bjelovar is mentioned as a military guardhouse, which indicates that it was already included in the frontier defense system at that point. Stabilization of the Habsburg-Ottoman border on the Sava river and the new circumstances of the society in the region during the first half of the 18th century conditioned the territorial and administrative reorganization of the Varaždin Generalate.
The Severin Uprising (also known as the Varaždin rebellion), which took place in 1755 in the immediate vicinity of the future city, pointed to the need for a new command center from which the Krajišan could demonstrate better control. Viennese military strategists decided to establish a new settlement that would take over the function of headquarters of regimental administrations. A location was chosen in the center of the generalate, on the dividing line between the Križevci and Đurđevac regiments.
The foundation of Bjelovar and the beginning of its construction dates back to 1756, when the land was purchased and a permit was issued for the purchase of building materials. The construction was led by Baron Philipp Lewin von Beck. From the very beginning, the city was conceived as the center of the Varaždin Generalate, and in accordance with the military function, the construction of military facilities and the settlement of the military population began, as well as the resettlement of many Czech and Croatian peasants as workforce on the new fort.
The exception is the block on the square where the parish church of St. Teresa of Avila (now the Cathedral of St. Teresa of Avila) and the Piarist monastery and school sit. Two Piarist monks, brothers Hubert and Ignacije Diviš, came to Bjelovar in 1761 and opened the first public school on the Đurđevac regiment side of town. By the decision of Empress Maria Theresa, construction of a new church started, which was completed in 1772. With this, the parish of Bjelovar was established, and until 1790, it was managed by Piarists. In 1771, Maria Theresa confirmed Bjelovar's status as a privileged "Krajina city", a military community, which resulted in demographic and significant economic growth. This trend continued at the beginning of the 19th century, when the city began to expand beyond its original borders. With time, it became the administrative centre of the Bjelovar-Križevci County.
19th century
The then-town of Bjelovar was pronounced a free royal town by ban Ivan Mažuranić in 1874, after the conclusion of the Ottoman invasion. Peaceful life and economic boom was interrupted by the beginning of the First World War. As an important military town, Bjelovar made its contribution by recruiting the male population, converting many public buildings into hospitals, and using the railway to transport soldiers and the wounded. With the war dragging on, the shortage of manpower and natural resources led to a difficult economic situation and a general shortage of food. At the end of the war, Bjelovar became part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, and it retained its status as the administrative centre of the Bjelovar-Križevci County. On the basis of The Vidovdan Constitution of 1921 and the Law on Regional and County Self-Government (1922), the Kingdom of SHS was divided into 33 oblasts, and Bjelovar thereby lost the status of county center and became part of the Osijek Oblast, with the status of a district and a city.
Thanks to the economic foundations created in the previous period, based on trade, crafts and industry, the positive economic trend continued until The Great Depression, when the growth of registered merchants, craftsmen, and industrialists was still recorded, but with much lower incomes. In the interwar period, the city received some new facilities. The football field of the Bjelovar Academic Sports Club was arranged in the modern-day city quarter of Logorište. Public city pools were also established.
20th century
Second World War
Bjelovar had historical role in the proclamation of the Independent State of Croatia at the beginnings of the Second World War. Two days before the official proclamation in Zagreb, on 8 April 1941, from the balcony of the then city hall (now the Bjelovar City Museum), mayor Julije Makanec proclaimed the Independent State of Croatia during the event known as the Bjelovar uprising. Within two months, a new territorial-administrative division of the state into 22 parishes followed. During the war, unlike the villages in the immediate vicinity of Bjelovar, the town did not experience severe material destruction. On several occasions, the railway, as well as the military bases in the quarter of Vojnović, were bombed by Allied forces.
With the end of the war, Bjelovar became part of the Socialist Yugoslavia, with tendencies towards the modernization and further industrialization of the city. Housing construction intensified, mainly in the northern part of the city, as well as to the south. In 1960, a new post office was built on the site of the old post office building. In 1955, the Koestlin plant moved from the city core to the industrial zone south of the railway. In addition to Koestlin and the already existing factories of Tomo Vinković (tractors), Česma (wood industry), Tehnogradnja (construction) and Elektrometal, new plants were built in the area from the 1960s, while the United Paromlin (later renamed 5 .maj), stayed in its historical location by the old mill, where it was reorganized and built upon.
In addition to demographic and economic growth, the aforementioned built infrastructure contributed to the strengthening of all functions, which turned Bjelovar into one of the most important centres of northwestern Croatia. One such industry, Drvna industrija Česma ('Česma Wood Industry'), became the namesake of the volunteer fire department DVD "Česma", founded on 23 April 1960. Another such industry, Sirela, became the namesake of the DVD "Sirela", founded on 5 October 1968.
Homeland War and aftermath
After the first multi-party democratic elections in the SR Croatia, held on 22 and 23 April 1990, the newly founded Croatian Democratic Union won in Bjelovar. After the referendum and the declaration of independence, the crisis worsened and conflicts began. For this reason, on 12 September, the President of the Republic of Croatia, Dr. Franjo Tuđman, made a decision to block all JNA barracks in Croatia and suspend the supply of electricity, water, and food to these barracks. After a series of unsuccessful attempts to get the JNA army to peacefully leave the barracks located in the city or in its immediate surroundings, namely the barracks or military facilities in the quarters of Logorište, Vojnović, Zvijerci, the forest of Bedenik (The Barutana depot) and the Preradović barracks on the main city square, known as the Božidar Adžija Barracks.