History of Croatia:
At the time of the Roman Empire, the area of modern Croatia comprised two Roman provinces, Pannonia and Dalmatia. After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th Century A.D., the area was subjugated by the Ostrogoths for 50 years, before being incorporated into the Byzantine Empire.
Croatia, as a polity, first appeared as a duchy in the 7th century, the Duchy of Croatia, and the near Principality of Lower Pannonia,[1] which were united and elevated into the Kingdom of Croatia which lasted from 925 until 1918. From the 12th century, the Kingdom of Croatia entered a Personal Union with the Kingdom of Hungary, it remained a distinct state with its ruler (Ban) and Sabor, but it elected Royal dynasties from neighboring powers, primarily Hungary, Naples and the Habsburg monarchy.
The period from the 15th to the 17th centuries was marked by intense struggles between the Ottoman Empire to the south and the Habsburg Empire to the north.
Following the First World War and the dissolution of Austria-Hungary (1918), Croatian lands were incorporated into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, which was dominated by Serbia. Following the German invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, the Independent State of Croatia allied to the Axis powers was established to be defeated in May 1945, a week after the German Instrument of Surrender. The Socialist Republic of Croatia, a constituent republic of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, was constituted. In 1991, Croatia's leadership severed ties to Yugoslavia and proclaimed independence amidst the dissolution of Yugoslavia
