Tomislav being the first Croatian king is now a widely accepted fact. Based on research of historians at the end of the 19th century, his name became associated with that of the first Croatian king. A story was also developed about his coronation on Duvno Field in 925, despite the lack of evidence for this in historical records. Pope John X sent two letters around that time period in which he mentions Tomislav. In one letter he is mentioned as “King Tomislav in the province of the Croats and in the regions of Dalmatia,” while in the other he is referred to as “dear son Tomislav, King of the Croats.” He ruled the significant part of the former Lower Pannonia with the center in Sisak and governed the Dalmatian cities. Victories over the Bulgarians and a likely successful resistance to Hungarians showed his strength and power.
A ruler like that emerged before the Croats at the end of the 19th century. It is clear that the awareness of the approaching thousandth anniversary of the first king influenced some to start thinking about organizing a worthy commemoration. In 1906, the founders of the “Society of Brethren of the Croatian Dragon,” Emilij pl. Laszowski Szeliga and Velimir Deželić Sr., came up with this idea. In compromised Croatia under Hungarian domination, Croatian land was not unified. Therefore, commemorating the first Croatian king of an independent and united Croatia and a victor over the Hungarians had a great symbolic value. The idea of celebrating the thousandth anniversary also occurred in present-day Tomislavgrad. Franciscan Mijo Čuić led the preparations and also envisioned the construction of a memorial church.
The commemoration took place in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, where the Croatian people were not equal and their individuality and identity were threatened. The celebrations in 1925 and the following years were initiated by the “Society of Brethren of the Croatian Dragon” and were accompanied by numerous publications and memorials. This was an important step in preserving and forming the Croatian national identity. The traces of the commemoration in 1925 are still present today. At the initiative of the “Society of Brethren of the Croatian Dragon” and Matica hrvatska, on 14 March 2024, the Croatian Parliament declared the year 2025 as the “Year of Commemorating the 1100th Anniversary of the Kingdom of Croatia.”
dr. sc. Mario Jareb, Scientific Advisor
Croatian Institute of History
