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'Čapljina' is a town and municipality of the same name in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity. Čapljina is located on the border with Croatia a mere 20 kilometers from the Adriatic Sea.

Contents

Demographics

About Čapljina

History

Demographics

In 1991 there were 37,854 inhabitants of the Čapljina municipality: 15,007 Croats (53.8%), 7,717 Bosniaks (27.9%), 3,770 Serbs (13.5%), 1,018 Yugoslavs (3.6%), and 342 others (1.2%).
The town of Čapljina had 27,510 residents: 41.2% Croats, 31.6% Bosniaks, 17.1% Serbs, 9.3% Yugoslavs and 0.8% others. The Bosniak and Serb poulations were expelled during the war in the early 1990s and today the majority of the population are Croats.
No reliable estimates on the population exist since a census has not been conducted since 1991.

About Čapljina

The river Neretva flows through the municipality and flows into the Adriatic just over the border. The town's landmark is a statue of King Tomislav. The Church of Saint Francis Assisi is also a prominent facet of the town. The municipal coat of arms contains the Croatian chequy, the nearby Roman villa Mogorjelo, and Saint Francis Assisi.
The municipality has a rich archaeological history and untouched wilderness and is starting to develop agricultural tourism. It is also home to Hutovo Blato Park, which contains one of the most diverse bird populations in all Europe. The Croatian town of Metković is located just over the border and there are significant commercial and other links between the two towns new Čapljina International Speedway.

History

Not much is known about this city but it was founded by Romans in the 5 BC where it got its name from. The name is the same as it was 2000 years ago.
In WWII Ustashe committed atrocities in Čapljina and nearby villages , as mentioned in the Croatian nationalist song Jasenovac i Gradiska stara. Among these was the Prebilovci massacre, in which as many as 4000 people including 600 from Prebilovci may have been killed.
Since World War II it has been an important road and rail transportation link, connecting the rest of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the port of Ploče in Croatia. During the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina the city was taken over by the Croatian Defence Council who expelled the non Croat population and set up concentration camps for Bosniaks in Gabela.
During the Summer of 2007 wildfires caused extensive damage throughout the rural part of the municipality.