Utvrda Nutjak - Registar kulturnih dobara Republike Hrvatske

Fort Nutjak is a

late medieval The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the period of European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Renai ...

fortress overlooking the canyon of the

Cetina River The Cetina () is a river in southern Croatia. It has a length of and its basin covers an area of . From its source, Cetina descends from an elevation of above sea level to the Adriatic Sea. It is the most water-rich river in Dalmatia.Naklada Nap ...

, about downstream from the town of

Trilj Trilj () is a Cities of Croatia, town and Naselje, settlement in inland Dalmatia, Croatia. It is located northeast of Split (city), Split. In 2021, its population was 8182. Trilj was a traffic hub in Roman Dalmatia, Roman times, when a stone br ...

, Croatia, where the river leaves the plateau of

Sinjsko Polje Sinjsko Polje () is a polje (karstic field) in the inner Dalmatia region of Croatia, the fifth largest in Croatia, covering an area of . The Cetina River flows along the edge of the field, and receives a number of tributaries. The field is long ...

and continues its winding path through the canyon to the confluence in

Omiš Omiš () is a town and port in the Dalmatia region of Croatia, and a municipality in the Split-Dalmatia County. The town is approximately south-east of Croatia's second largest city, Split (city), Split, where the Cetina River meets the Adriatic ...

. It was built in the 15th century to protect the land west of the Cetina from Ottoman invasion, most likely by order of duke of

Republic of Poljica The Republic of Poljica or duchy (, in older form ''Poljička knežija'') was an autonomous community which existed in the late Middle Ages and the early modern period in central Dalmatia, near modern-day Omiš, Croatia. It was organized as a "pea ...

Žarko Dražojević. Even though he offered it for sale to

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

in 1499, 1502, and 1504, he apparently retained possession until his death in 1508. Sometime before 1513 it was conquered by the Ottomans. The people of Poljica regained control in March 1685, at the start of the

Morean War The Morean war (), also known as the Sixth Ottoman–Venetian War, was fought between 1684–1699 as part of the wider conflict known as the "Great Turkish War", between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire. Military operations ranged ...

. In 1699, Nutjak was assigned to Venice by the

Treaty of Karlowitz The Treaty of Karlowitz, concluding the Great Turkish War of 1683–1699, in which the Ottoman Empire was defeated by the Holy League at the Battle of Zenta, was signed in Karlowitz, in the Military Frontier of the Habsburg Monarchy (present-day ...

and the opposite shore of the Cetina, together with

Fort Čačvina Fort Čačvina is a medieval fortification, now in ruins, just above the village of Čačvina in modern-day Croatia. It was built on a hill at an altitude of to control a key ancient route through the passages of the Dinaric Alps from coastal ...

, remained under Turkish rule. Venetian sources mention that the Ottomans stationed a garrison of twenty to thirty lightly armed soldiers, which was governed by a

dizdar Dizdar (; ) was the title given in the Ottoman Empire to a castle warden or fortress commander, appointed to manage troops and keep the fortress in its role as a defence point. The word is of Persian language, Persian origin, meaning gatekeeper ...

, and fell under the Sanjak of Klis and was subordinate to the kadi of Imotski. Soon, the fort lost its strategic role because a small Venetian fort, the so-called Guardia, was erected at nearby

Gardun Gardun is a village at the top of the hill of Gardun, just 1 km south of Trilj. In the 1997, excavations of the remains of legionary fortress of Tilurium started on the southern outskirts of the village. Tilurium guarded the entrance to t ...

. The Fort Nutjak's defensive role diminished after the Ottoman expulsion from

Imotski Imotski () is a small town on the northeastern side of the Biokovo massif in the Dalmatian Hinterland of southern Croatia, near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The town has a generally mild Mediterranean climate which makes it a popular ...

in 1717, during the Second Morean War, and by the early 20th century the fortress was in ruins. Nutjak

The complex is dominated by a large circular tower, built of partially processed stone blocks bound with plaster, with a filling of smaller stone. On the west, the main entrance to the fortress is partially preserved in a length of about and a height of . There is a small courtyard inside the fortress, and a number of buildings and rooms, with irregular floor plan. The importance of the Nutjak fortress is evidenced by the fact that

Pope Innocent VIII Pope Innocent VIII (; ; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death, in July 1492. Son of the viceroy of Naples, Cybo spent his ea ...

decided to finance its maintenance in 1492, the year of his death. According to archaeological research, the fortress appears to have been built on a prehistoric site. The first known description and sketch of the fortress were made in 1688 by Venetian cartographer V. M. Coronelli. The fort is protected as an immovable cultural property of Croatia. It can be reached via a path that branches off from the Trilj– Bisko road at the fourth kilometer.

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* Nutjak Buildings and structures in Split-Dalmatia County {{Croatia-castle-stub

See also

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External links