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The
Franciscan Monastery (baroque)
Franciscans, noted for their devotion to learning,
preaching and charitable work, developed their activity
in Slavonia in the 13th century and most probably
in Slavonski Brod. Therefore, they granted town
its religious, cultural, economic, but also political
physiognomy. The first monastery was built in 1694,
and the foundation stone for the new church was
laid by Baron Ivari Trenk on 12th, August 1723,
construction itself being led by Fra Ivan Narancic.
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Church and the monastery were designed according
to military drawings similar to some kind of fortress,
with over 3,5 m thick foundation, and 2 m thick
walls. With its length of 38 m, width of 13,5 m
and the height of 13 m, Brod Franciscan Church represents
the largest church in Slavonia. Claustrum of the
Brod monastery belongs to the most representative
claustrum of the architecture in Northern Croatia,
and is regarded for "the most prominent Baroque
edifice in Slavonia". Sacral and cultural treasure
of Brod Franciscan monastery bear witness of continuity
of religion, culture and general progress of Brod,
its surroundings and population, which is inseparably
connected with the Order of Franciscans. |
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Library,
archive, famous chronicle and music archive testify
high level of culture and education which spread
from the monastery already at the end of l7th century.
Valuable sacral artefacts and paintings reflect
strong religious tradition which the Franciscans
fostered also illegally in the age of Turkish Empire
till 1754 as priests and religious teachers. Franciscan
monastery was closed in 1983, first of all due to
accommodation of military commission and the German
school. Franciscans came back to Brod in 1806 after
leaving their monastery in Djakovo.
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The reconstruction
of the monastery began in 1983 and lasts till present
days. Presently Franciscans promote their activities
in quite, modest, non - intrusive and irredeemable
pastoral and educational work. Believers eager of
intensive spiritual life gather in the monastery
Since 1995 Franciscans also lead Brod Classical
Gymnasium.
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The
Brod Fortress | Ground plan |
In Brod, which was an important strategic and traffic
center controlling the border crossing towards Turkey
and connecting main commercial trails at the time,
in the period between 1715-1780 Austria built the
large imperial and royal border Fortress of Brod
on the Sava River, which along with the fortified
baroque towns of Slavonia, namely Osijek and Stara
Gradiška, belongs to the great defense system on
the border towards the Turkish Empire, designed
by the prince Eugene of Savoy in the first half
of the 18 century. It was constructed by peasants
of the Military Border under forced labor; more
specifically 634 a day, who also gave 53 horse-drawn
carts daily for the transport of material. The regular
star-like form of the fortress was determined by
the flat-country. It was built of rammed earth,
bricks, wood and partially stone, and designed for
the accommodation of 4.000 soldiers, mostly infantry
and 150 cannons. |
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According to an evaluation of the
Brod Fortress resistance, during the classical siege
with full capacity channels, it would have taken
ten days of preparation for the attacks and 46 days
for the enemy to take over the entire Fortress.
The Fortress of Brod occupied about 33 ha. The military
government did not allow for the construction of
solid material houses, due to the fact that the
entire town was within the range of the fortress
cannons, and consequently, throughout the entire
18 and most of the 19 century, Brod was the town
of small wooden houses, roofed by shingle or board. |
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In case of the potential Turkish attack, the town
was to be leveled down, in order to provide the
artillery with the open space around the fortress.
Although being a military border stronghold, the
Fortress almost never had the opportunity to prove
and demonstrate its combative power. However, there
are many preserved fortifications reminiscent of
the bygone times and the everyday military life
that took place within. The Fortress of Brod was
constructed according the Vauban system. It is basically
of a rectangular form, while the system of defense
channels provides its star-like layout. It consisted
of three defense zones: internal, external and southern, and it was protected by two moat areas,
water-fed from the nearby stream. |
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The
southern part of the Fortress was specially
reinforced by the fortification named hornwerk because of its horn-like layout (germ. Horn-horn).
The principal task of Hornwerk was to obstruct the
Turkish crossings over the Sava River by implementation
of cannons. However, by the end of the 18th century,
within the southern defense zone several constructions
were erected, such as the Fortress Commander building
which today houses The Ivan Zajc Elementary School
of Music, Officers' Pavilion, which apart from the
officers' apartments and which today houses the
City Government Headquarters, the Fortress Chaplain
apartment (today here is The Tourist Information
Center of Tourist Board), the Commander's kitchen,
the cart-wright's and stables, while the remaining
free areas were used for orchards, gardens and parks.
The internal central part of the Fortress is rectangular
in shape and consists of four bastions connected
by defensive walls. |
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Information:
Tourist Board Slavonski Brod
Trg pobjede 28/1
35000 Slavonski Brod
tel./fax: +385 35 447 721
e-mail: info@tzgsb.hr |
The bastions - pentagonal
rammed earth bulwarks brick walled from the outside
were organized for the final resistance against
the enemies, and were used to monitor the area in
front of the Fortress, defend the external walls
and the neighboring bastion. Apart from 46 cm high
cannon platforms, up to 4 sentry boxes were placed
on each bastion for defense purposes. There are
curtain walls - the main walls connecting each two
bastions. They were brick-built, with a clay overlayer
on the top side for the defense path. In the curtain
wall interior there are rooms for accommodation
of men and ammunition, as well as the workshops
required for the Fortress functioning, with passages
across the middle. Nowdays, in the reconstructed
forge room in the west curtain wall, visitors of
the Fortress can meet the Fortress blacksmith. |

Information:
Tourist information center
in the Brod Fortress
Vukovarska b. b.
35000 Slavonski Brod
tel.: +385 35 411 442 |
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Within the central
part there is the Cavalier - a massive
brick-walled one-storey construction in the form
of the horse-shoe. In the Cavalier interior there
were up to 108 large rooms of identical dimensions
- casemates, used for the army logistic purposes,
namely for the accommodation of the soldiers, artillery
workshops, cart-wright's, locksmith's, armorer's
shop, armory, bakery, storage, hospital, pharmacy.
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Today, the renovated part of the southwestern tract
of the Cavalier, on the gross area of 1.800 sq.
m, houses the unique Ružić Gallery with the first
permanent exhibition of the Croatian modern art
of the second half of the 20 century. More than
400 works of art from the collection of the Croatian
sculptor and painter, Branko Ružić, born in Brod
(Slavonski Brod, 1919 - Zagreb, 1997), as well as
his contemporaries and friends are at display in
the Gallery.
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Branko Ružić
(Slavonski Brod, 1919. - Zagreb, 1997.) |
Working hours
of the Gallery are:
In the summer: Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday and Friday - 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. and
5 p.m. - 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday - 10
a.m. - 2 p.m.
In the winter: Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday and Friday - 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday - 10
a.m. - 2 p.m.
Please phone in advance for group visits
on Mondays, telephone numbers: 035 447 680,
035 448 749, 035 411 510 and e-mail: galerija-umjetnina@sb.t-com.hr |
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At the center of the Fortress square there is a baroque Fortress church of St. Ann, protected by two buildings on the south
side - the Slavonian barracks, renovated and today
housing the classical program high school of Father
Marijan Lasković and the Headquarters barracks. The organized tourist groups, previously announced
at the Tourist Board, have the opportunity to attend
the "living history" programs at the Fortress square,
featuring individuals dressed as hussars of the
12 Slavonian hussar regiment from the second half
of 18 century, as well as the other characters from
the Fortress past such as the Fortress Commander
and the Fortress clerk, the Fortress guards and
craftsmen etc. |
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The
external defense zone consisted of ravelins - triangular bastions protecting the main walls
and obstructing the enemy access to the Fortress.
All ravelins are consturcted of rammed earth and
brick walled on the outside, while in the upper
part there is an overlayer and parapets. Within
the west and east ravelin walls there is a redoubt - the pentagonal fortification used as a provisional
powder magazine and as a gunsmith's. Due to the
rapid development of the siege techniques, the Brod
Fortress lost its defensive task already by the
mid 19th century. From that point onwards, Brod
on the Sava River started its intensive development,
while the old wooden Brod started to disappear.
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The devastation of the Brod Fortress continues throughout
the 20th century. Some objects were destructed by
the army as useless, while the abandoned and unsustainable
buildings cave in and dilapidate. In the period
from 1945 up until the Croatian War of Independence
in the '90s, the Fortress serves as accommodation
for the soldiers of the National Army of Yugoslavia.
Today the Fortress of Brod, world Heritage site
and the unique and monumental example of the 18th
century Slavonian military fortification architecture,
belongs to the city of Slavonski Brod, decidedly
initiating its revitalization.
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House
of Family Brlić
House of Family Brlić was built at
the end of the l8th century on the main town square,
and disappeared in the great fire of 1882. On this
place a new neoclassical one storied building was
erected, which is today protected as monument of
cultural heritage. Located in authentic historical
ambient the house of Family Brlić was home of many
distinguished personalites who gave significant
contribution to the public, cultural and political
life of Brod and Croatia: Ignjat Alojzije Brlić,
author and linguist, Andrija Torkvat Brlić, journalist
and politician, Fani Brlic, born Daubauchy, painter
and Ivana Brlić Mažuranić, the author of fairy tales
for children. Wealthy library, one of the most notable
in Croatia in 19th century and the archive with
rare correspondence and original documents of the
family heritage represent today precious part of
national heritage. We recommend you anyway to visit
the small and the big showroom of the House of the
Family Brlić, where you can see the exhibitions.
Housed on the ground floor of the Brlic family house
are the "Vladimir Becic" Exhibition Salons of the
Slavonski Brod Art Gallery. |
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