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History of Koprivnica
Koprivnica-Križevci County (Croatian: Koprivničko-križevačka županija) is a county in northern Croatia.
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Its hyphenated name comes from two entities: the two of its largest cities, Koprivnica and Križevci.
Koprivnica is the official capital of the county. It was first mentioned in 1272 in a document by prince Ladislav IV and was declared a free royal town by king Ludovic I in 1356. It has flourished as a trading place and a military fortress since that time.
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The military aspect set it back when it was included in the Military Frontier in the 16th century during the wars with the Ottoman Turks. After Maria Theresa's decree of 1765, however, it resumed life as a peaceful little merchant town.
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Koprivnica developed significantly in the 20th century with the advent of the Podravka food industry, and is known worldwide for its Vegeta spice.
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Križevci, on the other hand, as a smaller city and second mentioned in the county name, may seem like an underdog to its neighbour Koprivnica. Its first mention was from 1193
... by Béla III
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....but it was divided into two parts which developed at different rates.
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After centuries of division, empress Maria Theresa united the Lower and Upper Križevac into Križevci in 1752. The town was also hit by the wars with the Turks, but it regained importance in 1871 when the railway was built through it on the way from Budapest to Rijeka.
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The modern Križevci is oriented towards entrepreneurship, while preserving its eight beautiful churches (one is a cathedral), built mostly in the Middle Ages.
The county also includes a third town, Đurđevac, but its population is much smaller than the main two (8,862 in 2001).
The Koprivnica-Križevci County borders on the Međimurje County in the north, Varaždin County in the northwest, Zagreb County in the southwest, Bjelovar-Bilogora County in the south, Virovitica-Podravina County in the southeast and Hungary in the east.
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