Mostar

Until the end of of the 16th century and the fall of Klis, Mostar was the most important strategic base in the Turkish Empire in Herzegovina. Until it fell under Austro-Hungary rule in 1878, Mostar was one of the most important towns in Herzegovina. It developed on both sides of the bridge, along the left and right bank of Neretva. In Turkish times, trade, cottage industries and commerce flourished there. With the arrival of Austria-Hungary the town lost it former status, becoming a poor trade and commercial centre. Between the two wars it became the focus of revolutionary activity owing to the marked dissatisfaction of the inhabitants, wich was particularly well-expresed during the National Liberation War. Mostar is the town of poets, a town of progressive revolutionaries and national heroes. In postwar period Mostar has changed a lot...both economically and socially.