Banovina (region)

During the era of Chalcolithic Vučedol culture centered in Syrmia and eastern Slavonia spread to the area of modern day Banovina with known archaeological sites being those in Osječenica near the village of Gorička, Budim near the village of Mali Gradac and the Iron Age site next to the Una river in the village of Unčani.[2] During the Iron Age region was inhabited by a Celtic-Illyrians tribe of Segestani.[2]

During the Roman time the region was important transitional area between the provinces of Pannonia and Illyricum with nearby Siscia already serving as a regional center.[2] Until today archaeological excavation of Roman sites in the region remain limited.[2]

The area surrounding Petrinja and Hrastovica belonged to the Kaptol while the area west of the Glina River belonged to the Topuska Abbey.[2] The Order of Cistercians received the abbey's possessions in 1205 from the Andrew II of Hungary.[2]

After the reconquest of Banija the region became a part of Glina Regiment of Zagreb General Command within the Croatian Military Frontier between 1553 and 1881. In November 1630, Holy Roman EmperorFerdinand II proclaimed the so-called Statuta Valachorum ("Vlach Statute"), which regulated the status of so-called Vlach settlers (in Banovina mostly ancestors of modern-day Serbs of Croatia) with regard to their military obligations and rights to internal self-administration. Croatian Military Frontier existed until 15 July 1881, when it was abolished and incorporated into the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia.

During the interwar period Banovina was divided between Vrbas Banovina whose seat was in Banja Luka and Sava Banovina whose seat was in Zagreb. In 1939 Sava Banovina became a part of the autonomous Banovina of Croatia.

Monument to the uprising of the people of Kordun and Banija

During the World War II in Yugoslavia the region was one of the main targets of the Genocide of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia. One of the most infamous mass killings was the Glina massacres of 2,000–2,400 people. Consequentially, the region also became one of the strongholds of the Yugoslav Partisans, Europe's most effective anti-Axis resistance movement.

During the Croatian War of Independence in the 1990s the entire region of Banovina became a part of internationally unrecognized self-proclaimed Republic of Serbian Krajina. Croatian government retook control over the region in 1995 via Croatian forces Operation Storm leading to mass fleeing of nearly the entire Serb population of Banija and resulting serious depopulation of the region. Subsequent return was only partial and slow.