Topana Castle

Topana Castle, locally known as Tvrđava Topana, lies above the town of Imotski, in the county of Split-Dalmatia in Croatia.

The cliff on which the castle is situated forms a natural defensive site, as it was between 2 deep sinkholes. So, already in prehistoric times there was a hill fort here. The east sinkhole was partially filled in during the 1970s, after which a football stadium was installed there.

A castle at Imotski was first mentioned, as a strong fortress, in the 10th century, by the Byzantine emperor Constantine VII. So it was probably first built by the Byzantines on the remains of the earlier hill fort.

The present-day remains date back to a castle erected somewhere during the 13th/14th century, when Imotski was under the rule of the Nelipčić family. In 1493 the castle was taken by the Ottomans, who made it their regional administrative seat. The present name of the castle; Topana, is also a Turkish name. As 'Topana' translates back to 'a place where cannons are kept'. They, of course, reconstructed the castle to meet their needs.

After almost 230 years of Turkish rule, the castle was turned over to the Venetians in 1717. The Venetians then restored and strengthened the castle. With the end of the Ottoman threat later that century, however, the castle lost its strategic value. It was finally abandoned in 1816 after which it fell to ruin.

Legend has it that the former border between the Ottoman Empire and the Venetian Republic was established by shooting a cannonball from the castle down into the fields below it. That former border is now the border between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Topana Castle is freely accessible. A nice castle ruin with a good view over the Blue Lake, in the sinkhole west of it.

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