ZVEČAJ FORTRESS

Placed above a beautiful meander of the Vrbas, this 14th-century fortress (Tvrđava Zvečaj/Звечај) retains only a tower still reaching 10 m in height. Captured by the Ottomans in the spring of 1463, it was retaken a few months later by Matthias I of Hungary. It was used to defend the southern part of the Hungarian kingdom until 1527, when it was handed over to the Ottomans. In 1737, it was one of the main points of resistance during the Austro-Hungarian incursion on Banja Luka led by Prince Joseph-Frederic of Saxony-Hildburghausen.