Fortica Fortress in Otočac

Fortica stands on a hill above Otočac, on the site of an earlier fortification. Uskoks built it between 1619 and 1630, during the defence against Ottoman incursions. The fortress had three towers linked by walls roughly two metres thick, a narrow courtyard and water cisterns. It housed soldiers and stored food, ammunition and gunpowder; its elevated southern entrance was initially reached only by ladder. Once it lost its military role in the second half of the 19th century, Fortica was abandoned. Its ruins now offer a direct reminder of Otočac’s Military Frontier past.