Ante Starčević facts for kids

Ante Starčević (born May 23, 1823 – died February 28, 1896) was an important Croatian politician and publisher. He is often called the "Father of the Nation" in Croatia because of his work for Croatian independence.

Life

Starčević was born in a small town called Žitnik, near Gospić, in what was then part of Austria-Hungary. His mother was Serb Orthodox and his father was Catholic. After finishing high school in Zagreb in 1845, he began studying to become a priest in Senj. However, he moved to Pest in 1845 and finished his studies there in 1848. He also took philosophy classes.

Instead of becoming a priest, Starčević decided to work in law. He joined a law firm in Zagreb. He tried to get a job at the University of Zagreb but wasn't successful. He continued working in the law firm until 1861, even though he wasn't allowed to practice law after 1857. He was also part of a Croatian cultural group called Matica ilirska and worked on a literary magazine called Neven.

In 1861, he became the chief notary (a public official who can witness signatures and legal documents) for the Fiume county. That same year, he was chosen to be a representative for Fiume in the Croatian Parliament. He also started a political group called the Croatian Party of Rights with his friend Eugen Kvaternik. Starčević was re-elected to parliament several times, serving until his death.

In 1862, he was put in prison for a month because people thought he was against the government during protests in Fiume. After he was released, he went back to the law firm. He was arrested again in 1871 because of a rebellion called the Rakovica Revolt, which was started by Kvaternik. This rebellion was quickly stopped by Austrian troops, and the Croatian Party of Rights temporarily ended. Starčević was released after two months.

In his later years, he moved into Starčević House, a building built for him by his political party in 1895. He died there a year later, at the age of 73. He was buried in the Church of St Mirko in Šestine, a suburb of Zagreb. A statue of him was put up in front of Starčević House in 1998.

Political Activity

After he was not allowed to practice law in 1857, Starčević traveled to Russia and then to France, hoping to get support for Croatia. In Paris, he published a work called La Croatie et la confédération italienne, which is seen as an early idea for his Party of Rights. When Austria lost control over Italy in 1859, it weakened Austria's power, which helped Starčević's political career.

As chief notary in Fiume in 1861, Starčević wrote important documents that became the basis for the Croatian Party of Rights. He believed that Croatia should decide its own relationships with Austria and Hungary through international agreements. He wanted to bring all Croatian lands back together into a "large kingdom of Croatia of old," which he saw as the homeland of one people with the same background and language.

He founded the Croatian Party of Rights with Eugen Kvaternik in 1861. This party was traditional and supported the Habsburg rulers, but it also focused on Croatian independence. Starčević was the only member of parliament who agreed with Kvaternik's plan for a new constitution in 1861. He also pushed for the end of the Military Frontier (a special border region) and convinced parliament to stop joint business with Austria.

Starčević believed that people in Bosnia should work together to solve their issues. He thought that Bosnian Muslims were an important part of the Croatian people.

Literary and Publishing Work

Starčević was a talented writer. He wrote many different things, including literary reviews, short stories, newspaper articles, philosophical essays, plays, and political satire. He also translated texts from other languages.

His travel story From Lika was published in 1848. He wrote four plays between 1851 and 1852, but only one, Village Prophet, still exists. He also translated works from Ancient Greek. His critical review of Đurđević's Pjesni razlike in 1855 is considered one of the first important literary essays about old Dubrovnik literature. His writings often focused on practical philosophy, which he called "the science of life."

In 1850, Starčević began working on a very important Croatian document from 1325 called Istarski razvod. He copied the text from the old Glagolitic alphabet into the Latin alphabet and published it in 1852. In his introduction, he shared his ideas about language, saying that the Croatian language was a mix of different dialects. He used a specific form of Croatian in his writing that was unique to him.

He also disagreed with the Vienna Language Agreement of 1850 and the language ideas of Vuk Stefanović Karadžić. He wrote articles about this in 1852. When a newspaper from Novi Sad claimed that "Croatians write in Serbian," Starčević wrote a strong reply, saying that Croats use the Croatian language. He published this reply without his name in Narodne novine, a newspaper run by Ljudevit Gaj. When Gaj was criticized for it, Starčević said he was the author.

Because of his political and literary work, Ante Starčević is often called the "Father of the Nation" (Otac domovine) in Croatia. His picture is on the 1000 Croatian kuna banknote, which was issued in 1993.

Images for kids

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  Ante Starčević's funeral procession, 1896

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  Monument of Ante Starčević in Zagreb

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  Order of Ante Starčević, a special award in Croatia for contributions to the creation of the Croatian state

See Also

In Spanish: Ante Starčević para niños