Kličevica Castle

Kličevica Castle, locally known as Utvrda Kličevica, lies in a forest west of the town of Benkovac, in the county of Zadar in Croatia.

In 1409, Dalmatia was divided when one part was sold to the Republic of Venice, while the other part belonged to the Croatian-Hungarian Kingdom. The Croatian area of Benkovac then became a border region, and local Croatian nobility built multiple fortifications to defend their lands against the Venetians.

Kličevica Castle was constructed in 1454 by the local Croatian nobles of Kurjakovići to protect their territory from the Venetians. Ownership of the area was contested by the Venetians, and the castle was attacked several times. Evidence of its military role includes a bronze three-barreled cannon, arrows, crossbow missiles, and stone catapult balls, found inside the keep during archaeological excavations.

In 1527, when the area was taken over by the Ottoman Empire, the Croats abandoned the castle, leaving it to the Turks. Apparently, due to its isolated location, the Ottomans had no interest in maintaining it, and it fell into ruin.

The castle, situated in a pine forest near a small canyon of the Kličevica stream, has an irregular rectangular plan with a tall oval keep on its northern corner. The entrance to the keep was on the second-floor level. Today, you can enter it in two ways: through an opening on the basement floor inside the castle, which has a climbing rope to reach the second floor, or through another opening, likely a former window, on the outside of the castle, also equipped with a climbing rope. I didn't have the courage to use either rope.

Kličevica Castle is freely accessible, a beautiful small castle in a great natural setting.

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