The Croatian War was fought 1991-1995, just after the fall of the Soviet Union. Yugoslavia as a cohesive nation ceased to exist soon after the start of the war, with Croatians and others breaking away. Croatia ultimately achieved independence, although the war decimated much of its economy and more than $35 billion in damage occurred.

On this day August 5, in 1995, Homeland Thanksgiving Day takes place. It has since then been celebrated as a public holidays.  This day marks the Croatian Army taking control of the city Knin.

Croatia has a population of 4.25 million of which the majority of which is Roman Catholic. The country itself is a democratic country with a parliamentary republic.  Croatia is located in Eastern Europe and borders Hungary, Serbia, and Bosnia. Croatia has had immense economic growth and for its location, it has high GDP per capita which nearly reached $20,000 in 2011. It is estimated that 20% of its economy is derived from tourism.