Međimurje County (; ; ) is the northernmost county of Croatia, roughly corresponding to the historical and geographical region of Međimurje. It is the smallest Croatian county by size, and the second most densely populated after the City of Zagreb. The county's seat and main urban centre is Čakovec.
The county borders Slovenia in the north-west and Hungary in the east. The south-eastern corner of the county is near the town of Legrad and the confluence of the Mura into the Drava. The closest cities include Varaždin and Koprivnica in Croatia, Lendava, Murska Sobota and Maribor in Slovenia, as well as Nagykanizsa in Hungary and Graz in Austria.
Name
Besides its Croatian name (Međimurska županija), the county is also known as Muraköz megye in Hungarian, Medžimurska županija in Slovene, and Murinsel in German.
Geography
Međimurje is the smallest Croatian county, not including the City of Zagreb, with an area of 729.5 km2. With an average population of 156 people/km2, it is also the most densely populated Croatian county, if the City of Zagreb is not included.
Međimurje County is located in the Pannonian Basin between two rivers – the Mura and the Drava. The Mura flows along the county's northern border with the Slovenian region of Prekmurje (Municipality of Lendava, Municipality of Ljutomer and Municipality of Ormož) and its eastern border with Hungary's Zala County, while the Drava flows along the county's southern border with two other Croatian counties – Varaždin County and Koprivnica-Križevci County. The Trnava River flows through the middle of the county.
There are two reservoir lakes on the Drava – Lake Varaždin and Lake Dubrava – both built to serve the two hydroelectric power plants based in the county. Lake Dubrava, located near the city of Prelog, is the biggest artificial lake in Croatia and the second largest lake overall in the country. The power plant using Lake Varaždin is named after the county seat, Čakovec, while the one using Lake Dubrava is named Dubrava, taking its name from the nearby village of Donja Dubrava.
The county's elevation ranges between 120 and 344 metres above sea level, the latter being the elevation of its highest hill, Mohokos. Čakovec has an elevation of between 160 and 165 metres above sea level. Throughout the past, there were occasional earthquakes in the region. One of significant strength hit the region in 1880, while another in 1738 devastated Čakovec and particularly the nearby Šenkovec.
Of the county's total area of 729.5 km2, around 360 km2 are used in agriculture. Due to the high population density, agricultural land is divided into 21,000 units averaging each. 27.5 km2 are covered with orchards. 11 km2 is the hilly area, located in the north-western part of the county, with villages like Štrigova and numerous vineyards. Grasslands and forests cover an area of around 105 km2. The biggest forest is Murščak, located between Domašinec and Donji Hrašćan.
Climate The climate is continental. Summers are quite hot. Daily temperatures during the summer months usually range between 20 °C and 30 °C, but can reach as high as 40 °C in July and August, when they can also stay above 30 °C for several days. Thunderstorms and rapid weather changes are common throughout the summer months, as well as in late spring, with a particularly stormy period being between mid-June and mid-July, when they often occur on a daily basis.
Springs and autumns are usually calm, although rapid weather changes can also be common during the two seasons. Winters can be very severe, with early-morning temperatures sometimes reaching as low as -20 °C. During the winter months, daily temperatures usually range between -10 °C and 10 °C. January is usually the coldest month, during which daily temperatures can stay below 0 °C for several days. Snowfall usually occurs between late October and early March. Fog can be a common early-morning occurrence between late summer and early spring, with all-day fog sometimes occurring during the coldest months.
Warm weather, with daily temperatures around 15 °C, can occur as early as mid-February and as late as mid-November. In early October and late March, daily temperatures can also reach as high as 20 °C. However, February and November are generally cold months, with occasional heavy snow and daily temperatures around 0 °C, while March and October are generally cool, with occasional light snow and daily temperatures ranging between 0 °C and 15 °C. In March and October, it is also common for the temperature to drop below 0 °C over night, even when the daily temperature is in the range between 10 °C and 15 °C.
Administrative division
Međimurje County is divided into 3 towns and 22 municipalities:
Town of Čakovec (county seat) Town of Prelog Town of Mursko Središće Municipality of Belica Municipality of Dekanovec Municipality of Domašinec Municipality of Donja Dubrava Municipality of Donji Kraljevec Municipality of Donji Vidovec Municipality of Goričan Municipality of Gornji Mihaljevec Municipality of Kotoriba Municipality of Mala Subotica Municipality of Nedelišće Municipality of Orehovica Municipality of Podturen Municipality of Pribislavec Municipality of Selnica Municipality of Strahoninec Municipality of Sveta Marija Municipality of Sveti Juraj na Bregu Municipality of Sveti Martin na Muri Municipality of Šenkovec Municipality of Štrigova Municipality of Vratišinec
Demographics
In the 2021 census, the total population of the county was 105,250 with the majority being Croats at 90.33%. Romani were 6.61% of the population, Slovenes were 0.39%, Albanians were 0.21% and Serbs were 0.18%.
Administration
The current prefect of Međimurje County is Matija Posavec (NPS) and the Međimurje County Assembly consists of 37 seats.
Groups Members per group NPS-HSU-HSLS-DOSIP-HSS-SU SDP-MDS HDZ-HDS Source:
History
Early history
The first organized human habitations here can be traced back to the Stone Age. There is a Neolithic site called Ferenčica near Prelog. There are archaeological sites that date from the Bronze Age, and 3rd century sites called Ciglišće and Varaščine.
During the Iron Age, the Indo-European tribes identified in the area were Celts, Serretes and Pannonians, and the region became part of the Roman Empire. In the 1st century, the Romans knew the area as Insula intra Dravam et Muram ("island between the Drava and Mura rivers") according to the geographer Strabo. The most important settlement they established was Halikan (Halicanum). The region was part of the Roman province of Pannonia and later part of the Pannonia Superior.
Čakovec was originally called Aquama ("the wet city"), because the area was marshland. During the Migration Period, many different tribes, such as Huns, Visigoths, and Ostrogoths, passed through the region. The region was part of the Kingdom of the Ostrogoths, the state of the Lombards, the Avar Khaganate, and the Frankish Kingdom. The Slavs, which settled this region in the 6th century, gained independence after destruction of the Avar Khaganate. In the 9th century, it was included in the Slavic state of Lower Pannonia. According to some sources, the area was also part of the Great Moravia.
Medieval history The Hungarians occupied the region in 896 and expanded to the river Sava, but as the Principality of Hungary transformed to the Kingdom of Hungary, the borders with the Kingdom of Croatia were set along the river Drava. In 1102 Croatia entered a personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary. During 13th century tradesmen and merchants (mostly ethnic Germans) started to arrive and began to develop the urban localities that are present today. Prelog (Perlak) was founded in 1264, shortly after the invasion of the Mongols in 1242, and the other settlements followed. Later it was part of Zala County. In the beginning of the 14th century, the area was ruled by powerful semi-independent oligarch Henrik Kőszegi.
Čakovec (Csáktornya) got its name from comes Csák Hahót, who in the mid-13th century erected the timber fortification that eventually was "Csák's tower", mentioned for the first time in 1328. King Charles I named Čakovec as the capitol in 1333. In 1350, King Louis I gave the land to viceroy (Ban) Stephen I Lackfi, a member of the ruling Lackfi family of Transylvania. It remained Lackfi property until 1397, when King Sigismund executed Stephen II Lackfi, and took back the area to the Crown.
In 1405, the Celje family received Međimurje (Muraköz) as a gift from the Crown, and the land was mortgaged. The monastery in Goričan (Goritsán) managed the administration of the seat of the main territorial dominion as an attorney of the Celje family. King Matthias Corvinus bought the mortgage and donated the land to John I Ernuszt and his son, who were Jewish merchants from Sweden, living in Buda. The monastery in Goričan, which had managed the administration of the seat of the main territorial dominion, was dissolved. The seat of the administration of the main territorial dominion Goričan came under the administration of the Bishop of Ljubljana.Gospodarska in družbena zgodovina Slovencev: zv. Družbena razmerja in gibanja, Volume 2 of Gospodarska in družbena zgodovina Slovencev: Zgodovina agrarnih panog, page 182, Pavle Blaznik, Bogo Grafenauer, Sergij Vilfan, Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti, Institut za zgodovino--Sekcija za občo in narodno zgodovino; Državna založba Slovenije, 1970. It remained in the hands of the Ernušts until 1526, when the family died out without heir.
Since 1526, the region became part of the Habsburg monarchy, as did Kingdom of Hungary along with Croatia. It followed a succession and inheritance dispute between the Keglević family and the Habsburg Emperor Ferdinand I. Since 1530 until 1790 Goričan was by interdictum under the administration of the Bishop of Zagreb as an attorney of both the Emperor and the Keglević family to prevent any violent confrontations between them both, but Čakovec became the seat of the administration of the main territorial dominion in 1546, because even the Bishop Simon Erdődy (1518–1543, Bishop of Zagreb) could not prevent a violent confrontation between the Emperor and Petar Keglević in 1542/43. In 1546 the Diet in Pressburg (Pozsony, today's Bratislava) approved the transfer of Čakovec and Međimurje to Nikola Šubić Zrinski.
Rapid development began in 1547 under the ruling Zrinski family. In 1579 the craftsmen and merchants outside the walls of Čakovec Castle (csáktornyai kastély) were granted the right to trade; this was the beginning of the formal and legal city structure. The area was of importance as a trade center with Habsburg Kingdom of Croatia and Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary positioned nearby on the main roads, facilitating the exchange of goods, crafts and ideas. The region was also a military buffer zone against the expanding Ottoman Empire.