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Sinj is situated in the Cetina Valley at the foot of the Dinaric Alps. Caves and the ruins of old fortified shelters are to be found in the surrounding area: evidence of early settlement. In the Middle Ages, Sinj was the capital of the administrative district of Cetina and recognized the sovereignty of the Croatian princes. When the Ottoman Empire expanded into the Balkans, Sinj, too, fell into Turkish hands. It was liberated again in 1699.
Of interest in the town is the Franjevacka crkva (Franciscan church), including its monastery. After the Franciscan monks of Rama fled to Herzegovina, they found refuge here and built a monastery. It is true that the monastery was destroyed in an invasion, and that it was damaged in an earthquake, but it was always rebuilt; for inside the monastery the marvelous picture of the Mother of God of Sinj, which was brought here by monks in the 17th century, is kept.
Above the town and the valley stands Kamicac Fortress which, in the 18th century, the Venetians laid out on a starshaped ground plan. Every year since 1715, on the first Sunday in August, the *Sinjska alka, a knights' tournament, has taken place here, recalling the time when a troop of only 600 men managed to hold off a Turkish siege. During the tournament, the aLka, a metal ring with two hoops, must be lanced at full gallop; preferably, of course, in the middle. People from all over the region pour into town for this festival dressed in traditional costumes. |
