Built on the north bank of the Sava River by the Austrian Habsburgs between 1715 and 1780, Slavonski Brod Fortress was an important strategic center controlling the main commercial routes towards Turkey and the slowly receding Ottoman Empire.

The fort was designed to accommodate 4,000 soldiers and 150 cannons. According to an evaluation of the Brod Fortress resistance, during the classical siege with full capacity channels, it would have taken ten days of preparation for the attacks and 46 days for the enemy to take over the entire fortress.

Although being a military border stronghold, the fortress almost never had the opportunity to prove and demonstrate its combative power. However, there are many preserved fortifications reminiscent of the bygone times and the everyday military life that took place within. In the period from 1945 up until the Croatian War of Independence in the 1990’s, the fortress served as accommodation for the soldiers of the National Army of Yugoslavia.

Today, much of the fortress has been abandoned and some of the spaces are dilapidated or have completely collapsed, but apart from a few warning signs there is nothing to stop curious adventurers from wandering in to explore the many rooms, corridors, and stairwells.