The war in Šibenik in 1991

Domovinski rat jedan je od najvažnijih događaja u hrvatskoj novijoj povijesti. Preko rata Hrvatska je stvorila vlastitu državu i krenula ka stvaranju moderne europske države. Na širem šibenskom području Domovinski rat je uvelike utjecao na stanovništvo te se na tom području stvarala Republika Srpska Krajina, paradržava srpskih pobunjenika. Glavni grad države bio je Knin te je jedna od glavnih pretenzija srpskih pobunjenika bilo osvajanje Šibenika i Dalmacije. Već krajem 1990. godine srpska pobuna jača na ovom području te se sve više terorizira hrvatsko stanovništvo u zaleđu Šibenika. Kroz 1991. godinu čelni ljudi srpskih pobunjenika institucionalno i vojno pripremaju napad na Hrvatsku uz pomoć vojske JNA, a na šibenskom području vojno djeluje 9. korpus JNA. U rujnu 1991. godine dolazi do bitke za Šibenik, prve velike pobjede hrvatskih branitelja u Domovinskom ratu. Šibenska bitna trajala je od 16. do 23. rujna, a malobrojni branitelji su uspjeli obraniti grad te su tako zaustavili podjelu Dalmacije na dva dijela. Zbog toga Rujanska bitka u Šibeniku ima veliki utjecaj na cjelokupni Domovinski rat i prelazi lokalne razmjere. Zbog obrane Šibenika Dalmacija nije bila podijeljena na dva dijela i ostali dalmatinski gradovi su bili u dobrom položaju. Tijekom bitke su veliku ulogu odigrali predstavnici 113. brigade, MUP-a RH, ali i mnogi drugi ljudi koji su sudjelovali u zauzimanju obalne baterije na Zečevu i Žirju, osvajanju vojarni i remontnog zavoda Velimir Škorpik. Pobjedom šibenskih branitelja i osvajanjem plovila u šibenskoj luci stvoreni su preduvjeti za osnivanje Hrvatske ratne mornarice. Ovom veličanstvenom pobjedom snage JNA su odbačene na svoje stare položaje daleko od grada Šibenika te se do kraja Domovinskog rata nisu uspjele približiti gradu Šibeniku i Vodicama, a s morske strane nisu predstavljale toliku opasnost na srednjem Jadranu. Osim toga, bitkom je podignut moral braniteljima u čitavoj Republici Hrvatskoj dok je ova bitka imala suprotan učinak na agresora. Godina 1991. je ključna za daljnje događaje u Domovinskom ratu na šibenskom području.The Homeland War is one of the most important events in Croatian recent history. During the war, Croatia created its own state and set out to create a modern European state. In the wider Šibenik area, the Homeland War greatly affected the population, and the Republic of Serbian Krajina, a parastate of Serbian rebels, was created in that area. The capital of the state was Knin and one of the main pretensions of the Serbian rebels was the conquest of Šibenik and Dalmatia. At the end of 1990, the Serbian rebellion started getting stronger in this area and the Croatian population in the hinterland of the Šibenik was increasingly terrorized. Throughout 1991, the leaders of the Serbian rebels were institutionally and military preparing an attack on Croatia with the help of the JNA army, and the 9th JNA corps was operating militarily in the Šibenik area. The battle of Šibenik took place in September 1991, the first great victory of Croatian defenders in the Homeland War. The Šibenik battle lasted from 16 to 23 September, and a small number of defenders managed to defend city, thus stopping the breakdown of Dalmatia into two parts. Therefore, the September battle of Šibenik had a great impact on the entire Homeland War and exceeds local proportions. Due to defense of Šibenik, Dalmatia was not divided into two parts and other Dalmatian cities were in good position. During the battle, a large role was played by representatives of the 113th Brigade, the Ministy of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia, but also many other people who participated in the capture of the coastal battery at Zečevo and Žirje, the captures of millitary objects and overhaul Velimir Škorpik. The victory of the Šibenik defenders and the capture of the ships in the port of Šibenik created the preconditions for the establishment of the Croatian Navy. With this magnificent victory, the Serbian forces were thrown back to its old positions far from the city of Šibenik, and by the end of the Homeland War the enemy failed to approach the cities of Šibenik and Vodice, and from the sea wasn’t danger to the central Adriatic. In addition, the battle raised the morale of the defenders throughout the Republic of Croatia, while this battle had the opposite effect on the Serbian forces. The year 1991 was crucial for further events in the Homeland War in the Šibenik area