Turkish TV Inspires Croats to Rebuild Old Bridge

A Turkish soap opera has inspired locals in the Croatian city of Osijek to mull rebuilding the wooden Ottoman-era bridge that once spanned the river Drava.Following the popularity in Croatia of the TV series “Suleiman The Magnificent”, the Society of Turkish-Croatian Friends in the eastern Croatian city is promoting the idea of rebuilding the Sultan Suleiman bridge, which once spanned the Drava river.

The local tourist board backs the idea and says that it has already applied to the EU for funding. The Turkish ambassador to Croatia, Burak Ozugergin, has also promised to help out.

The wooden Suleiman the Magnificent Bridge was built in 1526 on the orders of the Ottoman Sultan of the same name, at a time when much of Croatia was under Ottoman Turkish rule.

It was finally burnt down by the Habsburg army in 1686 during the Austrian-Turkish wars that ended in the Ottomans’ expulsion from Croatia.