Short answers, pulled from the story.
Croatia declared independence on the 25th of June 1991. The full implementation of the declaration came into effect on the 8th of October 1991. Croatia gained diplomatic recognition by the European Economic Community on the 15th of January 1992, and the war effectively ended in August 1995 with a Croatian military victory.
Zagreb is the capital, largest city, and main cultural and economic centre of Croatia. The Croatian government is seated at Banski dvori in Zagreb, and the University of Zagreb, founded in 1669, is the oldest continuously operating university in Southeast Europe.
Croatia joined the European Union as its 28th member in July 2013, after completing accession negotiations from 2004 to 2013. Croatia joined the Eurozone and Schengen Area in 2023, adopting the euro as its official currency.
Tomislav was the first king of Croatia, noted as such in a letter of Pope John X in 925. He defeated both Hungarian and Bulgarian invasions. The medieval Croatian kingdom reached its peak in the 11th century during the reigns of Petar Krešimir IV and Dmitar Zvonimir.
The Croatian archipelago contains over 1,000 islands and islets, making it the largest overseas territory on the Adriatic Sea. Of these, 48 are permanently inhabited. The two largest islands are Cres and Krk, each with an area of around 405 square kilometres.
The necktie is derived from the cravat originally worn by 17th-century Croatian mercenaries serving in France. This global fashion item is considered one of Croatia's most widely recognized cultural contributions.