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 At the beginning the area of today's Banja Luka was
populated by the Illyrian tribe Mezeji. The Roman leader Germanikus
conquered them in 9 BC. Romans stayed in the area for a rather long time.
They built a military fortification named Castra on the left bank of river
Vrbas, precursor of the today's Kastel Fortress. During the VI and VII
century the Slavs conquered these areas.
The name Banja Luka was first mentioned in the declaration of the Hungarian
king Vladislav II, dated 06 February 1494. The name itself originated from
the generic noun "luka" representing a valley next to water and
adjective of the noun "ban". This name was used for the whole
valley around the river Vrbas North of the medieval town in Gornji Seher
(today's Srpske Toplice). As the best-fortified town in the Zemljanik
County, Banja Luka became the biggest centre of the then Jajce Region. In
1528 Turks captured the town and the area of Banja Luka. The ruins of the
town can be seen even today.
During the Ottoman rule, hot-spring bathhouses have been built in Srpske
Toplice. Those buildings had sulphur springs with the temperature of 34oC
and they were used for the treatment of rheumatism, neuralgia and some skin
diseases. Novoselija is the Southern most part of the city.
As the most majestic monument of the past times in the centre of the town
stands the Kastel Fortress which defied the wrath of time for centuries,
and it did not get damaged in the catastrophic earthquake that happened on
27 October 1969.
Banja Luka is at the absolute altitude of 163 meters and, because the
ground is more open towards North, is more under the influence of the
Pannonian climate. Warm winds from Southwest bring the moisture, with the
average annual temperatures of 12oC. Because of such climate, agriculture
was developed especially close to the banks of the river.
Around 1553 Bosnian Bey moved his capital from Sarajevo to Banja Luka. From
that time until 1580 Banja Luka was the capital of Bosnian Principality,
and the capital of the Pasha's domain until 1638. Different catastrophes
plagued Banja Luka: fires in 1688, 1724, 1869, 1877, 1878, plague in 1732
(7000 people died) and floods, especially disastrous in 1730 and 1737.
 With
the Hungarian occupation of Banja Luka on 31 July 1878 the management of
the town was reorganised and Banja Luka became the centre of the region. By
the 1879 census Banja Luka had 9560 citizens, and in 1885 11375 citizens,
out of which 1157 were into trade and handicrafts.
In 1880 the primary school was opened, in 1885 a trade school and, in 1895,
the Academy, the opening of which was the turning point for the development of
education in these areas. The first printers start operation in 1886, and
in 1888 the first tobacco factory. The hospital was opened in 1879, and
occupied a separate building in 1891. Sometime later the water system
and. in 1879, the first Orthodox Church was built.
From 03 October 1915 until 16
March 1916 a trial was held against 156 Serbs charged with High
Treason. The sentence was passed on 22 April 1916. Sixteen of them were
sentenced to death by hanging, and 81 of them were sentenced to 2 to 20
years imprisonment. From 1918 Banja Luka becomes the centre of political and
cultural life of Bosnian Krajina, and from 1929 becomes the capital of
Vrbas Principality. One of the great Serb poets Petar Kocic, who gave a
real tribute to the times through his work, was born at about the same
time. During the period when
an uprising was prepared, Banja Luka had the Regional Committee of
Communist Party of Yugoslavia for the Bosnian Krajina. As a large
administrative and economical centre as well as an important crossroads,
Banja Luka was an important military and geographical target and that is
why Banja Luka was always, during the World War II, occupied with very
strong Axis units. During the VI Enemy Offensive Banja Luka was the
headquarters of the XV German Corps, with lots of smaller German and
Ustasha-Homedefense units, with approximately 5000 soldiers. The liberation
of Banja Luka on 21 September 1944 left the enemy with big losses (over
2200 killed and 1300 wounded soldiers). After the World War II, Banja Luka
starts developing into a strong industrial, economical and cultural centre,
important not only for this area. The catastrophic earthquake interrupted
its rapid development on 27 October 1969. Banja Luka was leveled during the
catastrophe. However, Banja Luka rouse as Phoenix and it becomes nicer
and nicer each day...
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