The village of Lonja dates from the 14th century: i.e. before the Turkish conquest of this region. In 1538 the Keglevics built a wooden fortress at the spot where the Lonja flew into the Sava to defend themselves against the Turks. The fortress was destroyed by the Turks in 1552. The Turkish raids made the inhabitants leave the settlement and move to safer regions. After the liberation of Slavonia from the Turks towards the end of the 17th century the Keglevic family started to populate their land with the people who cleared forests and rebuilt the settlement. The village of Lonja used to be a borough and a cultural centre of the whole region. This is the village with the greatest number of lanes of all the villages in Lonjsko Polje. There used to be a library, folk singing and dancing bands, a gymnastics club, a theatre company, the cinema and the electricity before World War II.

Village of Lonja – New photos

Village of Lonja – Old photos