Originally occupied by the
Dalmatae, the area of Canton 10 was annexed in 15 AD by the
Roman Empire and formed part of the Roman province of
Dalmatia. After the introduction of
Christianity,
Delminium (
Tomislavgrad) is the seat of the bishopric. These years also see the creation of the city of
Livno. The first written appearance of the name of Livno was in 892 when it was mentioned as a seat of one of the counties of the
Kingdom of Croatia. The region was attached in the ninth century to the Kingdom of the Croats and later in the 14th century to the
Kingdom of Bosnia. After the death of the king of Bosnia,
Tvrtko I in 1391, the power of the Kingdom of Bosnia gradually declined and the region was taken over by the Kingdom of Croatia, the state associated with the Kingdom of Hungary by a
personal union. In the 16th century, the region was fully integrated for four centuries within the
Ottoman Empire. Under the Ottoman Empire, peasants who remained Catholic or Orthodox were hostile to Turkish officials and Islamised landowners. In the nineteenth century, several uprisings and rebellions against Muslim authorities erupted in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Suffering under oppression by the authorities and furious after the Muslim authorities had killed the Catholic spiritual leader of this region, Lovro Karaula, Franciscan priest, the Catholics of Livno rose up against Ottoman rule on July 20, 1875. Soon, the Catholics from across the region joined this uprising. The rebel leaders were two Franciscan priests, Stjepan Krešić and Bonaventura Šarić-Drženjak. For three years, the insurgency controlled the mountainous regions of
Glamoč,
Livno,
Kupres and
Grahovo. When the Austrian army arrived in the Livno region in 1878, the insurgents handed over their arms to the Austrians. The Austro-Hungarian troops met in this region an opposition, both of the Muslim population and the Orthodox population, fighting battles in the vicinity of Livno. The region was liberated at the end of the summer of 1878. Austria-Hungary occupied the region militarily and Bosnia and Herzegovina after 1878
Berlin Congress. This period is marked by industrialization and Westernization. Architecturally, many public buildings were built and many Catholic religious buildings were erected that were banned during the Ottoman era. After
World War I, the area of Herzeg-Bosnia county was in the
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later Yugoslavia. Most of the present-day area of Herzeg-Bosnia County belonged to the then-Travnik area in 1922, while the smaller northern parts belonged to the Bišćan area. After the introduction of the January 6 dictatorship and the division of the state into
banovinas in 1929, most of the Croatian areas of Herzeg-Bosnia county became part of Primorska banovina with headquarters in Split, while the northern Serbian areas were annexed to Vrbas banovina, with headquarters in Banja Luka. With the creation of Croatian Banovina in 1939, all of Primorska Banovina became part of it, including the majority of Croat areas of Canton 10. After the creation of the NDH and its administrative division, most of the area of today's Herzeg-Bosnia County was part of the Great Parish of Pliva and Rama with its seat in Jajce, while the smaller northern part belonged to the Great Parish of Krbava and Psata with its seat in Bihać. After the defeat of the
Axis powers in 1945, the area of Herzeg-Bosnia County became part of the then-federal unit of SFR Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the democratic process, most of the Croatian municipalities in the county, Kupres, Livno and Tomislavgrad, became part of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia. With the
independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the northern and western part of Herzeg-Bosnia County under the leadership of the SDS, the Serb majority areas sided with the Army of Republika Srpska killing Croats and Bosniaks in Drvar, Grahovo, Glamoč, attacking Kupres and shelling Livno and surrounding settlements. After the formation of HVO military units, first, the Kupres area was liberated. Croats and Bosniaks formed the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina through the Washington Agreement, which included the entire area of Herzeg-Bosnia County under HVO control, and a little later, in the summer of 1995, HVO and HV
defeated Serb forces decisively. They attacked and captured Grahovo, Glamoč and Drvar, which, together with other victories of the HVO, HV and the RBiH Army, created the conditions for the signing of the
Dayton Peace Agreement. After the war, Herzeg-Bosnia was self-abolished in 1996 and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was organized into counties. Herzeg-Bosnia County was the largest county in FBiH when it was created. The Constitution of Herzeg-Bosnia Canton was adopted by the Cantonal Assembly on 19 December 1996. == Geography ==