Little town of Drivenik is located near the castle of the Frankopans, one of the very few that are preserved, which offers view of the northern part of Vinodol. The citadel of Drivenik is uninhabited; all inhabitants moved to the foot of the hill. On the hill remained a lonely castle from the 13th century, St. Dujam’s parish church, St. Stephen’s Church from the 15th century, parish house and an old school which was attended by many generations of people from Drivenik. The castle of Drivenik was once entered over a hinged bridge stretching over a dug up moat. The castle was defended by high walls, four corner towers and a semicircular bastion.
THE CASTLE
Once upon a time, the castle of Drivenik was entered over a mobile bridge built over a dug-up moat filled with water. Great castle in the shape of a square was defended by high walls and four round corner towers, as well as a semicircular bastion. Wooden corridor built for defense purposes was located in a high place around the walls. At the end of the corridor was the door which led into corner towers, and the stairs from the towers led into the inside of the castle. Within the castle there were tenements, magazines, basements and a water tank. Drivenik is mentioned in Vinodol Codex dating from 1288 – the signatories of the Codex were, among others, people of Drivenik.
ST. DUJAM’S CHURCH
It was dedicated to the bishop of the antique Salonika, an early Christian martyr from the 3rd century. Church of Drivenik as an institution is very old, but the building we see today dates from the 19th century. In the place of an older, smaller church, a new church with three naves was erected in 1821, and the church-tower next to it was built in 1806. Tradition has it that under the main nave lie catacombs. The catacombs were entered through the basement of some small object which was earlier located in front of the church.
ST. STEPHEN’S CHURCH
It is a Gothic chapel from the 15th century with contains a distaff for three bells. It was built in the place of an old Romanic church from the 13th century. In St. Stephen’s Church there were so-called “gold” altars from the 17th century which are now preserved in the Museum of Arts and Crafts. The famous Pietà of Drivenik from the 15th century was also found in this church. It is now preserved in the above-mentioned museum.
Pictures & text taken from http://www.tz-vinodol.hr/
