Mostar
Mostar is a city and municipality in southern Bosnia and Herzegovina. Inhabited by 113,169 people, it is one of the most important cities in the Herzegovina region, its cultural capital, and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva River and is the fifth-largest city in the country. Mostar was named after the bridge keepers who in the medieval times guarded the Stari Most (Old Bridge) over the Neretva. The Old Bridge, built by the Ottomans in the 16th century, is one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's most recognizable landmarks, and is considered one of the most exemplary pieces of Islamic architecture in the Balkans. In 1468 Mostar came under Ottoman rule and the urbanization of the settlement began. Following the unwritten oriental rule, the town was organized into two distinct areas: čaršija, the crafts and commercial centre of the settlement, and mahala or a residential area. In 1468 Mostar acquired the name Köprühisar, meaning fortress at the bridge, at the centre of which was a cluster of 15 houses. The town was fortified between the years 1520 and 1566, and the wooden bridge was rebuilt in stone. The stone bridge, the Old Bridge (Stari Most), was erected in 1566 on the orders of Suleiman the Magnificent, the Ottoman ruler. Later becoming the city's symbol, the Old Bridge (Stari Most) is one of the most important structures of the Ottoman era and perhaps Bosnia's most recognizable architectural piece, and was designed by Mimar Hayruddin, a student and apprentice of the famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan. In the late 16th century, Mostar was the chief administrative city for the Ottoman Empire in the Herzegovina region. The Stari Most bridge: 28 meters long and 20 meters high (90' by 64') quickly became a wonder in its own time. The famous traveler Evliya Çelebi wrote in the 17th century that: the bridge is like a rainbow arch soaring up to the skies, extending from one cliff to the other. ...I, a poor and miserable slave of Allah, have passed through 16 countries, but I have never seen such a high bridge. It is thrown from rock to rock as high as the sky.
Blagaj
Blagaj is a village-town (kasaba) in the southeastern region of the Mostar basin, in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It stands at the edge of Bišće plain and is one of the most valuable mixed urban and rural structures in Bosnia and Herzegovina, distinguished from other similar structures in its urban layout. Blagaj was most likely named for its mild weather patterns since "blaga" in Bosnian means "mild". Blagaj is situated at the spring of the Buna River and a historical tekke (tekija or Dervish monastery). The Blagaj Tekija was built around 1520, with elements of Ottoman architecture and Mediterranean style and is considered a national monument.
Pocitelj
Počitelj is a town in the Čapljina municipality, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The historic site of Počitelj is located on the left bank of the river Neretva, on the main Mostar to Metković road, and it is to the south of Mostar. During the middle Ages, Počitelj was considered the administrative centre and centre of governance of Dubrava župa(county), while its westernmost point gave it major strategic importance. It is believed that the fortified town along with its attendant settlements were built by Bosnia's King Stjepan Tvrtko I in 1383. The walled town of Počitelj evolved in the period from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Architecturally, the stone-constructed parts of the town are a fortified complex, in which two stages of evolution are evident: medieval, and Ottoman.
Konjic
Konjic is a town and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in northern Herzegovina, around 50 kilometres (31 mi) southwest of Sarajevo. It is a mountainous, heavily wooded area, and is 268 m (879 ft) above sea level. The municipality extends on both sides of the Neretva River. The town of Konjic, housed about a third of the total municipality population. The city is one of the oldest permanent settlements in Bosnia, dating back almost 4000 years; the city in its current incarnation arising as an important town in the late 1300s. Today, the population of Konjic municipality is estimated at 26,000 people.The area near the town is believed to be settled up to 4000 years ago, and settlements around 2000 years ago by Illyrian tribes travelling upstream along the Neretva River have been found.Konjic was earliest recorded by name in the records of the Republic of Ragusa on 16 June 1382. The town, being part of the Bosnian kingdom, was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire, of which the lasting feature for the town (apart from the many mosques and bringing of Islamic faith) is the Ottoman-inspired bridge which features in the town's coat of arms, and later into the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
