Free State of Fiume

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The Free State of Fiume (pronounced [ˈfjuːme]), also called the Free State of Rijeka [rijěːka], was an independent free state that existed from 1920 to 1924. Its territory of 28 km2 (6,900 acres) comprised the city of Fiume (today Rijeka, Croatia) and rural areas to its north, with a corridor to its west connecting it to the Kingdom of Italy. Fiume gained autonomy for the first time in 1719, when it was proclaimed a free port of the Holy Roman Empire in a decree issued by the Emperor Charles VI. In 1776, during the reign of Empress Maria Theresa, the city was transferred to the Kingdom of Hungary and in 1779 gained the status of corpus separatum within that kingdom. The city briefly lost its autonomy in 1848 after being occupied by Croatian ban (viceroy) Josip Jelačić but regained it in 1868, when it rejoined the Kingdom of Hungary, again as a corpus separatum. Fiume's status as an exclave of Hungary meant that despite being landlocked, the kingdom had a port. Until 1924, Fiume existed...

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