Petar Zrinski

Croatian Historical Figure. Petar Zrinski was Ban of Croatia in the seventeenth century, and was known for his victories (with Fran Krsto Frankapan) against the Ottoman Empire. These victories were reversed, however, when the lands they had gained were partitioned by treaties between the Ottomans and the Habsburg Empire. Following a failed plot to overthrow Austrian rule, Zrinski and Frankapan were both taken captive by the Austrian Habsburgs and their estates were looted. Zrinski's letter to his wife written during his captivity, popularly known as "Moje Drago Serce (My Dear Soul)", is still considered one of the great specimens of the Croatian language. Zrinski and Frankapan were executed in Wiener Neustadt. Their bodies were repatriated to Croatia in 1919. He was featured on the Croatian 5 Kuna Banknote.