The Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, commonly referred to as HNK Zagreb, is a theatre, opera and ballet house located in Zagreb.
Croatian National Theatre building in Zagreb
Interior of the theatre
On the initiative of Croatian ban Károly Khuen-Héderváry, in mid-October 1895 Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Joseph visited Zagreb, at the time the capital of the Kingdom of Croatia–Slavonia, in order to attend the opening of the Croatian National Theatre. A group of Croatian students used the visit to protest the rule of the Hungarian Khuen-Héderváry as Croatian ban. They were led by Stjepan Radić, who would later form the influential Croatian People's Peasant Party.
The main triumphal arch, erected for the occasion, was decorated with a Hungarian flag, which was widely resented among the Croatian opposition.