PRINCIPLES OF ACTIVITY OF THE CROATIAN NOBILITY SOCIETY

1.   The Croatian Nobility College (HPZ) was founded in November 1995 by a group of 17 descendants of the noble families from southern (Dubrovnik, Split) and northern Croatia (Lika, Zagreb County), as well as from other historical parts of Croatia. The college was founded as a national association of the Croatian nobility. The aim of the Association is to gather all what has remained of the Croatian nobility, having preserved their respect for tradition and love for their country. The College does not aim for privileges, because it considers them to be incompatible with a democratic society. Therefore it is necessary to determine clearly and steadily the aims and directions for the activity of the College in order to leave out any vanity and to keep the wish to serve one's own country in the same way as our ancestors did in times of danger, from the Krbava Field to Klis, from Sisak to Lepant and Siget, and following the unique concept of culture and ethics of social relations as represented by the Dubrovnik part of the Croatian aristocracy, according to which aristocracy willingly sacrifices itself for the benefit of the Republic.

 2.  Based on the above, we can determine the principles on which the activity of the Croatian Nobility College rests. These are: 

·      HPZ is a historical, traditional and living association. Through its genealogies it testifies authentically to the historical continuity of the Croatian statehood: Nations not having their own nobility, as a rule did not have their own state either.

·      HPZ is a national association of nobility, which emphasizes the integrity of the Croatian state territory and its historical and cultural interconnectedness. Affiliation of Croatia with two of the most beautiful civilisation circles of the world, the Mediterranean and Central European, is a historical fact that is our fortune. Ahead of the College is, therefore, the task to contribute to the integration of the historical, spiritual, and cultural territory of Croatia also by uniting the corps of Croatian nobility.

·      HPZ is a class association of the Croatian nobility, which has, like the Church in Croatia, hardly survived the Marxist historiography and social storms of the 20th century. As such, the College also stands for its subjective interests, but in the framework of broader interests and laws of the society we live in.

·      Membership of the Croatian Nobility College is determined by its statutes. By its very nature it is selective and restrictive, but it also recognises the fact that wars and social disturbances have destroyed many public and family archives.

·     The Croatian Nobility College is in its activity open to cooperation with Croatian state, Church, and cultural institutions. It has to be an open, two-way cooperation, based upon mutual respect and acknowledgement of its independence.

·     The association of Croatian nobility emphasizes the ethic component of the College: nobility, obtained through ancient merit of ancestors, is being transferred by birth, but strengthened by upbringing and confirmed by way of life. In this connection is also the above motto.

 3. Immediate tasks of the College, arising out of these principles, are:

  •   to gather the Croatian nobility around the Croatian Nobility Society; thus gathered,

  •   to serve the homeland using those comparative advantages nobility has

  •   to bear witness to the continuity of statehood and to connect the civilisation circles in which Croatia lives

  •   to bear witness to the historical role of nobility in Croatia

  •   to emphasize ethics, morality, non-corruption and the principle of sacrifice for the benefit of Croatia.

Realisation of these tasks is the true purpose of existence of this Society.

 Zagreb, 20th May 2003