Early life and education Franjo Tuđman was born on 14 May 1922 in Veliko Trgovišće, a village in the northern Croatian region of Hrvatsko Zagorje, at the time part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The family moved to the house marked as his birthplace soon after he was born.Žanić, Ivo. 2002. "South Slav Traditional Culture as a Means to Political Legitimization." In: Sanimir Resić and Barbara Törnquist-Plewa (eds.), The Balkans in Focus. Cultural Boundaries in Europe, pp. 45–58. Lund: Nordic Academic Press, p. 53.Krile, A.B. "Počasti i polemike oko rodne kuće." Slobodna Dalmacija (15 May 2003). His father Stjepan ran a local tavern and was a politically active member of the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS). He had been president of the HSS committee in Veliko Trgovišće for 16 years (1925–1941 and had been elected as mayor of Veliko Trgovišće in 1936 and 1938). Mato, Andraš and Juraj, brothers of Stjepan Tuđman, emigrated to the United States. Another brother, Valentin, also tried to emigrate, but a travelling accident prevented him and kept him in Veliko Trgovišće, where he worked as an (uneducated) veterinarian.
Early life and education Franjo Tuđman was born on 14 May 1922 in Veliko Trgovišće, a village in the northern Croatian region of Hrvatsko Zagorje, at the time part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The family moved to the house marked as his birthplace soon after he was born.Žanić, Ivo. 2002. "South Slav Traditional Culture as a Means to Political Legitimization." In: Sanimir Resić and Barbara Törnquist-Plewa (eds.), The Balkans in Focus. Cultural Boundaries in Europe pp. 45–58. Lund: Nordic Academic Press, p. 53.Krile, AB. "Počasti i polemike oko rodne kuće." Slobodna Dalmacija (15 May 2003). His father Stjepan ran a local tavern and was a politically active member of the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS). He had been presi.dent of the HSS committee in Veliko Trgovišće for 16 years (1925–1941 and had been elected as mayor of ,Veliko Trgovišće in 1936 and 1938). Mato, Andraš and Juraj, brothers of Stjepan Tuđman, emigrated to the United States. Another brother, Valentin, also tried to emigrate, but a travelling accident prevented him and kept him in Veliko Trgovišće, where he worked as an (uneducated) veterinarian.