Its name originating from the oak forests of the area (Dub or Dab = Oak), the Old Town of Dubovac dates back to the 13th century. Dubovac Castle is only a short walk away from the centre of town (northwest from the Star), just head for the highest hill your eye can see. Once you reach the top of the castle-s prehistoric hill, you’ll be rewarded with spectacular views of the city below and its long stretching Kupa River. The castle was built in the 13th century for the Gorić-Babonić counts and further expanded upon in the 15th century where the castle was rebuilt in Renaissance fashion. The former owners included the noble Slavonian Sudars (1387) and the Frankopans (1442). By the 16th century, it had passed into the hands of Stjepan Frankopan’s sister Katarina as a wedding gift when she married the famous Croatian nobleman and warrior, Nikola Šubić Zrinski. Gašpar Šubić Peranski possessed the property in 1576 and in the later part of the 16th century Dubovac Castle was used as a granary as the developing town of Karlovac became an important trade centre. The keep, then entered by a small drawbridge, was used as a jail. From 1671 onwards until the arrival of the French in 1809, the old city was owned by the generals of Karlovac. In 1837 Earl Laval Nugent restored it in the spirit of Romanticism. It was later bought by the city of Dubovac in 1896. Perfectly located, the preserved castle and tower is remarkably charming…you almost expect to see figures from another era dashing about.