Osijek is on the right bank of the Drava River, 25 km 16 mi upstream of its confluence with the Danube , at an elevation of 94 m ft. The name was given to the city due to its position on elevated ground, which prevented the city being flooded by the local swamp waters. Its name Osijek derives from the Croatian word oseka ' ebb tide '. The origins of human habitation in the Osijek area date back to Neolithic times, [ 10 ] with the first known inhabitants belonging to the Illyrians and, in the second half of the fourth century BC, invading Celtic tribes, the Scordisci.
After the conquest of Pannonia , Osijek, known at the time as Mursa , was under the administration and protection of the Roman 7th legion , which maintained a military castrum at the colony and a bridge over the river Drava. There is evidence that the Roman emperor Hadrian established the settlement from scratch, [ 8 ] regardless he raised Mursa to the status of a colony with special privileges in After that, Mursa had a turbulent history, with several decisive battles taking place at its immediate proximity, among which the most notable are the battle between Aureolus and Ingenuus in [ 12 ] and the especially brutal and bloody Battle of Mursa Major in These battles, especially the latter one, had long-term consequences for the colony and the region, which was already under ever-increasing pressure from the invading Goths and other invading tribes.
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the destruction of local tribes by Avar Kaghanate in sixth century, this area was resettled by Slavic tribes.
The earliest recorded mention of Osijek dates back to Osijek was restored to western rule on 29 September , when the Turks were ousted and the city was occupied by the Habsburg Empire. Holy Trinity Square is surrounded on the north by the building of the Military Command , on the west by the Main Guard building and on the east by the Magistrate building presently Museum of Slavonia.
In the middle of the square, a monument to the plague was erected in by General Maximilian Petras' widow. The Habsburg empire also facilitated the migration and settlement of German immigrants into the town and region during this period.
