ИСТИНА

The present report is devoted to the specific mentality of the people, who lived in the city of Travnik, the capital of the Bosnian pashalik of the Ottoman Empire. The town is described in ‘The Travnik Chronicle’ by Ivo Andric, a Noble Prize laureate. The author points out that all the dwellers of the town have pride of a very special nature. The present report aims to find and explain the roots of this unusual attitude. Even though the town is located high in the mountains, and is barely accessible, it is the capital of a large province of the Ottoman Empire. The Vizier, The deputy of the Ottoman Sultan, resides here. Still, Travnik is utterly provincial, which shows itself in the animosity of its dwellers towards the rest of the world.. The people of Travnik believe that not only foreigners but also all representatives of the Ottoman Empire, their mother country, are outsiders, and therefore enemies. Geographical location of Travnik and the weltanschauung of its citizens didn’t let it perform certain other functions of a capital city. The uniqueness of this town is reflected in the duality of mentality of its citizens.