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 The
small remote village of Medjugorje,
judging by the caves around it, may
have beeninhabited since the older Stone
Age period. The village is situated
in Bosnia- Herzegovina, a former Yugoslavia
republic . This part of Bosnia- Herzegovina
is rugged and rocky with low-lying vegetation,
dense evergreen underbrush, and little
forestland.
The mild Mediterranean climate, strong
sunlight, and loamy soil make Medjugorje
ideal for the cultivation of vineyards
and tobacco, but few other crops, as
drought is a centuries-old problem.
The quality of the tobacco is one of
the world’s best, but it is scarcely
exported. The wines, “Zilavka and
Blatina” are exported (Zilavka,
whose vines flourish only in Herzegovina,
has been cultivated since the time of
the Romans). Each family owns its own
vineyard and makes its own wine.
 In
1892 the parish of Medjugorje was formed
and is placed under the protection of
St. James, patron saint of pilgrims.
Five years later the parish builds the
first St. James Church. In 1918 Croatia
becomes part of the Kingdom of Serbs,
Croats and Slovenians. Ten years later
the name is changed to Yugoslavia.
Croatia has the largest emigration
in the world after Ireland. Before WW
I, extreme poverty drove the Croatian
men to other countries where they worked
and sent money home to their destitute
families. After WW II, the Communist
dictatorship forced all classes of people
to leave to escape persecution and to
find work. Then, gradually, gaining
hope from Our Lady’s appearances,
they began to return to their homeland.
During the first 15 years of her apparitions,
the population of Medjugorje increased
by one third....... 
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