The original lyrics were written by Antun Mihanović and first published under the title Horvatska domovina (Croatian homeland) in 1835.[2] In 1846, Josip Runjanin (1821–1878) composed the music for Horvatska domovina.[2] Runjanin's army bandmaster Josip Wendl adapted his music for a military brass orchestra.[2] The original form of the melody is unknown because the original has not been recovered to this day.[2]