First settled in the 6th century, Vukovar has changed hands numerous times, being held at various times by Croatia, the Bulgarian Empire, the Kingdom of Hungary, as well as being under Turkish domination during the 16th and 17th centuries before settling as a Croatian city. Vukovar came under siege in the Croatian War of Independence wherein 2,000 self-organised Croatians defended the city for 87 days against a Yugoslavian People's Army force of some 36,000 troops. This caused a deep ethical divide between Croats and Serbs, a divide which exists to this day.