Croatian state right

The Croatian state right (Croatian: Hrvatsko državno pravo) is a legal concept in Croatian law which represents the country's rules the system of government and public administrative bodies. Croatian sources point out existence and application of those rights in the era of Croatia in personal union with Hungary and during the rule of the Habsburg monarchy, as evidence of Croatia's continuous statehood since the medieval Kingdom of Croatia. The Croatian state right is listed in the preamble of the modern Constitution of Croatia as a source of the country's sovereignty, referring to the legal status of Croatia as an independent polity within the framework of various states throughout its history.

The concept was first introduced in 1830 by Josip Kušević in the context of Croatian national revival. Kušević based the idea on preservation and strengthening of town privileges, presenting Croatian state right as a means of defense against magyarisation. The name of the concept was popularised by Janko Drašković in his 1832 Dissertation. The concept of Croatian state right was further developed by Ante Starčević and Eugen Kvaternik. Starčević and Kvaternik argued that all people living in Croatia are Croats and that other nations can only exist by nation-building in their own states. Implications of this definition resulted in conflict between Croatian and Serbian nationalism.