Fortica, a fortress in Otočac, is a true rarity for it is one of the only two remaining of it's kind (regular triangular forts) in Croatia, while there are only several of them left in all of Europe. Fifteen Stations of "The Way of the Cross", placed on the slope of the hill, are a contribution not only to the religious content of the town, but also represent a distinctive artistic experience to each and every visitor.
The sculptural Calvary of Otočac begins at the foot of Fortica with the Most Holy Trinity piece. It continues with fifteen stone steles which are placed from the foot of Fortica to the Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows, located almost at the top of the hill, enriching the existing view of the area and returning an already somewhat forgotten memory of the Calvary, the other name of the hill used by the Christian faithful.
The Fortica fortress was built in 1619 by the people of Senj with help of the local population, thus fortifying the town of Otočac, not only to protect the Valley of Gacka, but also to protect themselves and the city of Senj from the Ottoman incursions to the littoral. The fortress consisted of three towers, the biggest on the east side and two smaller ones on the west side, interconnected by walls 1.80 – 2 m thick. It was built in haste with usage of smaller stones, as there was no time or funds to carve out or ship the solid stone blocks to the location.
The inside of the courtyard was very narrow and had also included water reservoires. Fortica was used as a permanent residence for soldiers, storage for ammunition and gunpowder and as a storage for food with kitchens and dormitories.

Archaeological research discovered the walls of each of these towers and interconnecting walls, but it also discovered the entrance door threshold. Fortica’s entrance was on the south side of the fort, facing the town of Otočac. The entrance door was high above the ground, so in the time of its construction, Fortica could have only been entered by using a ladder, while some time later, a porch with stairs had been added to the fortress. During the time of its military use, the Fortica's hill was stark for defence purposes, having all of the trees removed from the hill. Fortica’s first commander was Andrija Kolaković. Fortica was abandoned in the second half of the 19th century when Otočac started to systematically develop as an urban environment. All important military buildings of the Otočac regiment were located beneath Fortica. The fortress began to lose its significance at the start of the 19th century, as can be seen from the fact that it was adapted into a gunpowder magazine in 1804. In 1882, the roof of the widest tower had been lifted by a gust of strong wind which had caused the roof to fall to the ground, so not only had the neglect but also the weather had contributed to the fort's deterioration.
At the start of the 20 century, Fortica was being afforested. Pharmacist Častek ordered Czech pine trees to be planted on the hill’s private property. The new forest was growing nice and well up until the Second World War.
In 1941, the Italians that came to Otočac had ordered the trees to be cut down and placed their battery there instead. An interesting fact to mention is that the fortress Fortica, in its restored and preserved state, is now the only renaissance piece of architecture remaining in the city of Otočac.