City Breaks
Dubrovnik
The roots of Dubrovnik go back to the early 7th century when Greek and then Roman refugees settled on the territory which is now the old city, giving it the name Ragusa. Later, they were joined by the Slays who renamed the city Dubrovnik and adopted Libertas for its motto and St Blaise as their patron saint.
After Byzantine power declined and Dubrovnik grudgingly recognised the supremacy of the Venetian republic its eternal rival in trade on the Adriatic.
At the first opportunity and with the help of the growing power of the Hungarian - Croatian kings on the mainland, Dubrovnik in 1358 freed itself from Venetian domination. Thus Dubrovnik became a self governing city- state with all the power concentrated in the hands of its land-owning oligarchy who governed the city until 1808, the year when the city state was formally dissolved by Napoleon.
After many futile attempts by its citizens to regain their independence the short French rule in 1814 was replaced by Austrian rule, which continued until 1918 the year the city was incorporated in the newly formed Yugoslav State.
The banners that flew then on Dubrovnik's fortresses, its coins and the state written documents, all carried the inscription NON BENE PROTOTO LIBERTASVENDITUR AUR (Liberty is not sold for all the gold ) illustrating amply the guiding force behind the minds of the people who for centuries managed the republic's state affairs.
Above the entrance of the Grand Council in the Rectors Palace, the power seat of the state, there is an inscription: OBLITI PRIVATORUM PUBLICA CURATE- Forget private matters, attend to the public good. Very inspirational for a state ruled by a rigid oligarchy. Afraid of dictatorship, the administration was organised in such a way that no individual was ever allowed to emerge dominant. The city was ruled by an elected Rector (Knez) who was a nominal head of state with the maximum mandate of one month and a virtual prisoner in the Rectors Palace.
There were three clearly defined classes: nobles, commoners and workers. Inter marriage between the classes was discouraged. The nobles, through an all- male grand council, held power, which they delegated to an elected senate for the day to day running of the city.
The city's commercial genius and its pragmatic diplomacy skillfully balancing between the expansionist Muslim and Christian super-powers, enabled Dubrovnik to exploit its favourable position on the Adriatic and to become a successful and wealthy self contained city state; its merchants trading far and wide. At the peak of its power in the 16th century about 200 ships sailed under the Dubrovnik flag making it the strongest and finest merchant fleet in the Mediterranean. Its galleons gave us the word Argosy which means ship of Ragusa , the ancient name of Dubrovnik.
The decline of the city-state began with a catastrophic earthquake, which Dubrovnik suffered on 6th April 1667; that day the city was razed to the ground and 5000 of its citizens were killed. The city never recovered from the economic strain of rebuilding and with the movement of trade routes to the west, Dubrovnik was gradually reduced, as many other Mediterranean cities states, to the status of a provincial city contemplating its glorious past.
| GUIDE TO PRICERS FOR DUBROVNIK - CITY BREAKS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hotel | April and Nov | May and June | July/ Aug /Sep |
| Lero *** | 340 | 385 | 420 |
| Stari Grad *** | 395 | 438 | 475 |
| Argentina ***** | 470 | 520 | 562 |
| Imperial Hilton ***** | 468 | 500 | 560 |
| Villa Dubrovnik **** | 580 | ||
↑ Top of page