Korčula
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Korčula (Italian Curzola, Latin Corcyra Nigra, Greek Korkyra Melaina, Old-Slavic: Krkar) is an island in the Adriatic Sea, in the Dubrovnik-Neretva county of Croatia. The island has an area of 279 km² — it is 46.8 km long and on average 7.8 km wide — and lies just off the Dalmatian coast. Its 16,138 (2001) inhabitants make it the second most populous Adriatic island after Krk. Around 97 per cent of the population are ethnic Croats.
Korčula is also the name of the ancient fortified town on the protected east coast of the island, population 3,232 (2001), geographically located at .
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Geography
The island of Korčula belongs to the central Dalmatian archipelago, separated from the Pelješac peninsula by a narrow strait of Pelješac, between 900 and 3,000 meters wide (illustration, right). It is the sixth largest Adriatic island with a rather indented coast. The highest peaks are Klupca (568 m) and Kom (510 m). The climate is mild; an average air temperature in January is 9.8 °C and in July 26.9 °C; the average annual rainfall is 1,100 mm. The island is largely covered with the Mediterranean flora; at some places are pine forests.
The island also includes the towns of Vela Luka and Blato and the coastal villages of Lumbarda and Račišċe, and in the interior Žrnovo, Pupnat, Smokvica and Čara. The main road runs along the spine of the island connecting all settlements from Lumbarda on the eastern to Vela Luka on the western end, with the exception of Račišċe which is served by a separate road running along the northern coast. Ferries connect the city of Korčula with Orebić on the Pelješac peninsula and Drvenik on the mainland (near Makarska). Another line connects Vela Luka with Split and the island of Lastovo. Fast passenger catamarans connect those two ports with Split and the islands of Hvar and Lastovo. The main Adriatic ferry line connects Korčula with Dubrovnik, Split, Zadar and Rijeka and in summer there are direct ferries to Italian Adriatic ports.
Korčula is the most populous Adriatic island with almost 20,000 inhabitants, although their number has slightly dropped between the censuses of 1991 and 2001. The island is divided by Korčula, Smokvica, Blato and Vela Luka municipality.
Heritage
The walled old city, with streets arranged in a herringbone pattern allowing free circulation of air but protecting against strong winds, is tightly built on a promontory that guards the narrow sound between the island and the mainland. Building outside the walls was forbidden until the 18th century, and the wooden drawbridge was only replaced in 1863. All of Korčula's narrow streets are stepped with the notable exception of the street running alongside the southeastern wall, called the Street of Thoughts as one did not have to worry about the steps. The town includes several interesting historic sights: the central Roman Catholic cathedral of St Mark (built from 1301 to 1806), the 15th-century Franciscan monastery with its beautiful Venetian Gothic cloister, the civic council chambers, the palace of the former Venetian governors, grand 15th and 16th century palaces of the local merchant nobles, and the massive city fortifications.
The devout Catholic inhabitants of Korčula keep alive old folk church ceremonies and a war game (moreška), once (in the middle ages) performed all over the Mediterranean.
The city is notable for its Statute dating back to 1214 which prohibited slavery, making Korčula the first place in the world to outlaw that practice.
History
The island has a long prehistory. Though Korculans like to identify Antenor, fleeing from Troy, as the city's founder, there are even older neolithic burial mounds, a possible Phoenician settlement, and a Greek colony founded from Cnidus. Besides its ship timbers and pitch, Korčula's quarries supplied stone for buildings as far away as Vienna and Stockholm. The island's earliest name, Korkyra Melaina, means "Black Corfu" — "black" perhaps for its dark pine forests that have always provided shipbuilding materials.
The island was part of the Roman province of Dalmatia until the Great Migrations. In the early 7th century, the Avar invasion is thought to have brought the Slavs into this region. As the barbarians started settling on the coast, the Italic population had to take refuge in the islands. Along the Dalmatian coast the Slavic migrants pouring in from the interior seized control of the area where the Narenta (Neretva) River enters the Adriatic, as well as the island of Korčula (Curzola), that protect the river mouth. Christianizing of the Slavs began in the 9th century, but the Slavic inhabitants of the island (Serbs) may well have fully accepted Christianity later. Accordingly, the population of the island in the early middle ages was described as being in the same group as the Neretvians of the coastal Principality of Pagania (the land of the Pagans). However, the few sources that document the details of these early demographic changes are highly disputed. In any case, it seems that piracy on the sea emerged as the settlers of the coastal delta of the Neretva river quickly learnt maritime skills in their new environment.
At first Venetian merchants were willing to pay annual tribute to keep their shipping safe from the soon infamous Narentine (Neretvian) pirates of the Dalmatian coast (predating the later Uskok pirates based further north in Senj). The island along with the rest of Dalmatia was united into the Medieval Croatian state under the crown of King Tomislav, during his reign in 925 - 928. In 927 - 960, the island passed on to Prince Ceslav of Klonimir. After that, the island was briefly under nominal Byzantine suzeiranity as a part of the theme of Serbia. In 998 the Principality of Pagania came under direct Venetian control, but was returned to home control, this time by the Grand Principality of Zahumlje.
In the 12th century, Korčula was conquered by a Venetian nobleman, Pepone Zorzi, and incorporated it into the Republic of Venice. Nevertheless, Korčula in varying degrees began to act as an independent island from this point onwards, particularly with regard to its internal affairs.
Brothers of Stephen Nemanja Miroslav and Stracimir launched an attack on the island on 10 August 1184, raiding its fertile western part. The island's inhabitants called the Republic of Ragusa (Dubrovnik) for help, which in turn captured all of Stracimir's galleys.
The Statute of Korčula was made in 1214. This legal document is the second oldest example of legislation among Slavs, with only the Russkaya Pravda of 11th and 12th Century Russia predating it. It guaranteed the autonomy of the island, apart from her outside rulers - Grand Principality of Rascia, semi-independent (Grand) Principality of Zahumlje and the Republics of Ragusa and Venice. Captainies were created for every one of the 5 island's settlements for organised defence. Korčula had below 2,500 inhabitants back then.
In 1221, Pope Honorius III gifted the island to the Princes of Krka (Šubićs).
In 1222, Serbian King Stephen the First-crowned of Nemanja, now gifted his monasteries and lands on the island, referring to it as Krkar to his followers of the Benedictine Monastical Order on Mljet.
Doge Pietro II Orseolo assumed the title Dux Dalmatinorum ("Duke of the Dalmatians"). During the 12th century the hereditary Counts of Korčula were loosely governed from Hungary and from the Republic of Genoa in turn, and also enjoyed a brief period of independence; but, in 1255, Marsilio Zorzi conquered the island's city and razed or damaged some of its churches during the process, forcing the Counts to return to Venetian supreme rule. According to a local tradition, Marco Polo was born at Korčula in 1254 to an established family of merchants, although there is no proof of this claim. What is known however is that the Republic of Genoa defeated Venice in a documented Battle of Curzola of the coast of Korčula in 1298 and possibly Marco Polo was taken prisoner by the victors to eventually spend his time in a Genoese prison writing of his travels. However some scholars believe that he was captured in a minor clash near Laiazzo.
After the writings of Pope Martin IV in 1284 and Pope Honorius IV in 1286 to the Ragusan Archbishop, the Archbishop implaced a certain Petar as Bishop of Ston and Korčula - stacnensis ac Crozolensis. In 1291, Ivan Kručić was in Korčula's city as the Bishop of Korčula. Bishop Ivan contested his overlord, the Archbishop of Hvar, and wanted to unite Ston with his church domain. In 1300, Pope Boniface VIII finally imstalled the Korčula Bishopric under the Archbishopric of Ragusa (Dubrovnik). In 1333, as the Republic of Ragusa purchased Ston with Pelješac from the Serbian Empire, the suzeiranity of Ston's Roman Catholic Church with the penisnular was given to the Bishopric of Korčula.
Curzola, as the Venetians called it, surrendered to the Kingdom of Hungary in 1358, but it surrendered to the Bosnian-Serbian King Stefan Tvrtko I in the Summer of 1390. The island was purchased by the neighbouring Republic of Ragusa in 1413-1417, but declared itself subjected to the Republic of Venice in 1420. In 1571 it defended itself so gallantly against the Ottoman navies at the Battle of Lepanto that it obtained the designation Fidelissima from the Pope. From 1776 to 1797 Curzola succeeded Lesina as the main Venetian fortified arsenal in this region. According to the Treaty of Campoformio in 1797 in which the Venetian Republic was divided between the French Republic and the Habsburg Monarchy, Korčula passed on to the Habsburg Monarchy. The French Empire invaded the island in 1806, joining it with the Illyrian Provinces. The Montenegrin Forces of Prince-Episcope Peter I Njegš conquered the island with Russian naval assistance in 1807 during his attempt to construct another Serbian Empire. However, the Great Powers decided to give the island to the Austrian Empire and it became a part of the Austrian crown land of Dalmatia and from 1867 was in the Cisleithanian part of Austro-Hungary.
During the First World War, the island (among other territorial gains) was promised to the Kingdom of Italy in the 1915 Treaty of London in return for Italy joining the war on the side of Britain and France. However, after the war, Korčula became a part (with the rest of Dalmatia) of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs in 1918. It was ruled by Italy in 1918 - 1921, after which it was incorporated into the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes; known as the Kingdom of Yugoslavia from 1929. In 1939, it became a part of the autonomous Banate of Croatia. During the Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, it was first part of Fascist Italy, then after the Armistice between Italy and the Allied powers in 1943 it was briefly held by Yugoslav partisans. Korcula was occupied by the Germans and finally liberated in 1944. With the liberation of Yugoslavia in 1945, the |Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia was formed, and Korčula became a part of the People's Republic of Croatia, one of the six Yugoslav Republics. The state changed name to Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1953, and so did the Republic into Socialist Republic of Croatia. After 1991, the island became a part of the independent Republic of Croatia.
Economy
Economy is, besides tourism, based on agriculture, cultivation of grape vines and olives, fruit growing, fishing and fish processing and shipbuilding. Summer tourism has a long tradition on the island; nautical tourism has been recently developed.
External links
- Official website
- Maps island Korčula - CroMaps navigator
- Korčula - Croatian National Tourist Board
- Info Page about Korčula
- Lumbarda Island Korčula
- General information about Korčula island
| Cities and Municipalities of Dubrovnik-Neretva County | |
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Cities and towns: Dubrovnik | Korčula | Metković | Opuzen | Ploče |
