Duklja (town)

Illyrian and Roman city Doclea
City of Doclea in the 4th century
Praevalitana and Doclea in the Late Roman Empire

Duklja or Doclea (also Dioclea or Diocleia, Montenegrin: Duklja/Дукља) was once the principal city of the state of Duklja .[1] The city was situated about three kilometers north from today’s Podgorica, Montenegro's capital.

History

Duklja was the largest settlement of the Docleatae, an Illyrian tribe. The town was founded in the first decade of the 1st century AD. Doclea was built to conform to the terrain. It was a large town with 8 – 10 thousand inhabitants. The surrounding area had a relatively high population density within a radius of ten kilometers due to the city's geographical position, a favorable climate, positive economic conditions and defensive site that were of great importance at that time.

After the administrative division of the Roman Empire in 297, Diocleia became the capital of the newly established province, Prevalis. In the 4th and the 5th centuries, it was taken by the barbarian tribes and went into decline. At the beginning of the 5th century, it was attacked by the Visigoths. A severe earthquake destroyed it in 518. The Slavs, proceeded to rebuild the settlement in 620. Despite its status as the most important settlement in Duklja, Diocleia was eventually brought down by subsequent Albanian raids. The historical ruins of the town can be seen today.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Archaeologia: or Miscellaneous Volume 55, Part 1. By Society of Antiquaries of London. Page 33.

Koprivica T. Sacral Topography of Late Antique and Early Christian Doclea (Montenegro): the First Modern Preliminary Investigation. //Актуальные проблемы теории и истории искусства: сб. науч. статей. Вып. 2 . Под ред. А.В.Захаровой— Санкт-Петербург: НП-Принт — 2012. — с.314-320 ISBN 978-5-91542-185-0

External links

Coordinates: 42°28′05″N 19°15′56″E / 42.468108°N 19.265639°E