The old
Mediterranean port of Kotor is surrounded by
fortifications built during the
Venetian period. It is located on the
Bay of Kotor (
Boka Kotorska), one of the most indented parts of the
Adriatic Sea. Some have called the southern-most
fjord in Europe, but it is a
ria, a submerged river canyon. Together with the nearly overhanging limestone cliffs of
Orjen and
Lovćen, Kotor and its surrounding area form an impressive and picturesque Mediterranean landscape.
In recent years, Kotor has seen a steady increase in tourists, many of them coming by cruise ship. Visitors are attracted both by the natural beauty of the Gulf of Kotor and by the old town of Kotor.
Kotor has been fortified since the early
Middle Ages, when Emperor
Justinian built a fortress above Acruvium in 535, after expelling the
Ostrogoths; a second town probably grew up on the heights round it, for
Constantine Porphyrogenitus, in the 10th century, alludes to Lower Kotor. The city was plundered by the
Saracens in 840. Kotor was one of the more influential
Dalmatian city-states of romanized Illyrians throughout the Middle Ages, and until the 11th century the
Dalmatian language was spoken in Kotor.
In 1002, the city suffered damage under occupation of the
First Bulgarian Empire, and in the following year it was
Serbia by the Bulgarian
Tsar Samuil. However, the local population resisted the pact and, taking advantage of its alliance with the
Republic of Ragusa, only submitted in 1184, while maintaining its republican institutions and its right to conclude treaties and engage in war. It was already an episcopal see, and, in the 13th century,
Dominican and
Franciscan monasteries were established to check the spread of
Bogomilism.
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| Old walls of the fortification |
ceded to
During the
Zupano dynasty-era, the city was autonomous. With the
fall of the Serbian Empire, the city came under the
Serbian Despotate. The city acknowledged the suzerainty of the
Republic of Venice in 1420. In the 14th century, commerce in Kotor (as the city was called until 1918) competed with that of the nearby
Republic of Ragusa and of the
Republic of Venice. The city was part of the
Venetian Albania province of the
Venetian Republic from 1420 to 1797, except for periods of Ottoman rule in 1538–1571 and 1657-1699. Four centuries of Venetian domination have given the city the typical Venetian architecture, that contributed to make Kotor a
UNESCO world heritage site.
[2] In those centuries Renaissance-related literature enjoyed a huge development in Kotor: the most famous writers were Bernardo Pima, Nicola Chierlo, Luca Bisanti, Alberto de Gliricis, Domenico and Vincenzo Burchia, Vincenzo Ceci, Antonio Zambella and Francesco Morandi.
The ancient Venetian fortifications of Kotor
In the 14th- and 15th centuries, there was an influx of settlers from the oblasts of
Trebinje (the region around forts Klobuk Ledenica and Rudina) and the
Hum lands (
Gacko and
Dabar) to Kotor.
[3]
While under Venetian rule, Kotor was besieged by the
Ottoman Empire in 1538 and 1657, endured the
plague in 1572, and was nearly destroyed by
earthquakes in 1563 and 1667.
After the
Treaty of Campo Formio in 1797, it passed to the
Habsburg Monarchy. However, in 1805, it was assigned to the
French Empire's client state, the
Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy by the
Treaty of Pressburg, although in fact held by a
Russian squadron under
Dmitry Senyavin. After the Russians retreated, Kotor was united in 1806 with this Kingdom of Italy and then in 1810 with the French Empire's
Illyrian Provinces. Kotor was
captured by the British in an attack on the Bay led by Commodore John Harper in the brig sloop
HMS Saracen (18 guns). To seal off Kotor in windless conditions, residents along the shore literally pulled the ship in windless conditions with ropes. Saracen's crew later hauled naval 18-pounder guns above Fort St. John, the fortress near Kotor, and were reinforced by Captain William Hoste with his ship
HMS Bacchante (38 guns). The French garrison had no alternative but to surrender, which it did on 5 January 1814.
But after 1945 it became a part of the then Socialist Republic of Montenegro within Yugoslavia's second incarnation.Between 1941 and 1943
Italy annexed the area of Kotor to the Italian "
Governorship of Dalmatia" and created a new Italian Province: the
Province of Cattaro, with 1,075 km
2 (415 sq mi) and 128,000 population
[5]
On April 15, 1979, a major earthquake hit the Montenegrin coastal area. There were approximately 100 casualties. Half of Kotor's Old Town was destroyed and St. Tryphon's Cathedral was partly damaged.
Up until the beginning of the 20th century, Croatian
Catholics constituted the majority around the Gulf of Kotor.
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| Cathedral of St. Triphune |
After the so-called "people's revolution" or "ab revolution" in Montenegro in 1988/89 the young socialists came to power. Under their rule Yugoslavia was torn apart in a bloody war. Since then the decline of Kotor has been obvious. The city was the hometown of "Jugooceanija", a maritime company with more than 20 ships trading around the world. It was a big company that provided a living for many people (crew and their families), but between 1990 and 2000 the company was completely destroyed in a corruption scandal. The hotel "Fjord" which was built after the earthquake in 1979 became a ruin near the Jugooceanija building. It was a big hotel which owned many tourist-related buildings. Since the proclamation of Montenegrin independence, all the financial and cultural establishments were drawn to Podgorica which is now the capital of Montenegro. The potential of Kotor as a tourist attraction has become limited to tours around the old town.
From a historical point of view, Kotor went through a difficult time under all the so-called occupations by the great powers of Europe. The greatest decline in cultural and financial status in the city's 2000-year history has been taking place since 1990.
Nowadays, Kotor is a town worth seeing and every tourist must vist it, since it is still keeping its medieval spirit.
