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Dubrovnik History
The habitation in Dubrovnik started dated back to the 7th century. Residents of the Roman city Epidaurum fled to the safest place after barbarians wiped out them, which was a rocky islet separated from the mainland by a narrow channel. By the end of the 12th century Dubrovnik had become an important trading centre on the coast, providing an important link between the Mediterranean and Balkan states. From the hinterland, cattle and dairy products, wax, honey, timber, coal, silver, lead, copper and slaves were exported along with Dubrovnik products such as salt, cloth, wine, oil and fish. As the city grew increasingly prosperous it posed a threat to the other major commercial interest in the Adriatic - Venice. Dubrovnik came under Venetian authority in 1205 and remained under its control for 150 years. By the 15th century 'Respublica Ragusina' - the Republic of Ragusa - had extended its borders to include the entire coastal belt from Ston to Cavtat, having previously acquired Lastovo Island, the Pelješac Peninsula and Mljet Island. Centuries of peace and prosperity allowed art, science and literature to flourish.
In the earthquake of 1667, most of the Renaissance art and architecture of city were destroyed and more than 5000 people’s causality left the city, nothing but with the ruins.
Only the Sponza Palace and the Rector's Palace survived to give an idea of what Renaissance Dubrovnik must have looked like. The rebuilding of the city comes with the new baroque style with modest dwellings in rows and shops on the ground floor. The coup de grâce was dealt by Napoleon whose troops entered Dubrovnik in 1806 and announced the end of the republic. The Vienna Congress of 1815 ceded Dubrovnik to Austria: where the city maintained its shipping but succumbed to social disintegration. It remained a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until 1918 and then slowly began to develop its tourist industry.
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