Dubrovnik is the city of a unique political and cultural history, of world-famous cultural heritage and beauty, and one of the most attractive and famous cities of the Mediterranean. Apart from its outstanding natural beauties and well-preserved cultural and historical heritage, Dubrovnik also offers high-quality visitor opportunities. It is also the city of hotels, of high ecological standards and tourist programs, and is equally attractive in all seasons. Its geographical isolation is compensated by high traffic and communication standards - especially through air traffic and fast hydrofoil boats.
The tourist development of Dubrovnik started before the First World War; quite soon, the exclusiveness of its attractions made Dubrovnik a powerful international tourist centre.
The sightseeing of Dubrovnik and its monuments requires several days. However, already a walk through Stradun, through narrow streets and small squares, monumental ramparts and fortress, provides enough opportunities to experience the millennial beauty of its shell-shaped urban core, centuries of building, stone-cutting, carving and engraving, the history of the Duke's Palace, libraries, the oldest pharmacy in the south of Europe, etc.
The most recognizable feature that defines the physiognomy of the historic city of Dubrovnik and gives it its characteristic appearance, famous all over the world are the intact city walls. They run uninterrupted for 1940 meters encircling the city. This complex structure, one of the most beautiful and strongest for system in the Mediterranean, consists of a series of forts, bastions, case mates, towers and detached forts.
The walls were built systematically in the difficult times of permanent danger to the City and the Republic, and they have been preserved to the present day and are still functional, not only because of the proficiency of their skilful builders, diligence and care of the citizens of Dubrovnik who maintained them and added to them as necessary, but also because of the splendid ability of the famous diplomats who knew how to obviate and avert the dangerous intents of the enemies and rivals of the Republic.
 The city of Dubrovnik is completely surrounded with walls and forts, including the Old Port. The history of the fortifications goes back to the early Middle Ages. No doubt the earliest urban settlement upon the islet of Laus was protected with walls. The fact that the city was able to resist the Saracens who besieged the city for 15months in the 9th century means that it was fortified well. The city first spread towards the uninhabited eastern part of the islet. The eastern section was included within the defence walls in the 9th and 10th century. When the sea channel separating the city from mainland was filled with earth in 11th century, the city merged with the settlement on land and soon a single wall was built around the area of the present-day city core. The whole city was enclosed in the 13th century, except for the Dominican monastery, which came under their protection not before the 14th century.
The average thickness of the wall was 1.5 meters, and it was built of stone and lime. To increase the strength of the walls and ensure better defence, 15 square forts were built in the 14th century.
Extensive work was done on the walls towards the close of the 14th century, at the time of the final liberation from the Venetian supremacy. The design of the walls derives from 14th century, while the definite shape was fixed in the period, which is, not without reason, referred to as the Golden Age of Dubrovnik, from the fall of Constantinople in 1453 until the devastating earthquake of 1667. The main wall on the landside is 4 to 6 meters thick, but narrower on the side facing the sea-1.5 to 3 meters thick. Its height reaches 25 meters in some places. An additional scarp wall as defence against artillery fire protects the wall on the landside. The irregular quadrilateral formed by the walls is protected at four prominent points by strong forts. The strong round Tower Minčeta is to the north, the port is protected by the detached Fortress Revelin in the east and by the big complex of the Fortress of Saint John in the southeast. The western entrance to the city protects the strong and beautiful tower Bokar. Powerful detached Fortress Lovrijenac also protects the western end of the city from danger from the sea and land. In additional to these strong and most prominent fortifications, the city walls are protected additionally by 2 round towers, 12 quadrilateral forts, 5 bastions and 2 corner towers, while the scarp wall is flanked by one large and 9 small semicircular bastions.
 The most prominent point in the defence system toward the land is round tower Minčeta. The name derives from the name of the Menčetić family, who owned the ground the tower was built upon. By its height and impressive volume the tower dominates the north-western high part of the city and the walls. It was built in 1319, originally as a strong four-sided fort. It was build by a local builder Nićifor Ranjina. As the fall of Constantinople in 1453 was a clear sign to the cautious citizen of Dubrovnik quickly to take ample defensive measures, the first and one of the most important tasks was to strengthen this hey point. The fall of Bosnia, which followed soon in 1463, only hastened the works. The Republic invited a famous architect, Michelozzo di Bartolomeo of Florence. His work in Dubrovnik resulted in several buildings of highest importance for the defence of Dubrovnik. Among his principal activities around middle of the 15th century was the reconstruction of the tower Minčeta. Around the earlier quadrilateral fort Michelozzo built a new round tower adapted to the new technique of warfare and joined it to the new system of low scarp walls. The walls of the new tower were full 6 meters thick and had a series of protected gun ports. The famous architect and sculptor Juraj Dalmatinac, born in Zadar, continued the work on the Minčeta. He designed and built the high narrow round tower, while the battlements are a later addition. The tower was completed in 1464, and is the symbol of the unconquerable city of Dubrovnik. Since it is the highest point of the wall, it offers an unforgettable view on the city. In the period of unmistakable Turkish danger and the fall of Bosnia under Turkish rule, the fortress Revelin was built to the east of the city in 1462, a detached fortress providing additional protection to the land approach to the eastern Ploče Gate. The name derives from rivelino (ravelin), a term in military architecture, which refers, to work built opposite to the city gate in order to afford better protection from enemy attack.
 Danger of Venetian assault suddenly increased in the times of the First Holy League, and it was necessary to strengthen this vulnerable point of the city fortifications. The Senate hired Antonio Ferramolino, an experienced builder of fortresses in the service of the Spanish admiral Doria, a trusted friend of the Republic. In 1538 the Senate approved his drawings of the new, much stronger Revelin. It took 11 years to build it, and during that time all other construction work in the city had stopped in order to finish this fortress as soon as possible. The new Revelin became the strongest city fortress, safeguarding the eastern land approach to the city. It is an irregular quadrilateral, with one of its sides descending towards the sea, and protected by a deep ditch on the other side. One bridge crossing the protective ditch connects it to the Ploče Gate, and another connects it to the eastern suburb. The construction work was executed perfectly so that the devastating earthquake of 1667 did not damage Revelin. As its interior is divided into 3 large vaulted rooms, Revelin became the administration centre of Republic.
The session of the Council were held in the fortress, and the treasuries of the Republic and of the cathedral were transferred there, and so was all other wealth which was saved from the ruins and fires following the earthquake. The top of Revelin is a huge stone terrace, the largest in Dubrovnik, used in summer as a stage for many events of the summer festival. The Fortress of St. John, often called Mulo tower, is a complex monumental building on the south-eastern side of the old city port, controlling and protecting its entrance. The first fort was built in mid 14th century, but it was modified on several occasions in the course of the 15th and 16th centuries, which can be seen in the triptych made by the painter Nikola Božidarević in the Dominican monastery. The painting shows St. Blasius, the patron saint of Dubrovnik.
In his hand he holds a scale model of Dubrovnik where the fortifications of the port can be seen clearly. The present appearance of the fortress dates from the 16th century and is mainly the work of the local builder Paskoje Miličević, whose reconstruction plans contributed considerably to the present look of the fortification of the old port. The side toward the sea is round and lower part of the wall is inclined, while the part facing the port has flat vertical walls. This large building, which had many gun ports for its primary function, is a cultural monument today. It houses the Maritime Museum, containing objects, paintings and documents relating to a most important activity in the history of the city. The ground floor houses the famous Aquarium. The monumental space of the fortress creates a special mood for visitors who can view specimens of Adriatic fauna in 27 basins of various sizes. The tower Bokar (Zvjezdan) is among the most beautiful instances of harmonious and functional fortification architecture. The previously mentioned Michelozzo of the Florence built it while the city walls were reconstructed (from 1461 to 1463). This tower was conceived as the key point in the defence of the Pile Gate, the western fortified entrance of the city. Together with Minčeta this tower is the second key point in the defence of the western land approach to the city. It was built as a two-story casemate fortress, standing in front of the medieval wall face protruding into space almost with its whole cylindrical volume.
 Nowadays the tower is used as a stage for events in the summer festival of Dubrovnik. The famous fortress Lovrijenac was built upon a sheer rock 37 meters high overlooking the sea. This detached fortress is of prime importance for the defence of the western part of Dubrovnik, both against attack from land and threat from the sea. The fortress was mentioned in a legend from the 11th century, but reliable date is from the 14th century, when its present form was determined. It was reconstructed several times in the centuries that followed. The main reconstruction occurred together with other fortress: in the 15th and 16th centuries. In those times the municipal builder I.K.Zanchi of Pesaro was repairing the parapets. Having suffered damage in the earthquake of 1667, Lovrijenac was also repaired in the 17th century. Triangular in plan and following the contour of the rock on which it was built, Lovrijenac faces the western suburbs with its narrowest, highest part, and its longest wall is open towards the tower Bokar and the western wall, thus protecting the small, but also the oldest port of the city - Kolorina.
The fortress has a quadrilateral court with mighty arches. As the height is uneven, it has 3 terraces with powerful parapets, the broadest looking south towards the sea. Lovrijenac was defended with 10 large cannons, the largest and most famous being “Gušter”(Lizard). It never fired a single shot. It was designed and cast in 1537 by master Ivan of Rab. As it is a dominant fortress whose capture could endanger the city and the Republic, its construction reveals all the wisdom and caution of the administration again. The walls exposed to enemy fire are almost 12 meters thick, but the large wall surface facing the city does not exceed 60 centimetres. The caution of the Republic was not only directed against the foreign enemy, but also against possible mutiny of the commander of the garrison of the fortress. Therefore the would-be tyrant was permanently exposed to the threat of destruction of the thinnest wall of the fortress. As caution was never sufficient, the commander of the fortress, always elected from the rank of the nobility, was replaced every month. The Republic defended freedom in every possible way. The famous inscription over the entrance to Lovrijenac: NON BENE PRO TOTO LIBERTAS VENDITUR AURO is witness to that. In translation: Freedom is not sold for all the gold in the world.
In search for space suitable for theatre productions during the summer festival, it was observed very early that 3 terraces of this fortress are great potential. It is especially suitable as the stage for Shakespeare's “Hamlet”, and its production at Lovrijenac has become cultic and trade mark of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival.
 The Dubrovnik Museum in the Duke's Palace keeps 15,500 exhibits in its cultural and historical department. A collection of furniture from the 17th-19th century, uniforms of dukes and councillors, aristocratic garments and many other items are exhibited in the authentic halls of the palace. The Maritime Museum (situated in the fortress Sveti Ivan) has a number exhibits on a permanent display, related to the maritime affairs of Dubrovnik and Croatia on the whole, with a particular emphasis on the history of the Dubrovnik Republic. The museum of the Franciscan monastery keeps all inventories of the old pharmacy, as well as the works of Dubrovnik jewellers, painters and embroiders.
The large complex of the Franciscan monastery is situated at the very beginning of Placa, to the left of the Pile Gate. The lateral facade of the monastery church runs along the principal street of Dubrovnik, and the monastery spreads north along the walls as far as the tower Minceta.
The earliest monastery was built in the 13th century in the Pile area. As the city was threatened with war, in the 14th century the friars were forced to move under the protection of the defence walls. The new monastery building was started in 1317 but work went on for a very long time. Some parts were destroyed and rebuilt several times.
The large Franciscan church, one of the richest churches in Dubrovnik at the time, was destroyed in the earthquake of 1667. The only element of the former building which has been preserved is the portal on the south wall. It was probably moved from the front to the lateral wall in the course of the restoration in the 17th century.
According to the contract of 1498, this portal, the most monumental one in Dubrovnik at that time, was carved in the leading local workshop owned by the brothers Leonard and Petar Petrovic. The portal has all the marks of the Gothic style, but the solid volumes of the figures show the Renaissance spirit. The figures of St. Jerome and St. John the Baptist are set above the door-posts, while the Pietá in relief is represented in the central Gothic lunette.
The figure of the Father Creator is above the lunette. Such iconography of the portal and the choice of the patron saints are proof of the aspirations and social doctrine of the Franciscan in the political circumstances of the times. St. John the Baptist symbolizes Christian constancy in the face of the Turkish penetration. St. Jerome symbolizes the spiritual unity with the rest of Dalmatia.
The Pietá symbolizes their compassion with the poorest members of the urban community who sought solace from the Franciscans anyhow, and the figure of the Creator on top should symbolize opposition to the humanist world-views of the time.
The church was reconstructed in the Baroque style. The northern wall of the church closes the southern wing of one of the most beautiful cloisters of Dubrovnik. This cloister was built in late Romanesque style by Master Mihoje Brajkov of Bar in 1360.
The ambient is most harmonious, framed by a colonnade of double hexaphoras, each with a completely different capital.
The Franciscan cloister is one of the most valuable late Romanesque creations on the Croatian shores of the Adriatic. The Franciscan monastery has another cloister built in the Gothic style, but it is for private use only and not accessible to the public.
A pharmacy was founded in the monastery 1317, the third oldest in the whole world, continuously functioning until present day. The monastery owns one of the richest old libraries in the Croatia, famous all over the world for the value of its inventory. The collection has over 20000 books, over 1200 of which are old manuscripts of extraordinary value and importance, 137 incunables and 7 books of old church corals.
The collection of liturgical and art objects is exhibited in the large Renaissance hall, containing the inventory of the old Franciscan pharmacy, paintings by old masters, valuable specimens of gold-work and rare books.  The museum of the Dominican monastery exhibits valuable examples of Dubrovnik painting from the 15th and the 16th centuries, as well as sculptures, jewellery, manuscripts, incunabula and notes (music).
The Dominicans established their monastery in Dubrovnik as early as 1225, but the building of the church and the monastery took much longer, so the church and the monastery building were completed in the 14th century.
The place that the Dominicans chose for their monastery was strategically one of the most sensitive points in the defence of the city, so that as early as the 14th century the whole complex came was included within city walls, becoming their part. The church is one of the largest Gothic buildings on the east Adriatic coast. It is of simple architectural design: a hall with a pentagonal Gothic apse which is separated from the central area by 3 high openings with Gothic arches. The high outer walls of the church are bare of ornaments. The portal on the southern side has certain Romanesque elements, but in 1419 Bonino of Milan added to it a frame ending in a pointed Gothic arch. The interior is rich in stone church furniture, a pulpit, gravestones and Renaissance niches.
The monastery complex acquired its final shape in the 15th century, when the vestry, the chapter house and the cloister were added. The beautiful porches of the cloister were built between 1456 and 1483. They were built by the local builders: Utišenović, Grubačević, Radmanovićand others from the designs of the Florentine architect Massa di Bartolomeo. The arches of the cloister are closed by beautiful Gothic and Renaissance triforas. In the middle of the courtyard is a richly decorated cistern crown. The vestry was built in 1485 by the famous Dubrovnik architect Paskoje Miličević. The bell-tower was started by the architect Checo of Monopoli in the 16th century, but it was finished only in the 18th century. Although the complex of the Dominican Monastery has in some of its elements different style characteristics, from the Romanesque to the Baroque, it is a harmonious and logical architectural unit, but nevertheless predominantly Gothic and early Renaissance.
A special treasure of this monastery is its library with over 220 incunables, numerous illustrated manuscripts, and rich archive with precious manuscripts and documents. The art collection is very rich, and the best painting of Dubrovnik school 15th-16th centuries have a special place among them-works by Nikola Božidarević, Lovro Dobričević and Mihajlo Hamzić. Of foreign paintings, the painted crucifix by the noted Venetian painter Paolo Veneziano from the 14th century and the altarpiece of St. Magdalene, a work of Tizian and his assistants from 1550 deserve especial attention. The treasury of the Dubrovnik cathedral keeps the relicts of St. Blaise, patron of Dubrovnik, and numerous paintings and works of art. The Rupe Ethnographical Museum presents traditional occupations and the rural architecture of the region of Dubrovnik, national costumes and hand-made textiles. Very attractive is also the Aquarium of the Institute of Biology, situated in the fortress Sveti Ivan, comprising interesting marine species.
Dubrovnik has a number of churches, monasteries and hotels scattered all over the town. Its coastal belt is adorned with several marinas, piers and promenades. Because of a magnificent view on the mediaeval Dubrovnik, a walk along the town ramparts is a must for each visitor.
A great number of Dubrovnik restaurants and taverns offer delicious specialties of local and international cuisine. Sports and recreational facilities include playgrounds, courts and requisites for all sports in the sea and on the ground, from tennis and table tennis to sailing and yachting. There are also several gyms and fitness centres with swimming pools, saunas, massage, aerobics, solarium, box gyms, etc.
 Dubrovnik is the city of an outstanding cultural and artistic life. The most important event in the cultural life of the city is the Dubrovnik Summer Festival (10th of July - 25th of August), traditionally held since 1950. It is a theatre and classical and folk music festival, since 1956 included in the calendar of world festivals and as such one of the most famous cultural events in the world. Concerts and other performances take place on open stages in the town (Gunduliceva Poljana, Drziceva Poljana, Lovrijenac, Revelin) or in beautiful interiors of the most famous buildings (Duke's Palace, cloisters, churches). The repertoire includes works of Croatian and world classics, performed by the leading personalities from Croatia and abroad, including a number of world-famous actors, directors, conductors, etc. So far several hundreds of them have performed in Dubrovnik. An important part of the Festival are performances of local (Lindo, Lado) and foreign folk music ensembles.
The artistic life of Dubrovnik is characterized by numerous exhibitions taking place throughout the year. Apart from already renowned galleries - the Art Gallery (Put Frana Supila 23), its exhibition space Luza Art Centre (Stradun), Sebastian - occasional and permanent exhibitions are also held in other spaces as well.
Very famous are also Dubrovnik carnival festivities - so-called Dubrovnik "karnevo" (local variant of the word "carnival"), held ever since the early Middle Ages, when they were brought from the neighbouring Italy. Another important event is the Feast Day of St. Blaise, also the Day of Dubrovnik (3rd of February). The feast takes place for the whole week, including religious ceremonies, a procession through the town, concerts, sports events, entertainment and carnival programs. Excursions to Dubrovnik during that week are regularly organized.
In the vicinity of Dubrovnik, in the gorge of the Ombla river, is Miho Pracat ACI Marina; it has 450 berths in the sea and 250 places on the land. Boaters may also use Dubrovnik Marina.
The climate of Dubrovnik is characterized by warm and dry summers and mild winters. The average air temperature in the coldest month (February) is 4.6 °C and in the warmest month (August) 26.2 °C. The cold half of the year accounts for 68 % of the total annual rainfall; the spring accounts for 29, the summer for 14, the autumn for 26 and the winter for 37 rainy days out of the total number of 105 rainy days. Snow occurs extremely rarely; with 2,554 hours of sunshine a year, Dubrovnik ranks among the sunniest towns of southern Europe. In July it has 12.4 hours of sunshine a day, like Alexandria in Egypt.
The vegetation is subtropical and extremely luxuriant (olives, almonds, citrus fruit, rosemary, laurel, holm oak, pine, stone pine, cypress). Southeast of the old part of the town is a tourist zone called Ploce (hotels and beaches), west of it is Lapad (sports facilities, hotels, beaches, walking trails), while northwest of it is the Gruz port and Gruz. Economy is based on tourism and seafaring. The town has a number of cultural and educational institutions: the Nautical College, the Tourist College, the University Centre for Postgraduate Studies of the University of Zagreb, the Institute of History of the Croatian Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Dubrovnik Summer Festival and other.
Dubrovnik has a town port, the port of Gruz and a marina. The old town port is protected by the Porporela breakwater; yachts drawing up to 3 m may dock in it; smaller ships are docked in the cove of Gornja Bocina. The port of Gruz is a trading port, situated 2.5 km northwest of the ancient town core of Dubrovnik. Dubrovnik Marina is located in Komolac, in the interior part of Rijeka Dubrovacka, about 4 km from the entrance to the port of Gruz. Dubrovnik is located on the main road (M2, E65). The Dubrovnik airport is located in Cilipi.
HISTORY
The Croatian name of the town is derived from the word dubrava, while the Latin name Ragusa - Rausa originated from the name of the island where the first settlement was established ( Lave , Lausa ). Dubrovnik was probably founded in the first half of the 7th century, upon the fall of the nearby Epidaurum (today's Cavtat) during the Avaro-Slavic invasion on Dalmatia. Opposite of that location, at the foot of Srd Mount, developed a Croatian settlement under the name of Dubrovnik, after which, in the course of time, the entire town was named. The spatial separation was created by levelling and filling up of the present Placa, where the core of an integrated town developed. From its establishment the town was under the protection of the Byzantine Empire (for a certain period, the Byzantine strategist also resided here); during the Crusades it came under the sovereignty of Venice (1205-1358), and by the Peace Treaty of Zadar in 1358 it became part of the Hungarian-Croatian Kingdom. Having been granted the entire self-government (bound to pay only a tribute to the king and providing assistance with its fleet), from that moment Dubrovnik started its life as a free state that reached its peak in the 15th and the 16th centuries. A crisis of Mediterranean shipping and especially a catastrophic earthquake in 1667 put Dubrovnik in a very difficult economic position. In such a situation Dubrovnik saw the beginning of the Napoleonic wars. The French entered Dubrovnik in 1806; in 1808 Marshal Marmont abolished the Dubrovnik Republic (the name was in use from the 15th c.). Pursuant to the resolutions of the Vienna Congress in 1815, Dubrovnik was annexed to Austria.
 During the period of independence of Dubrovnik, the state administration was in hands of the aristocracy; the administrative bodies were the Upper Council and the Lower Council (from 1238) and the Senate (from 1253). The head of the state was the Duke, elected for a term of office of one month. In the 13th century Dubrovnik gained the island of Lastovo, and in the 14th century also Ston, the Peljesac Peninsula and the island of Mljet. In the course of several centuries Dubrovnik grew into the most powerful economic centre on the eastern coast of the Adriatic, trading both in the Orient and the Occident, developing a powerful fleet of merchant and war ships (shipyards in Gruz, Lopud and in Sudurd on Sipan; an institution for marine insurance from the second half of the 14th c.) and maintaining diplomatic relations with a number of countries and cities.
Dubrovnik had its Statute as early as 1272, which, among others, codified the town-planning and hygienic regulations (organization of quarantines). Medical service was introduced in 1301; the first pharmacy was opened in 1317. The old people's home was opened in 1347; the first quarantine hospital ( "lazaret" ) was organized in 1377; the Supreme Medical Council was established in 1424; in 1432 the orphanage was opened; the waterworks was constructed in 1436.
Dubrovnik was an outstanding literary centre in the Renaissance (M. Drzic, I. Gundulic); the centre of the local painting school in the 15th-16th century; the birth-place of several world-famous scientists, such as the physicists Marin Getaldic (1568-1626) and Ruder Boskovic (1717-1787), the economic theoretician Benedikt Kotruljic (1400-1468), the composers Luksa Sorkocevic (1734-1789) and Ivan Mane Jarnovic (1740 or 1745-1804) and other. Dubrovnik was the cradle of humanism and Latinism on the Croatian coast of the Adriatic.
Science and culture in the town were promoted by scientific and literary societies - academies: the Academy of the Unanimous (second half of the 16th c.), the Academy of the Frivolous (founded around 1690) and other. Dubrovnik has maintained its important position in the Croatian culture until today.
HERITAGE
Dubrovnik is the city of the highest historical and cultural value and of an outstanding artistic importance. The town fortifications, ramparts and towers outside the walls were built, reinforced and reconstructed in the period from the 12th to the second half of the 17th century. A number of constructors were involved in those works (Nicifor Ranjina in 1319, Michelozzo di Bartholomeo in 1461-1464, Juraj Dalmatinac or George the Dalmatian in 1465-1466, Paskoje Milicevic in 1466-1516, Antonio Ferramolino in 1538, Mihajlo Hranjac in 1617, etc.). The main wall is 1,940 m long (following the ring-corridor), 4-6 m wide on the mainland side and 1.5-5 m wide on the sea side, and up to 25 m high. It was reinforced by three circular and 14 quadrangular towers, five bastions (bulwarks), two angular fortifications and a large fortress called Sveti Ivan (St. John). Among the towers, the most monumental is the circular tower of Minceta , on the north-western corner of the ramparts. The reinforcement, along the main wall on the mainland side, includes one larger and nine smaller semicircular bastions, and the casemate fortress Bokar, the oldest preserved fortress of that kind in Europe. The town was also defended from two independent fortresses: Revelin , on the eastern side, built in the period 1539-1551, and Lovrijenac , on the western side, situated at a 46-m high cliff above the sea. According to the chronicles, their construction started in 1050. Dubrovnik had four town gates, the two of them toward the port and another two (with bascule bridges) toward the mainland. The ramparts around the town have been preserved in their original shape. They may be reached from below Luza Zvonara or going along the church of St. Salvatore on Poljana, a work by Paskoje Milicevic. From the entrance below Luza Zvonara, the way on the walls runs above the Street between the Gate of Ploce (to the left-hand side are Sponza, the Dominican church, the church of St. Luke and the Annunciation; to the right-hand side are the town port and Revelin). Over the interior part of the Gate of Ploce the way goes up to the tower of St. James (to the left-hand side is a nice view on the town) and continues near the towers Drezvenik, Nad sv. Vidom (Above St. Vitus), Sveta Lucija (St. Lucy), Sveta Barbara (St. Barbara) to Minceta. From here, the way descends along the towers Gornji Ugao (Upper Corner) and Sveti Franjo (St. Francis) to the interior part of the Gate of Pile (this is the end of a visit of the northern section of the walls). The sightseeing tour of the southern part of the walls continues along the tower Puncijela (a view on Lovrijenac to the right) and Bokar (a view on the town to the left and on the open sea to the right), as well as along the towers Sveta Marija (St. Mary), Mrtvo Zvono (Dead Bell), Zvijezda (Star), Sveta Margarita (St. Marguerite), Sveti Stjepan (St. Stephen), Sveti Spasitelj (St. Salvatore), to the angular fortress Sveti Ivan (St. John; a view on the town port, Srd Mount and the eastern part of the town). The way leads farther along the town port above Duke Damjan Juda Street, above the Gate of Ponta, along the back side of the Duke's Palace, the National Theatre and above the Arsenal, where it descends below Luza Zvonara.
 Since the ancient times, the centre of public life has been Luza Square. It continues toward the west into the main artery of the town core, the so-called Placa (Stradun). On the northern side of the square is the Sponza Palace , and in the middle of it the Orlando's Column from the 15th century, with a knight’s statue, carved in stone. This was the place where all public announcements and proclamations but also public punishments were taking place. The knight's right arm, from fingertips to elbow (carved also on the pedestal of the column) was the official unit of length (ell) of the Dubrovnik Republic. On the southern side is the Baroque church of St. Blaise (built by Marino Gropelli in 1706-1714); the gold-plated, silver statue of St. Blaise with a scale model of the town from the mid-15th century (on the main altar) and two stone statutes (St. Blaise and St. Jerome), works by the Brac sculptor Nikola Lazanic from the end of the 16th century, are originally from the old church of St. Blaise from the 14th century.
The eastern side of Luza is enclosed by Luza Zvonara, the Town Belfry and the Main Guard House. The bells from Luza Zvonara (built in 1463) were used to mark the beginning of the council sessions and to call alerts. The construction of the Town Belfry was mentioned in the documents from 1444. The clock with two wooden human figures (so-called "zelenci" , "greenies"), striking the hours, was made by Luka, a son of the admiral Miho (cast in bronze by an anonymous master in 1476). The present bell (from 1506) is a work by Ivan Krstitelj Rabljanin. The Town Belfry was completely restored in 1929. The Main Guard House was built in 1706-1708 by Marino Gropelli. In front of it, partly in the niche, is the so-called Small Onofrio's Fountain, whose figure decorations were made by Petar Martinov from Milan by the end of the first half of the 15th century. Next to it is the Town Hall , built in the Lombardian neo-Renaissance (1863-1864, according to the designs by Antonio Vecchietti). The National Theatre (called Bonda's Theatre) also belongs to the structural complex of that period. This was -also the original location of the buildings of the Upper Council (first mentioned in 1303, extended in 1489, destroyed by a fire in 1817) and the Great Arsenal (first mentioned in 1272, pulled down in the mid-19th c.; a part toward the town port has been preserved). Next to the Town Hall is the Duke's Palace , in the present form a Gothic-Renaissance structure, built according to the designs by Onofrio della Cava, on the location of a fortified palace from the 12th or 13th century, which was destroyed in a powder explosion in 1435. After another explosion of powder in 1463, the ground-floor portico was restored in Renaissance style by Petar Martinov from Milan. The palace was severely damaged by an earthquake in 1667 and the repairs (until 1739) were done by the constructor Jerolim Skarpa from Korcula. The interior of the palace features an atrium with arcades (on three sides on the ground floor and on four sides on the first floor). A monumental staircase leads to the rooms on the first floor. On the left-hand side is the entrance to the former archives (painted closets from the Rococo period). The atrium also keeps a bust of Miho Pracat (a work by P. P. Jacometti from 1637), the only monument of the Dubrovnik Republic to any citizen of merit. Above the gate to the former building of the Upper Council is the inscription: OBLITI PRIVATORUM PUBLICA CURATE (Having forgotten your private concerns, dedicate yourselves to public affairs). The eastern side of Poljana Marina Drzica is enclosed by the bishop's (former Sorkocevic's) palace. Along with it runs Duke Damjan Juda Street, all the way to the fortress of St. John (housing today the Aquarium, the Maritime Museum and the Ethnographical Museum). The church of Our Lady of Karmen is a Baroque structure (1628-1636). One of the paintings, attributed to C. Regio, represents the Sorkocevic summer mansion on Lapad. South of Poljana Marina Drzica is the old town part called Pustijerna (access below the arcades). Resticeva Street houses the Renaissance Skocibuha Palace(Bizzaro-Ohmucevic; built by Josip and Ivan Andrijic in 1549-1553, according to the designs by Anthony of Padua), the best preserved private structure built before the earthquake of 1667, and the Gothic Zamanjina Palace. Stulina Street features the ruins of the early Croatian, later reconstructed church of St. Stephen, mentioned already by Constantine Porphyrogenitus (around the mid-10th c.). The western side of Drziceva Poljana is enclosed by the monumental front of the Baroque Cathedral, built in the period 1672-1713 on the location of an earlier Romanesque cathedral, which was destroyed by the earthquake in 1667. The design was made by A. Buffalini and the constructors were P. Andreotti, P. A. Bazzi, Father Tommaso Napoli and Ilija Katicic, who finally finished the construction. The church keeps the paintings by Padovani, J. Palma the Younger, G. G. Savoldo, Parmigianino, Bordone and other. The main altar features the large polyptych of the Assumption of Our Lady (on the sides: Sts. Blaise and Lazarus, Sts. Nicholas and Anthony the Abbot), a work by Tizian and his assistants, created after 1552. The Cathedral Treasury (entrance to the left of the main altar) keeps a number of golden and silver reliquaries of various shapes. It also keeps a large wash-basin with a pitcher from gold-plated silver, which represents the flora and fauna of Dubrovnik (a work by W. Jamnitzer, around 1550). - Androviceva Street leads to the foot of the stairway Uz Jezuite (Near the Jesuits), designed in 1735 by P. Passalacqua. The stairway leads to Poljana Rudera Boskovica, with the Baroque Jesuit church of St. Ignatius (finished in 1725 according to the designs by A. Pozzo). The apse behind the main altar houses the wall paintings by G. Garcia (1737-1738), while the bell tower houses the oldest bell of Dubrovnik, cast in 1355 by Viventius and his son Viator. Next to the church is the Baroque building of the former Dubrovnik College (built in 1735 according to the designs by the Jesuits Ranjina and Canauli); the main entrance features a relief with an inscription from 1481. Strossmayerova Street leads to the stairway to the west. The former monastery of St. Catherine houses the Music School now; the foundations and crypt of the church of St. Peter the Great, the first Dubrovnik cathedral, with numerous fragments of " pleter " (interlacery ornaments), have been found in the former church. Farther from Strossmayerova Street, in the street called Od Rupa, is a large two-storey structure, the so-called Rupe (Holes); the former granary. It was built in the period 1542-1590 (restored in 1940); under the building are 15 large dry wells (capacity about 1,500 t), drilled in live rock, with a constant temperature of 17.5 °C. The building now houses the Rupe Museum. From there, through the street called Od Domina, one reaches Siroka (Broad) Street. The Domino church was built on the location of an earlier church destroyed by the earthquake in 1667. According to the crypt, the old church was a three-nave structure; one of the preserved aisles is now the sacristy. The palla of the main altar was made by A. Vaccaro. - The trading artery of the present Dubrovnik is the street called Od Puca. On its southern side is the church of St. Joseph, built after the earthquake in 1667 on the location of the destroyed church of St. James from 1299. Opposite of it is the Orthodox church (1877) with a cultural and historical collection and a collection of icons. To the east, the street continues to Gunduliceva Poljana, with a monument to the poet Divo Frana Gundulic (a work by I. Rendic, 1893).
 On the northern side of Luza Square is the monumental Sponza ( Divona , Fondik ). It was built in the period 1515-1522, in the transitional style from Gothic to Renaissance, according to the designs by Paskoje Milicevic; stone-masonry was done by Nikola and Josip Andrijic. It was used as the customs house (therefore occasionally called Divona), mint, national treasury, bank and fondaco (office for goods evaluation). It was also the seat of Dubrovnik academies during and after the Renaissance. On the ground floor, in front of the façade is a Renaissance portico; the first floor has Gothic and the second floor Renaissance windows. The yard is enclosed by corridors with arcades. The front loggia (which today houses the original "Greenies" and the old clock works from the Town Belfry) bears the Latin inscription: FALLERE NOSTRA VETANT ET FALLI PONDERA - MEQUE FONDERO DUM MERCES, PONDERAT IPSE DEUS (Do not cheat or falsify the measures; while I am weighing the goods, God is weighing with me). The Sponza also houses the National Archives of the Dubrovnik Republic (comprising about 2.7 million written pages of various documents, agreements etc. from the 13th c. to the fall of the Republic). - The way to the town ramparts starts from below Luza Zvonara, along the Town Belfry. A passage leads through the walls to the town port. Its construction started by levelling and filling up of the channel between the island of Lava and the mainland. In 1266 four towers were built and in 1305 the coast was arranged. Adaptations of the Arsenal (from the 13th c.) were made in 1489 by Paskoje Milicevic; in 1535 the Arsenal was extended; a part of it was pulled down during the construction of the theatre in 1863, and the other was converted into a town coffee-house in 1933. - Through St. Dominic Street one reaches the Dominican monastery and its church; the Dominicans came to Dubrovnik in 1225. The construction of the present monastery complex started at the beginning of the 14th century. The first known constructors of the church (1315) were Nicholas and George, the sons of the protomaster Lawrence from Zadar. The church was reconstructed on several occasions, especially after the earthquake in 1667, after the French occupation (when it was used as a horse stable and storage) and in 1883. On the right-hand side of the church are The Annunciation with a number of paintings from the history of the Dominicans in Dubrovnik (N. Bozidarevic, 1513), the exit to the street called Izmedu Vrata od Ploca (Between the Gate of Ploce) (the former main entrance to the church, the only Romanesque portal in Dubrovnik dating from the 13th c., supplemented with an outer Gothic frame in 1419), the altar of St. Vincent Ferrer with the saint's statue from the 15th century and the painting The Assumption of Mary with a vedutta of Dubrovnik (signature of an unknown master A. B. D., around 1648/1658). On the left-hand side are the altar with the palla of St. Magdalene between St. Blaise and Raphael the Archangel with the figure of a donator from the Pucic family (made by Tizian around 1554), the altar with a Baroque crucifix, the late Gothic stone pulpit from the 15th century, the altar with the painting Wonder of St. Dominic (Vlaho Bukovac, 1912) and the painting Descent of the Holy Spirit with the figure of the donator Skocibuha (A. Vaccaro, first half of the 17th c.). On the right-hand side, the sanctuary houses the chapel of the Lukarevic family from the 15th century, with a triptych by Mihajlo Hamzic from 1512, while on the left-hand side is the chapel of the Gundulic family (Luka Paskojev, 1536), with a triptych (Nikola Bozidarevic, after 1458). The main altar (from 1603) features the painting of Our Lady of the Rosary (a work by an anonymous painter from the 17th c.). Below the arch that separates the nave from the sanctuary is the painted cross by P. Veneziano from 1352. The sacristy was built in 1485 by Paskoje Milicevic; it houses a wash-basin (end of the 15th c.), a big crucifix (beginning of the 16th c.) and several tombstones. Above the sacristy is the four-storey bell tower with the lantern. Its construction was started by Cecho from Monopoli in 1390, and several local masters worked on it in the period 1404-1531. The bell tower has three old bells, cast in Dubrovnik; the first one from 1463 (Bartolomeo de Cremona), the second one from 1515 (Ivan Krstitelj Rabljanin; John the Baptist of Rab) and the third one from 1622 (Gaudencije Lastovac; Gaudentius of Lastovo). The monastery cloister has corridors with slender arcades (transition from Gothic to Renaissance); built by local masters according to partly changed designs of Masa di Bartolomeo. On the eastern side of the cloister is the chapter house with an altarpiece by Nikola Bozidarevic from 1513 and the tomb of the poet Dinko Ranjina (1531-1607). The museum keeps valuable exhibits of Dubrovnik goldwork. The collection of paintings comprises all periods since the 14th century (Tizian, Charonton, Lorenzo di Credi, Vasari). The monastery library keeps 217 manuscripts (among them also several illuminated codices), 239 incunabula, 16,000 printed volumes, the charters important for the history of Dubrovnik; the most valuable exhibits are the incunabula by A. Paltasic and D. Dobricevic, as well as Savonarola's speeches from 1497. Next to the Dominican church is the church of St. Sebastian (added in 1466-1469); during the French occupation it was converted into a prison, and thus underwent considerable changes. - The passage along the Baroque church of the Rosary connects the street called Izmedu Vrata od Ploca with the northern main street of the ancient Dubrovnik, Prijeko. To the left is the pre-Romanesque church of St. Nicholas, later supplemented by a Gothic nave; in 1607 it was extended and a late Renaissance front (inscription and date on the architrave) was added. The antependium of the main altar is a pre-Romanesque stone tablet with the motifs of " pleter " (interlacery ornaments). Uphill, through Zlatarska (Jewellers') Street, the way leads to Peline Street (which follows the northern section of the town ramparts to the Minceta tower). At the corner, in front of the former town gate of St. James, is the church of St. James on Peline , with Romanesque features; it was first mentioned in 1225. Zudioska (Jewish) Street descends from Peline to Prijeko, in the part of the town known as the Jewish ghetto, which existed in Dubrovnik as early as 1352. Here is also the synagogue from the 15th century (with the 17th c. furnishings), one of the oldest preserved synagogues in south-eastern Europe. In the street called Od Sigurate is the small early Croatian church of Sigurata its aisles and Baroque front were added later. Next to the church is the nun monastery which keeps the oldest votive painting representing a Dubrovnik ship, as well as the embroidery Washing of the Feet (according to the sketches by Niccola di Pietro, 15th c.). Celestin Medovic Street leads to the Placa. Next to the Gate of Pile is the Franciscan (Friars Minor) monastery with the church. The construction of the monastery started in 1317 in the Romanesque-Gothic transitional style. The church was probably finished in 1343 and the bell tower in 1424 (after the earthquake in 1667 the Gothic tip was replaced by a dome-shaped roof). The altar and intersections belong to the period of Baroque onwards, only the pulpit dates back to the 15th century. The church houses also the tomb of the poet Divo Frana Gundulic (1588-1638).
The sacristy, which was not damaged in the earthquake, comprises the Gothic chapel of the Bunic family from 1472; the altar of the chapel has the shape of a triple relic repository, with paintings on wood. The late Gothic southern gate toward the Placa (in the lunette Pieta, Our Lord on the top, St. Jerome and St. John the Baptist on the sides) is a work by the sculptors Leonardo and Petar Petrovic, made in 1499. The oldest preserved part of the whole complex is the cloister, with features of the transitional style. The corridor is framed on all four sides by a line of double hexastyles, with various capitals which show a powerful impact of the Romanesque bestiary. The first builder and stone mason of the cloister was Mihoje Brajkov from Bar (in the southern section of the corridor is his tombstone). After his death (1348) the works on the cloister were continued by Miljen Radomislic (1367) and Leonardo Stjepanov from Florence (1376). Dilapidated parts were repaired in 1426 by Bozidar Bogdanovic and Radin Bogetic, and in 1433 the construction of the stone balustrade (banisters) on the terrace was continued by Ratko Brajkovic. The fountain in the middle of the cloister was built in the 15th century. On the eastern side of the cloister is the chapter house with seven chapels; it also houses a treasury. The monastery keeps the utensils (15th-17th c.) of the old monastery pharmacy that existed as early as 1317. The monastery library comprises more than 30,000 volumes, including 22 incunabula, about 1,500 manuscripts, 15 illuminated chorales, mostly from the 15th and the 16th centuries, as well as numerous works of the ancient local music; an outstanding item is the martyrology from 1541, written and illuminated by Bernardin Orsat Gucetic from Dubrovnik. Opposite of the main entrance to the Franciscan church is the church of St. Salvatore, built in the Renaissance style (1520-1528, master Petar Andrijic). Among the paintings, the most notable is the Assumption, a work by Petar from Urbin (1527). Along the church is the way to the town ramparts. On the western extension of the Placa, on Poljana Paskoja Milicevica, is the Big Onofrio's Fountain , a sixteen-sided container with a cupola, as one of the ending points of the ancient waterworks. The designs for it were made by Onofrio della Cava in 1438 and the construction was finished in 1444; the cupola was made by Petar Martinov from Milan. The fountain was partly damaged by the earthquake in 1667. The southern side of Poljana Paskoja Milicevica is enclosed by the former monastery of St. Clare, which underwent a number of reconstructions in the 19th century. It was founded in 1290, along with the earliest church of St. Blaise (from the 12th or the 13th c.), which was later called the church of St. Clare (after the construction of the monastery).
The huge yard with double arcades of the former cloister is today used as a summer cinema and restaurant. The main artery of the old town, the so-called Placa (Stradun), 292 m long, connects the Gate of Pile with the Gate of Ploce; this is also the direction of the main sewer, since the passing of the Regulations on Hygienic Measures in the 13th century. On both sides of the Placa were shops. Paved with stone in 1468, the Placa was restored after the earthquake in 1667 (simple Baroque style, according to the suggestions of G. Ceruti from Rome). Some houses have preserved the old type of entrance into the ground-floor shops.
From Luza through the Street between the Gate of Ploce, along the Gate of the Fishmongers and the Dominican church on the right below the town rampart is the pre-Romanesque church of St. Luke , mentioned for the first time in 1245. It was extended on several occasions; the last time in 1787. Gothic statues above the door are probably works by Leonardo and Petar Petrovic, from the end of the 15th century. Next to it is the church of the Annunciation (so-called Nuncijata ) with a nice portal. It was built in 1536 (in the Renaissance style with some Gothic elements) by Petar, son of Marko Andrijic; restored in 1910. The road leads through the inner part of the Gate of Ploce (beginning of the 14th c.); above the gate, in a niche, is the statue of the patron saint of Dubrovnik, St. Blaise, the oldest of numerous statues of that kind found in the town. The stone bridge leads over the town moat to the foot of the fortress Revelin. Its construction began in 1463 according to the designs of A. Ferramolino, but it got its present aspect in 1538. Close to the eastern top of Revelin is the outer part of the Gate of Ploce, the main entrance into the town from the east. The lifting mechanism of the bascule bridge has been preserved. The bascule bridge continues with the stone bridge from 1449. - The small square in front of the gate is the starting point of several roads and ways toward Gruz and Lapad, toward Bosanka and Zarkovica, as well as the connecting road with the Adriatic Highway. Going through the suburban part called Ploce, on the right-hand side one can see a deserted complex of buildings called Lazareti (Tabor; quarantine hospital) from 1590. Fairs took place here in the 19th century. On the left-hand side is the small old church of St. Lazarus next to it was the first leprosarium (mentioned as early as 1306). On the right is also the Emin Tower, the easternmost structure of Lazareti; behind it is a cove with the public beach of Ploce. The street known as Put Frana Supila bypasses the cove; on the left is the Art Gallery and on the right the hotels Excelsior, Orsula, Argentina and Villa Seherezada.
From Poljana Paskoja Milicevica the way leads through the inner part of the gate and an interspace to the outer part of the Gate of Pile ,over the bascule bridge (lifting mechanisms have been preserved) to the square in front of the Gate of Pile. From here the one-way Put iza Grada (Way behind the Town) leads along the town ramparts, and the stairway Uz Post toward Zagrebacka Street. In the vicinity are -also the chapel of the Holy Cross on Posat (immediately behind Minceta Tower), the very old chapel of St. Felice and the church of St. Andrew (its apse is actually an early Croatian church, probably from the 9th c.). In front of the Gate of Pile, on the northern side of the square is the Baroque mansion of the Pucic family. The square called Brsalje with plane trees stretches toward the sea. In the middle is the fountain with the figures from Gundulic's pastoral Dubravka (work by I. Rendic, 1900); the colonnade offers a nice view on the fortress Bokar (left) and Lovrijenac (right). A stairway leads from Brsalje to the small port. The construction of the fortress Lovrijenac, on a high cliff above the sea, started in 1050 (according to the chronicles); it was mentioned in 1301 and reconstructed on several occasions, i.e. in 1418, 1464 and 1571. At some places the walls are up to 6 m wide. Lovrijenac has been used as one of the most attractive open stages since the very beginning of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival. The fortress bears the inscription: NON BENE PRO TOTO LIBERTAS VENDIAURO (Freedom is not to be given away for all treasures of this world.). - Ante Starcevic Street ascends gradually and on the right-hand side one can see Hotel Imperial. To the left is a branching road toward the park Gradac and the Dance peninsula. On Dance is a votive church from 1457 (the main altar features a polyptych by Lovro Marinov Dobricevic from 1465, and the side altar a triptych by Nikola Bozidarevic). Next to it is one of the old Dubrovnik cemeteries. The nun monastery is partly the former quarantine hospital. - On the left side of Starcevic Street, next to the permanent stage of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, is the Crijevic mansion (later Pucic) with a Renaissance chapel, park and colonnade. On the left are the General Hospital and the Boninovo vista point; on the right is the way to the cemetery called Three Churches, named after three ancient, later reconstructed churches of St. George, St. Clement and St. Hilary. Behind the cemetery, the way continues uphill, to the most beautiful Dubrovnik summer mansion, Skocibuha-Bonda (1675-1688). From Boninovo one way leads to Lapad, below the slopes of Petka. Another one, leading through the Gruz field, ends in the Gruz Bay. On the left is a branching road toward Lapad. Along the coast in Gruz are numerous former aristocratic summer mansions. The Bunic - Pucic - Gradic mansion has the Renaissance ground floor and the Gothic first floor, and a Gothic-Renaissance chapel on the large terrace. The Renaissance summer mansion of the Bunic family, with the storage for smaller ships - the so-called "orsan" - and a terrace, was reconstructed in the 19th century. The Renaissance summer mansion of the Gundulic family (built by the constructors from Korcula in the 16th c.)has a chapel and a pavilion above the former "orsan". The Renaissance Dominican monastery close to the pier was established in 1427. It was reconstructed in the 19th century and destroyed during bombardment in the Second World War. The Renaissance mansion of the Natali family has a portico with arches on the ground floor and the angular loggias on the first floor; in its immediate vicinity is a Renaissance chapel, formerly within the mansion complex. The late Renaissance church of St. Nicholas (patron of the shipbuilding guild) was built in 1527; the main altar palla (its lower part represents a part of the Gruz port) has been attributed to C. Regio. The Adriatic Highway descends to the coast in Gruz, runs along the coast and continues into Rijeka Dubrovacka near Cape Kantafig. - From Batala the road runs along the western coast of the Gruz Bay. In Batala are the summer mansions of the families Majstorovic (with the Renaissance ground floor and the Gothic first floor) and Getaldic-Gundulic (with a chapel and an "orsan"). Farther along the coast is the mansion of Petar Sorkocevic from 1521, with Renaissance arcades on the ground floor and Gothic monoforia and triforia on the first floor. The back, newer part on the first floor has an open loggia with Baroque wall paintings. The large garden comprises a pond, a chapel and a large terrace. The restored mansion houses the Institute of History of the Croatian Academy of Arts and Sciences. The mansion of Luka Pucic has the Renaissance ground floor, while the first floor features Gothic monoforia and triforia. The back side is adorned with arcades. Above the Lapad field is an old mansion, a large Renaissance structure with a terrace and a chapel; a wall encloses the terraced park. In the immediate vicinity are the ruins of the Franciscan coenobium of St. John with a small church, built for the purpose of defence. In the middle of Lapad is a very old church of St. Michael (first mentioned in 1290) with a cemetery. Closer to the sea is also the old church of Our Lady of Charity (reconstructed in the 17th c.). Above it, on the location of Gorica, is a small church of St. Blaise , reconstructed at the end of the 19th century. - In the Sumartin Cove, at the end point of the roads from Dubrovnik and Gruz, is one of Dubrovnik recreational centres with a number of hotels and rest homes. In front of the westernmost cape of the Lapad peninsula, Baterija, is an islet called Daksa.
UNESCO Heritage
The walls of Dubrovnik girdle a perfectly preserved complex of public and private, sacral and secular buildings representing all periods of the city's history, beginning with its founding in the 7th century. Particular mention should be made of the city's main street, Stradun, the Prince's Palace, the church of St Vlaho, the Cathedral, three large monasteries, the Custom's Office and the City Hall. The Republic of Dubrovnik was the centre of a separate political and territorial entity, and was proud of its culture, its achievements in commerce and especially of its freedom, preserved down so many tempestuous centuries.
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