The island spreads over 50 square kilometers. Its dolomitic valleys are
located between limy hills and they often contain layers of red soil and
quartz sand. The valleys are often surrounded by mild calcareous slopes rich
in caves.
The coast-line is mainly steep and the surrounding sea is deep. Although the
covers are sparse, yet the island has two deep bays. One of them, Skrivena
luka (sheltered port), is situated on the southern part of Lastovo, between
the cape of Strizevo and the cape of Veljo more (great sea). Here the sea
has made a deep cut into the land. The other bay formed by Veli Lago and
Mali Lago connected by a narrow passage - Most (bridge) is located between
Prizba and the village of Lastovo.
Lastovo is the Adriatic island richest in natural forests. Particularly
various and lively is its underwater life. There are no richer fishing areas
in the Adriatic than those of Lastovo, especially where small bluefish,
lobsters and many kinds of high-priced food fish like John Dory and Grooper
are concerned. On the island poisonous snakes simply don’t exists.
____________History
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The Byzantine emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus mentioned Lastovo in
the mid-10 th century, but the first significant reference to Lastovo,
connected with a historic event, happened in the year 1000. The Dodge of
Venice, Pietro Orseolo II, during his raid of Dalmatia described by
chronicler John the Deacon (Ivan Đakon) destroyed the fort and town at
Lastovo as retaliation for the robbing of Venetian tradesmen and in order to
secure free passage into the Mediterranean Sea. During the following two and
a half centuries, Lastovo was to sink into total oblivion, and its
inhabitants turned completely towards agriculture and cattle-raising,
ignoring the earlier seafaring tradition.
In the mid-13 th century (1252-1254) Lastovo voluntarily joined the Township
of Dubrovnik, after the Township had taken the oath to let the inhabitants
of Lastovo keep their ancient customs. The customary legal norms of Lastovo
were replaced in 1310 by written regulations, which became the Community's
law once they had been adopted by the People's Forum and confirmed by the
Rector of Dubrovnik.
The People's Forum was the main authority on the island, having all
legislative power and consisting of 20 counselors holding office for life.
The executive power was invested in the Rector and three magistrates elected
by the people. Public officials were notaries (priests), chamberlains (
kamerlenzi ), guards, messengers ( placari ), vineyard guards ( pudari ),
emissaries, market inspectors ( iusticieri ) and assessors.
After February 28, 1358, when Venetian protectorate of Dubrovnik ended, King
Louis I gave the Dubrovnik Township exclusive powers over Lastovo. Even in
those new circumstances, the autonomous life of the Lastovo Community went
on without special limitations. In the second half of the 15 th century,
however, Dubrovnik started to interfere with the autonomous life of the
island, the Forum lost its legislative powers to the Republic's Council in
1486, and the old regulations of the Statute were less applied.
The apparent increase in the limitation of the island's self-government, as
well as the arbitrary imposition of additional burdens on the inhabitans by
the Dubrovnik authorities (increasing the Rector's salary, guard duty,
prison building), led to a soon crushed bloody rebellion in 1602. In the
next year, Lastovo was occupied by Venice at the invitation of the rebels,
to be returned to Dubrovnik only in 1606. Another rebellion was attempted in
1652 when the district of Lastovo was to return a sum of 200 gold pieces
spent in a law suit with Venice for the protection of the sovereignty of
Sušac. Lastovo, inhabited (according to an estimate by chamberlain and rebel
Don Kuzma Antica) by more than 1000 inhabitants again offered itself to
Venice, but the Venetian government refused the offer, so that there was no
actual rebellion. Lastovo never gained anything by the rebellions;
furthermore, it lost its autonomy altogether, became part of the Dubrovnik
territory and became subject to most of the legal acts passed by the
Republic's bodies.
As the Turks advanced to the sea, Lastovo its property and especially its
fishing fleet became a target for marauders, mainly from the Ulcinj region.
The looting became more often during the 1 st and 2 nd Holy Leagues in the
16 th century, and during the Wars for Candia and Morea in the 17 th century
when the Lastovo inhabitants were obliged to stand guard in order to defend
the island. Only in the 30's of the 18 th century did the piracy of the
Ulcinj people stop, as they increasingly turned towards naval trade, and
this put a stop to guard duty on the island.
On the eve of May 27, 1806 Napoleon's troops entered Dubrovnik and gradually
took the entire territory of the Republic, which dissolved two years later
on January 31, 1808. The French built a fortress on Lastovo on the hill of
Glavica and organized the islanders in the National Guard for the protection
againts English Corsairs confiscating their ships. The English, on the other
hand, took Lastovo attacking from the island of Vis on January 28, 1813, and
kept it under their rule till July 16 1815, when, according to a decision of
the Vienna Congress, they gave the island over to Austria.
From 1818, Lastovo as part of the Dubrovnik County had the status of
District with a praetura and a praetor presiding. The praetura was dissolved
in 1829, when Lastovo as a rural district headed by a syndicus ( sindak )
became part of the District of Korcula, The heads were native landowners,
while the secretaries were mostly foreigners. In the 40's of the 19 th
century the rural district's administration was forced to sell the best
woodlands to private owners, due to lack of funds. The District Council of
Korcula dissolved the rural district's administration in 1905 and appointed
Antun Šantic-Cihoratic, Ph.D., as commissioner. At the local elections in
the following year Janko Lucianovic was elected head of the rural district,
a duty he was going to perform till the fall of Austria in 1918.
The Italian occupation of Lastovo on November 11, 1918, was a result of the
secret Treaty of London signed in 1915 by Italy and the Triple Entente. The
annexation of Lastovo by the Kingdom of Italy was based on the Treaty of
Rapallo of November 12, 1920, after which the district became part of the
District of Zadar. The Italian rule over Lastovo was characterized by
quenching the national identity, an apparent increase in the number of
inhabitants, significant buliding activity and an improvement in the
standard of living. September 8, 1943, Italy's capitulation in WWII, was the
end of the Italian rule over Lastovo.
Antun Jurica, "Lastovo kroz stoljeca" |
