Ластово: История и природа хорватского острова

Island in Croatia
the island
Lastovo, like the rest of the Roman province of Dalmatia, was settled by Illyrians. The Romans conquered and settled the entire area, retaining control until the Avar invasions and Slavic migrations in the 7th century. The Croats and other Slavic tribes subjugated by the Croats secured most of the Dalmatian seaboard, but some cities and islands (like Lagosta) of the romanised Dalmatians remained independent under the nominal rule of the Byzantines. In 1000 AD the Venetians attacked and destroyed the settlement due to the island's participation in piracy along the Adriatic coast. After the Venetian domination, in the 13th century Lagosta joined the Republic of Ragusa where for several centuries it enjoyed a certain level of autonomy until the republic's conquest by the French, under Napoleon. Austria then ruled the island for the next century, then Italy for 30 years after World War I, and finally Yugoslavia until it became a part of the independent Republic of Croatia. The island is noted for its 15th and 16th century Venetian architecture. There is a large number of churches of relatively small size, a testament to the island's long standing Roman Catholic tradition. The major cultural event is the Poklade, or carnival. The island largely relies on its natural environment to attract tourists each season. In 2006 the Croatian Government made the island and its archipelago a nature park.

The island of Lastovo belongs to the central Dalmatian archipelago. Thirteen kilometres south of Korčula, the island is one of the most remote inhabited islands in the Adriatic Sea. Other islands in this group include Vis, Brač, Hvar, Korčula and Mljet. The dimensions of the island are approximately long by up to wide. The Lastovo archipelago contains a total of 46 islands, including the larger islands Sušac, Prežba, Mrčara and an island group called Lastovnjaci on the eastern side. Prežba is connected to the main island by a bridge at the village of Pasadur ("golden passage" in the local dialect, coming from Italian "passo d'oro"). The island has a daily hydrofoil service and ferry service linking it to the mainland at Split and stopping along the way at Korčula and Hvar. The town of Lastovo is spread over the steep banks of a natural amphitheatre overlooking a fertile field, facing away from the sea. This is unusual compared to other Adriatic islands, which are normally harbour side. Other settlements on the island include the villages of Ubli (also known as Sveti Petar), Zaklopatica, Skrivena Luka, and Pasadur. Despite major fires in 1971, 1998 and 2003, about 60% of Lastovo is covered with forest, mostly Holm Oaks and Aleppo Pines and Mediterranean underbrush. There are rich communities of falcon and hawk nests. These used to be exploited by the Dubrovnik Republic for falconry and traded to other kingdoms, especially to Kingdom of Naples in the Middle Ages. The underwater life is the richest in the entire Adriatic, featuring lobsters, crayfish, octopus and many high prized fish such as John Dory and Groupers. There are no venomous snakes on the island.

Lastovo has a dynamic landscape consisting of 46 hills and 46 karstic fields that often contain layers of red soil and quartz sand. The highest points are on Mount Hum, the eponymous Hum and Plešivo Brdo, both at There are several other peaks higher than , including the scenic Sozanj at Its dolomitic valleys are located between limy hills and mild calcareous slopes rich in caves. There are five caves on the island — Rača (the largest), Puzavica, Pozalica, Grapčeva and Medvidina. The coastline is mainly steep and the surrounding sea is deep. On the southern coast is a large, deep bay at Skrivena Luka which offers protection from the bura and westerly winds. The other main deep port is located on the western side at Ubli which is where the main ferry port for the island is located.

Lastovo possesses all the basic characteristics of the Mediterranean climate, dominated by mild, moist winters and warm, long, and dry summers. The island receives around 2,700 sun hours per year, ranking it one of the sunniest in the Adriatic and pleasant for tourists. His source was Theopompus, a 4th century BC Greek historian. The names of numerous other Illyric settlements along the coast had the same suffix est which indicates its Illyric origins. When the Romans conquered Dalmatia they gave the island the Latin name Augusta Insula meaning "Emperor's Island". During the Middle Ages, the name would be transcribed as Augusta, Lagusta or Lagosta. The Slavic suffix ovo combined with the Roman form of Lasta gives the islands present name of Lastovo. In 998 the Venetian Doge Pietro Orseolo II launched large military operations against Croatian and Neretvian pirates along the Adriatic and its islands, which culminated in 1000 with the destruction of the town of Lastovo. After that the residents (Lastovci or Lastovčani) decided to build a city on the internal hill away from the coast which made the city more defendable. During the next two centuries, inhabitants dedicated themselves more to agriculture and neglected their earlier naval tradition. However, Ragusa purchased Lastovo from Stefan Uroš I king of Serbia who had rights over the island as ruler of parts of Hum. In 1310 Lastovo got its first written legislation, the Statute of Lastovo, which had all the characteristics of law. The supreme authority on the island had a council consisting of 20 members who held office for life. In 1486 the authority of the Council was transferred to the Parliament of the Republic and the island lost much of its autonomy. Continuous limitation of the island's autonomy and higher taxes led to a short lived rebellion in 1602. On the appeal of islanders, Venice occupied the island the following year and held it until 1606, when it was returned to Ragusa. The next attempt at rebellion was in 1652, which resulted in the loss of the island's autonomy.

Like many of the Mediterranean islands, the Lastovo economy is centred around agriculture and tourism. The 2003 Agricultural Census reported that the municipality had of land used for agriculture. Of this were vineyards and over 9000 olive trees grew in Lastovo. Following decades of isolation from foreigners, due to the Yugoslav People's Army activities and the Croatian War of Independence (1991–1995), the island has become attractive to tourists partly because it has remained largely undeveloped; even supplying the island with fresh water has been difficult.

The most important event on the island is an authentic carnival that the locals call the Poklad. All the island residents participate by wearing folk costumes. The origins of the Lastovo carnival go back to a historical event. Legend has it that Catalan pirates attacked neighbouring Korčula and sent a Turkish messenger to Lastovo to tell the islanders to surrender or they would be next. The inhabitants of Lastovo did not let themselves be intimidated — instead they armed themselves and went on the attack. The women and children prayed to Sv. Jure (St. George) for help and their prayers were answered: a storm destroyed the pirates' ships and the inhabitants of Lastovo caught the messenger. In order to mock him, he was taken through the village on the back of a donkey and was afterwards sentenced and burned to death. This event is celebrated through the Poklad every year over a period of three days. The event takes place in the middle of February and since the summer 2006 it has become main attraction for tourists. Locals enjoy this event very much and Lastovci from all around Croatia return to Lastovo to attend the carnival.

The main church is the Church of Saints Cosmas and Damian (Crkva sv. Kuzme i Damjana). It is situated in the oldest part of the square in the town of Lastovo and dates from the 14th century. On the main altar is the painting of Saint Cosmas and Damian. Out of the rest of the paintings Pieta, the work of an anonymous Venetian painter from 1545, can be distinguished. On its place there was a smaller church that dates back from 5th or 6th century. The church of Sv Vlaho (Saint Blaise) from the 12th century is on the entrance of the settlement. Beside it the chapel of Saint John was built in 1607, and around the church a defence wall and a tower. On the graveyard on the southern edge is the little church of Saint Mary in the field from the 14th century and is considered as most attractive on the island. Near the ferry port in Ubli an archaeological find of the remains of a 6th century church dedicated to Sv Petar (Saint Peter) are situated. Other churches of interest are Sv Luka (St Luke) built in the typical Croatian 11th century sacral architecture, and Sv Jurje (St George) at Prežba also built in the 11th century, was demolished between the two World Wars. Another church called St Peter in Ubli built somewhere in the 11th–13th centuries was demolished by the Italians in 1933 to make way for extra fishing sheds. Tony Šantić is the owner of the racehorse Makybe Diva, a three time winner of the Melbourne Cup, Australia's most prestigious horse race. Tony Šantić is also a successful tuna fisherman with large operations in South Australia and Croatia.