Pelješac

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Pelješac
MaliSton2.jpg
Ston and its salt flats
Geographical location
Pelješac (Croatia)
Pelješac
Coordinates 42 ° 56 '  N , 17 ° 24'  E Coordinates: 42 ° 56 '  N , 17 ° 24'  E
Waters 1 the Adrian Sea
length 66 km
width 7 km
surface 358 km²
Peljesac localities.GIF
Map of Pelješac with important places

The Pelješac [ ˈpɛʎɛʃats ] ( Čakavisch Pelišac , Italian Sabbioncello ) is a peninsula on the Dalmatian Adriatic coast in southern Croatia . The area of ​​the peninsula is 358 km².

geography

The peninsula consists of a narrow mountain ridge, elongated in an east-west direction, which geologically , like the Dalmatian islands, is part of the Dinaric Mountains , with the valley zones sunk below sea level. In contrast to the islands, the Pelješac peninsula is connected to the mainland south of the Neretva estuary in the east by a narrow land connection near the towns of Ston and Mali Ston . The highest point is the Sveti Ilija (961 m).

In the north, the peninsula is separated from the mainland by the inlet Neretvanski kanal ; in the southwest, across the relatively narrow strait of the Korčulanski kanal, the northeast coast of the island of Korčula lies opposite. Further to the east, the island of Mljet extends parallel to the south coast of the peninsula at a greater distance .

The climate in the coastal areas is Mediterranean.

history

The earliest known inhabitants on the Pelješac peninsula were Illyrians who had contact with Greek sailors. Artefacts from the Nakovana cave above today's Orebić testify to this . Since 228 BC However, the Illyrian tribes of the central and southern Croatian coastal region and the Pelješac peninsula came more and more under Roman influence.

Since 168 BC Pelješac belonged to the Roman province of Illyria and was called Rhatanae Chersoneus . After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the Pelješac peninsula was incorporated into the Byzantine Empire . Since the 9th century Slavic tribes settled in the area of ​​the Neretva river mouth and also invaded the peninsula. Pelješac was part of the Zahumlje under Knez Mihajlo Višević in the 10th century . After 1183 it was incorporated into the Nemanjiden empire together with Zeta . Around 1323, the local feudal nobility under the Branojević became independent. The Branojević plundered the border areas of Dubrovnik, which first summoned an intervention by the Nemanjids, and when they did not respond, turned to Bosnia . The Bosnian prince Stjepan II. Kotromanić conquered Zahumlje in 1326. Stefan Dušan's efforts to reintegrate Zahumlje into his state were unsuccessful, and Zahumlje remained with Bosnia. In 1333 the southern part of Zahumlje with the center of Ston and the island of Pelješac was given to the Ragusans in return for a tribute. From 1333 to 1808 Pelješac was part of the Republic of Ragusa (Dubrovnik).

The city republic of Dubrovnik had developed the place Ston with a more than five kilometer long defense system as a reinforced outpost. A naval port for ships from Dubrovnik was built in Mali Ston in 1490 . The place Orebić on the Pelješac peninsula, located opposite the island of Korčula , only acquired strategic importance after the construction of the Franciscan monastery with the church “Madonna of Angels” above the place. The place Orebić got its name in the 16th century from a family of captains from Bakar. Orebić had its heyday in the 18th and 19th centuries, when many goods were handled there between the Ottoman Empire and ports throughout Western Europe. One of the largest shipping companies, the Associazione Marittima di Sabioncello, was also based here in the 19th century . After that, Orebić became a small fishing village again, from which the most important Croatian ship captains came.

After the First World War , Pelješac and Croatia fell to Yugoslavia . During the Second World War , when the fascist Ustaša came to power in 1941, it became a municipality of the Independent State of Croatia . After the end of the war it belonged again to Yugoslavia. Since then it has belonged to the Yugoslav republic and since 1991 to the independent Republic of Croatia.

Today Orebić is still a small fishing village, but lives mainly from tourism - also because of the sandy beach, which is rare for Croatia. The town of Kućište still has magnificent stone palaces as a sign of its rich past. B. the baroque palace Lazarevic and old churches like St. Trinity Church, the Church of St. Ana, St. Laurentiuskirche and St. Lukas cemetery from the 14th century. On the slopes of Mount Sveti Ilija you have the opportunity to hunt mouflons, pheasants and wild boars.

Municipalities and localities

Politically, the Pelješac peninsula belongs to the Dubrovnik-Neretva County and is divided into four municipalities, each of which is named after its administrative seat, but also includes other smaller towns (population figures according to the 2001 census):

  • Orebić in the western and southwestern part of the peninsula with 4,165 inhabitants
  • Trpanj in the northwest with 871 inhabitants
  • Janjina in the center with 593 inhabitants
  • Ston in the east with 2,605 inhabitants

In addition to community centers are located on the Peljesac still among other places Kućište , Lovište , Prapratno , Viganj , Kuna , Potomje , Dingač , Trstenik , Osobljava, Sreser , Drače , Dubrava , Žuljana , Brijesta , Putniković , Ponikve , Zamaslina , Pijavičino and Mali Ston .

Overall, the Pelješac is quite sparsely populated. Orebić and Ston are the only larger towns.

Economy and Infrastructure

The coastal towns of the Pelješac peninsula are now popular holiday destinations, as are the islands and the rest of the Dalmatian coast. In addition to tourism, viticulture is an important industry. One of its top products is the internationally known red wine of the same name that is grown in Dingač.

The main route is the main road from Ston in the east to Orebić in the west, which runs through the entire peninsula and is connected to the coastal highway in the east. From Orebić there are ferry connections to the city of Korčula , which is directly opposite, on the island of the same name. The main road is also used by bus routes that connect Dubrovnik or Split via the Pelješac peninsula and the ferry connection with the island of Korčula, where they end in Vela Luka at the western end of the island.

The construction of a bridge has begun, which will connect the north coast of the Pelješac peninsula with the coast southeast of Ploče , which will give the peninsula a second connection to the mainland. This is intended on the one hand to shorten the road connection from the north to the western part of the peninsula and to Korčula, on the other hand it is intended to create a road connection to Dubrovnik that runs entirely on Croatian territory, through which the one opposite the Pelješac peninsula in the north, belonging to Bosnia and Herzegovina Bypassing the coastal town of Neum . This bypass has so far only been possible on the western side with the ferry connection Ploče - Trpanj (see: International conflicts of the successor states of Yugoslavia ).

gallery

Web links

Commons : Pelješac  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Tourism: