Vis (island)
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This article's introduction section may not adequately summarize its contents. (October 2012) |
 Satellite image of Vis and Biševo |
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| Geography | |
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| Location | Adriatic Sea |
| Coordinates | 43°02′N 16°09′E / 43.033°N 16.150°ECoordinates: 43°02′N 16°09′E / 43.033°N 16.150°E |
| Area | 89.72 km2 (34.641 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 587 m (1,926 ft) |
| Highest point | Hum |
| Country | |
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Croatia
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| County | Split-Dalmatia |
| Largest city | Vis (pop. 1,920) |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 3,429 (as of 2011) |
Vis (pronounced [ʋîːs]; Greek: Ἴσσα; Italian: Lissa) is a small Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea. The farthest Island off the Croatian Coast, it has a population of 3,617 (as of 2001[dated info]) and an area of 90.26 square kilometres (34.85 square miles). The highest point is Hum, 587 metres (1,926 feet) above sea level. The islands two largest communities are town of Vis, the islands commercial port located in the east, and Komiža (Italian: Comisa; pop. 1,677) in the west. The Municipality of Vis, which includes the offshore islands of Budikovac (pop. 1) and Biševo (pop. 11), is part of the Split-Dalmatia Regional Unit.
The main industries on the island are agriculture (mainly viticulture), fishing, fish refining and tourism. The current mayor of Vis is Ivo Radica.
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History [edit]
Vis was inhabited by the time of the Neolithic period. In the 4th century BC, the Greek tyrant of Syracuse, Dionysius the Elder, founded the colony Issa[1] on the island. Later, it became an independent city-state, and even minted its own money and founded its own colonies. In the first century BC, the island was held by the Liburnians.[2] In the 4th century BC Syracusan Greeks colonised the Island.[3] Its importance in the region ended with the first Illyro-Roman war (29-219 BC). Having sided with Pompeus during the period of civil struggles in Rome, became an "oppidum civium Romanorum" in 47 BC.
The island then passed, for several centuries, under the rule of the Republic of Venice, until 1797. During this time large settlements developed on the coast (Comisa, now Komiža and Lissa, now Vis). Administratively, the island of Lissa was for centuries bound to the island of Lesina, now named Hvar. The Venetian influence is still recognizable in architecture, and many words in the local Croatian dialect are Venetian in origin.[citation needed]
After the short-lived Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy, with Italian as the official language, it passed under the rule of Austrian Empire. It maintained its Italian name of Lissa. At the end of World War I, it passed under Italian rule in the period from 1918 to 1921, according to the 1915 Treaty of London, and then was ceded to Yugoslavia following the provisions of the 1920 Treaty of Rapallo.[citation needed]
The sea to the north of the island was the location of two battles:
- on 13 March 1811, a small Royal Navy fleet, under the command of Captain William Hoste, defeated a larger French fleet in the Battle of Lissa (1811)
- on 20 July 1866, the smaller Austrian fleet, under Admiral Tegetthoff, attacked the Italian fleet, under Admiral Persano, defeating the larger Italian force and sinking the Italian ironclad Re d'Italia in the Battle of Lissa (1866).
Vis was at one point the main hideout of Josip Broz Tito, the leader of the Yugoslav resistance movement. It was occupied by Yugoslav Partisans under the command of Tito and by a British flotilla in 1941 and 1943. At the end of World War II the island returned to Yugoslavia. During the war the island was mined. Allied fighter planes were based at a small airfield that was also used for emergency landings of Allied bombers, including an American B-24 flown by George McGovern. After the war, the Yugoslav People's Army used the island as one of its main naval bases. After Croatia became independent in 1991, its navy did not reclaim most of the facilities, and the many abandoned buildings are being used for civilian purposes. In 2008, 34 mines left over from World War II were cleared from the island.[citation needed]
Economy [edit]
The main industries on the island are agriculture (mainly viticulture), fishing, fish refining and tourism.[4]
Around 20% of arable land on the island is covered with vineyards. Autochthonous vine species cultivated on the island are Plavac Mali, Kurteloška, and Vugava (the indigenous grape of what is now known as viognier).[5]
The sea around Vis is rich with fish, especially blue fish (sardine, mackerel and anchovy). Komiža fishermen of the 16th century developed their own type of fishing boat, the falkuša which was used even in the second half of the 20th century because of its excellent features.[5]
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ An Inventory of Archaic and Classical Poleis: An Investigation Conducted by The Copenhagen Polis Centre for the Danish National Research Foundation by Mogens Herman Hansen, 2005, Index
- ^ Wilkes, J. J. The Illyrians, 1992, ISBN 0-631-19807-5, page 183, "... We may begin with the Venetic peoples, Veneti, Carni, Histri and Liburni, whose language set them apart from the rest of the Illyrians. ..."
- ^ The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites (eds. Richard Stillwell, William L. MacDonald, Marian Holland McAllister), ISSA (Vis) Croatia. A town on an island of the same name in the central Adriatic. It was settled by Illyrians, who were under the domination of Liburni from the 8th to the 6th centuries B.C. At the beginning of the 4th century B.C. it was colonized by Syracusan Greeks as part of a plan of Dionysios the Elder to control the Adriatic. During the 3rd century Issa founded the emporia Tragurion (Traù, now Trogir) and Epetion (Stobreč) on the Illynan mainland. Its predominance in the region lasted until the first Illyro-Roman war 229-219 B.C. when it became a pawn in the battles of greater powers. In the civil war it sided with Pompey and consequently lost its privileges and autonomy in 47 B.C. when it was reduced to the rank of an oppidum civium Romanorum and was dependent on the newly founded colony at Salona. As a polis Issa minted its own money, and these coins of many types had wide circulation. The town, situated on a slope on the W side of a large bay, was defended by strong Hellenistic walls, still visible in an irregular quadrangle (265 x 360 m) that enclosed an area of 9.8 ha. The street grid and foundations of houses have been found. The necropolis has yielded many pieces of pottery, including some from S Italy. The wall of the cavea of the theater, built in the Roman period, is incorporated into the present Franciscan Monastery. It could seat about 3000 persons. Inscriptions, statues, coins, and pottery are preserved in the archaeological museums at Split and Zagreb.
- ^ (Croatian) First Croatian online peljar
- ^ a b Economy of Vis
External links [edit]
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Wikivoyage has travel information related to: Vis |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Island of Vis |
- Komiza - Island Vis Tourist Association
- Vis - Croatian National Tourist Board
- Vis Tourist Association
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