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DALMATIA (Ger. Dalmatien; Ital. Dalma...
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See also:DALMATIA (Ger. Dalmatien; Ital. Dalmazia; Serbo-Croatian, Dalmacija) , a See also:kingdom and crownland of the Austro-Hungarian See also:empire, in the See also:north-See also:west of the See also:Balkan See also:Peninsula, and on the Adriatic See also:Sea. Dalmatia is bounded, on the landward See also:side, by Croatia and Bosnia, in the N. and N.E.; and by Herzegovina and See also:Montenegro, in the S.E. and S. Its See also:area amounts to 4923 sq. m.; its greatest length, from north-west to See also:south-See also:east, is 210 m.; its breadth reaches 35 M. between Point Planca and the Bosnian frontier, diminishing to less than 1 m. at See also:Cattaro. Near the ports of Klek and Castelnuovo the Herzegovinian frontier comes down to the sea,' but only for a See also:total distance of 141 m.
See also:Physical Features.—No See also:part of the Mediterranean See also:shore, except the See also:coast of See also:Greece, is so deeply indented as the Dalmatian littoral, with its multitude of See also:rock-See also:bound bays and inlets. It is sheltered from the open sea by a rampart of islands which vary greatly in See also:size; a few being large enough to support several thousand inhabitants, while others are See also:mere reefs, swept See also:bare by the sea, or tenanted only by rabbits and seabirds. This Dalmatian See also:archipelago, separated from the Istrian by the Gulf of Quarnerolo, forms two See also:island See also:groups, the See also:northern or Liburrian, and the See also:southern; with open See also:water intervening, off Point Planca. In See also:calm See also:weather the channels between the islands and the See also:main-See also:land resemble a See also:chain of landlocked lakes, brilliantly clear to a See also:depth of several fathoms. As a See also:rule, the surrounding hills are rugged, bleached almost See also: The promontory of Sabbioncello, or+Punta di Stagno, which juts out for 41 M. into the sea, between Curzola and Lesina, is almost another island; for its breadth, which nowhere exceeds 5 m., dwindles to about 1 m: at the narrow See also:isthmus which unites it with the shore. There are two small ports on this isthmus—on the south, Stagno Grande ' This arrangement is based on the terms of the See also:peace of Carlowitz 1699 (articles IX. and XI. of the Turco-Venetian Treaty). It is due to the commercial and maritime rivalry between See also:Venice and Ragusa. The Ragusans bribed the See also:Turkish envoys at Carlowitz to stipulate for a See also:double See also:extension of the See also:Ottoman dominions down to the Adriatic; and thus the Ragusan lands, which otherwise would have bordered upon the Dalmatian possessions of Venice, were surrounded by neutral territory.(Serbo-Croatian, Ston Veliki), once celebrated for its See also:salt and See also:shipbuilding See also:industries, and, on the north, Stagno See also:Piccolo (Ston Mali). Dalmatia possesses a magnificent anchorage in the Bocche di Cattaro, and there are numerous lesser havens, at See also:Sebenico, Trail, See also:Zara and elsewhere along the coast and among the islands. The See also:country is almost everywhere hilly or mountainous. Or. the Croatian border rises the lofty barrier of the Velebit, which. culminates in Sveto Brdo (5751 ft.), and Vakanski Vrh (5768 ft.). The Dinaric See also:Alps See also:form the frontier between Dalmatia and Bosnia; Dinara (6007 ft.), which gives its name to the whole chain, and Troglav (6276 ft.), being the highest Dalmatian summits. North-west of Sinj rise the Svilaja and Mosec Planinas; the ridges of Mosor and Biokovo, with Sveto Juraj (5781 ft.), follow the windings of the coast from See also:Spalato to See also:Macarsca; Orjen marks the See also:meeting-See also:place of the Herzegovinian, Montenegrin and Dalmatian frontiers, and the Sutorman range appears in the extreme south. The barren dry See also:limestone of the Dalmatian See also:highlands has been aptly compared with a petrified sponge; for it is honeycombed with underground caverns and water-courses, into which the rainfall is at once filtered. Thus arises a See also:complete See also:system of subterranean See also:rivers, with waterfalls, lakes and See also:regular seasons of See also:flood. Even the few See also:surface rivers vanish and emerge again at intervals. The Trebinjcica, for in-stance, disappearing in Herzegovina, supplies both the broad and See also:swift See also:estuary of Ombla, near Ragusa, and the fresh-water See also:spring of Doli, which issues from the bottom of the sea. Apart from the Ombla, and the Narenta (Serbo-Croatian, Neretva; See also:Roman, Naro), which creates a broad marshy See also:delta between Metkovic and the sea, Dalmatia has only three rivers more than 25 M. See also:long; the Zermagna (Zrmanja, Tedanium), Kerka, (Krka, Titius), and Cetina (Cetina; Narona or Tilurus). The Zermagna skirts the southern foothills of the Velebit and falls into the See also:harbour of Novigrad. Better known is the Kerka, which rises in the Dinaric Alps and flows south-westward to the Adriatic. Near Scardona (Skradin)_it spreads into a broad See also:lake, and forms several See also:fine waterfalls, after receiving its tributary the Cikola (Cikola), from the east. South of Spalato, the Cetina, which also springs from the Dinaric Alps, descends to the sea at Almissa (Omis), after passing between the Mosor and Biokovo ranges. There are a few small lakes near Zara, Zaravecchia and the Narenta estuary; while the fertile, but unhealthy, hollows among the mountains fill with water after heavy See also:rain, and some-times cause disastrous floods. But most parts of the country suffer from drought. For an See also:account of the See also:chief See also:geological formations see BALKAN PENINSULA. Small quantities of See also:iron, See also:lignite, See also:asphalt and See also:bay salt are the only minerals of commercial importance. The See also:climate is warm and healthy, the mean temperature at Zara being 57° F., at Lesina 62°, and at Ragusa 63°. The prevailing See also:wind is the See also:sirocco, or S.E.; but the terrible See also:Bora, or N.N.E., may See also:blow at any See also:season of the See also:year. The See also:average See also:annual rainfall is about 28 in., but a dry and a wet year usually alternate.
See also:Fauna.—Bears, badgers and See also:wild See also:cats, with a larger number of wolves and foxes, find shelter in the Dinaric Alps and on the heights of Svilaja, Mosor and Biokovo; while jackals exist on Curzola and Sabbioncello, almost their last refuges in See also:Europe. Roedeer are uncommon, and the wild See also:boar, See also:chamois, red-See also:deer and See also:beaver are See also:extinct; but See also:hares and rabbits abound. The See also:game-See also:laws are not strict, and are often evaded by the Morlachs ; but moderate See also:sport may be obtained in the See also:fens formed by the Cetina about Sinj, and the lagoons of the Narenta estuary; both regions being frequented by wild swans, geese, See also:duck, See also:snipe and other aquatic birds. Among land-birds, the commonest are quails, See also:woodcock, partridges, and especially the so-called " See also: Forests.—Oaks, pines and beeches still, in a few parts, clothe the landward slopes, but, as a rule, the forests for which Dalmatia was once famous were cut down for the Venetian shipyards or burned by pirates; while every See also:attempt at replanting is frustrated by the shallowness of the See also:soil, the drought and the multitude of goats that browse on the See also:young trees. See also:Agriculture.—Little more than one-tenth of the whole surface is under the plough; the See also:rest, where it is not altogether sterile, being chiefly mountain pasture, vineyards and See also:garden land. Asses are the favourite beasts of See also:burden; goats are strikingly numerous; and See also:sheep are kept for the See also:sake of their mutton, which is almost the only See also:animal See also:food freely consumed by the peasantry. See also:Cattle-breeding, See also:bee-keeping, and the cultivation of fruit and vegetables, especially potatoes and beetroot, are among the principal resources of the See also:people, while See also:wheat, See also:rye, See also:barley, oats, See also:Indian See also:corn, See also:hemp and See also:millet are also grown. Viticulture is carried on with See also:great and increasing success (see See also:WINE). Land-See also:tenure.—Individual proprietorship of the soil is rare, for, despite the decadence of the zadruga or See also:household community, the tenure of land and the See also:privilege of using the communal domain still appertain to the See also:family as a whole. There are a few large estates, but most of the land is parcelled out in small holdings. Industries.—Besides fishing, farming and such allied trades as See also:ship-See also:building, wine and oil pressing, and the See also:distillation of See also:spirits, notably maraschino, a few other industries are practised, such as See also:tile-burning and the manufacture of See also:soap; but these are of See also:minor importance. Certain crafts are also carried on by the country-folk, in their own homes; thus the See also:peasant is sometimes his own See also:mason, See also:carpenter, See also:weaver and See also:miller. Manufactured goods and foodstuffs are imported, in return for asphalt, lignite, bay salt, wine, spirits, oil, See also:honey, See also:wax and hides; and there is a lucrative transit See also:trade with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, See also:Turkey and various Adriatic and Mediterranean ports. Communications.—Communications are defective, some parts of the interior being only accessible by the roughest of mountain roads. The principal railway, in point of size, traverses the central districts, linking together Knin, Spalato, Sebenico and Sinj; but the southern lines, which unite Dalmatia with Herzegovina and terminate at Ragusa, Metkovic and Castlenuovo on the Bocche di Cattaro, are almost of equal importance, Cattaro being one of the chief outlets for Montenegrin See also:commerce, while the vessels which See also:steam up the Narenta to Metkovic carry the bulk of the sea-See also:borne trade of Herzegovina. In 1897 Dalmatia possessed 151 See also:post and 98 See also:telegraph offices. Chief Towns.—The chief towns are Zara, the See also:capital, with 32,5061 inhabitants in 'goo, Spalato (27,198), Sebenico (24,751), Trail (17,064), Ragusa (13,174), Macarsca (11,016), and Cattaro (5418). All these are described under separate headings. See also:Population and See also:National Characteristics.—With a See also:constant excess of male over See also:female See also:children, the population increased steadily from 1869 to 'goo, when it reached 591,597. Of this total 1 % are foreigners and about 3 % Italians, whose See also:numbers ' These figures, taken from the See also:Austrian See also:official returns, include the population of the entire See also:commune,' not merely the See also:urban residents. Only in Zara, Spalato, Sebenico and Ragusa, do the actual townsfolk number more than See also:I000.tend slowly to diminish. The Morlachs, who constitute the remaining 96%, belong to the Serbo-Croatian See also:branch of the See also:Slavonic See also:race, having absorbed the Latinized Illyrians, Albanians and other See also:alien elements with which they have been associated. The name of Morlachs, Morlaks or Morlacks commonly bestowed by See also:English writers on the Dalmatian Slays, though sometimes restricted to the peasantry of the hills, is an abbreviated form of Mavrovlachi, meaning either " See also:Black See also:Vlachs," or, less probably, " Sea Vlachs." It was originally applied to the scattered remnants of the Latin or Latinized inhabitants of central See also:Illyria, who were driven from their homes by the See also:barbarian invaders during the 7th See also:century, and took See also:refuge among the mountains. Throughout the See also:middle ages the Mavrovlachi were usually nomadic shepherds, cattle-drovers or muleteers. In the 14th century they emigrated from central Illyria into northern Dalmatia and maritime Croatia; and these regions were thence-forward known as Morlacchia, until the 18th century, Gradually, however, the Mavrovlachi became identified with the Slays, whose See also:language and See also:manners they adopted, and to whom they gave their own name. In northern Dalmatia the Slays of the interior are still called Morlacchi; in the south this name ex-presses contempt. Of the Vlachs, properly so called, very few are See also:left in the country; although the name Vlachs (q.v.) is frequently used by the Slays to designate the Italians and the See also:town-dwellers generally. The See also:literary See also:languages of Dalmatia are See also:Italian and Serbo-Croatian; the spoken language is, in each See also:case, modified by the introduction of various See also:dialect forms.
The Morlachs See also:wear a picturesque and brightly-coloured See also:costume, resembling that of the Serbs (see See also:SERVIA). In See also:appearance they are sometimes blond, with See also:blue or See also:grey eyes, like the Shumadian peasantry of Servia; more often, olive-skinned, with dark See also:hair and eyes, like the Montenegrins, whom they See also:rival in stature, strength and courage; while their conservative spirit, their devotion to national traditions, See also:poetry and See also:music, their See also:pride, indolence and superstition, are typically Servian. Dalmatian public See also:life is deeply affected by the jealousies which subsist between the Slays and the Italians, whose See also:influence, though everywhere waning, remains predominant in some of the towns; and between Orthodox " Serbs," who use the See also:Cyrillic See also:alphabet, and Roman See also:Catholic " Croats," who prefer the Latin.
See also:Government.—Dalmatia occupies a somewhat anomalous position in the Austro-Hungarian See also:state system. Itself a See also:crown-land of See also:Austria, returning eleven members to the Austrian See also:parliament, it is severed geographically from the other Austrian lands by the Hungarian kingdom of Croatia. Ethnologically it is one with Croatia, and it is included in the official See also:title of the Croatian See also: See also:Religion.—Roman Catholicism is the religion of more than 8o% of the population, the See also:remainder belonging chiefly to the Orthodox See also: The See also:grave-mounds of Curzola, Lesina and Sabbioncello have yielded a few See also:relics of prehistoric See also:man, and the memory of the See also:early See also:Celtic conquerors and See also:Greek settlers is preserved only in a few place-names; but the monuments left by the See also:Romans are numerous and See also:precious. They are chiefly confined to the cities; for the See also:civilization of the country was always urban, just as its See also:history is a See also:record of isolated See also:city-states rather than of a See also:united nation. Beyond the walls of its larger towns, little was spared by the barbarian Goths, See also:Avars and Slays; and the battered fragments of Roman See also:work which See also:mark the sites of Salona, near Spalato, and of many other ancient cities, are of slight antiquarian See also:interest and slighter See also:artistic value. Among the monuments of the Roman See also:period, by far the most noteworthy in Dalmatia, and, indeed, in the whole Balkan Peninsula, is the See also:Palace of See also:Diocletian at Spalato (q.v.). Dalmatian See also:architecture was See also:Byzantine in its See also:general See also:character from the 6th century until the See also:close of the loth. The See also:oldest memorials of this period are the vestiges of three basilicas, excavated in Salona, and dating from the first half of the 7th century at latest. Byzantine art, in the latter half of this period and the two succeeding centuries, continued to flourish in those cities which, like Zara, gave their See also:allegiance to Venice; just as, in the architecture of Trait and other cities dominated by See also:Hungary, there are distinct traces of See also:German influence. The See also:belfry of S. Maria, at Zara, erected in 1105, is first in a long See also:list of Romanesque buildings. At Arbe there is a beautiful Romanesque campanile which also belongs to the 12th century; but the finest example in this See also:style is the See also:cathedral of Trail. The 14th century Dominican and Franciscan convents in Ragusa are also noteworthy. Romanesque lingered on in Dalmatia until it was displaced by Venetian See also:Gothic in the early years of the 15th century. The influence of Venice was then at its height. Even in the hostile See also:republic of Ragusa the Romanesque of the See also:custom-See also:house and Rectors' palace is combined with Venetian Gothic, while the graceful balconies and See also:ogee windows of the Prijeki closely follow their Venetian See also:models. Gothic, however, which had been adopted very See also:late, was abandoned very early; for in 1441 Giorgio See also:Orsini of Zara, summoned from Venice to See also:design the cathedral of Sebenico, brought with him the influence of the Italian See also:Renaissance. The new forms which he introduced were eagerly imitated and See also:developed by other architects, until the period of decadence—which virtually concludes the history of Dalmatian art—set in during the latter half of the 17th century. See also:Special mention must be made of the carved woodwork, embroideries and See also:plate preserved in many churches. The See also:silver statuette and the reliquary of St Biagio at Ragusa, and the silver See also:ark of St See also:Simeon at Zara, are fine specimens of Byzantine and Italian jewellers' work, ranging in date from the r 1th or 12th to the 17th century. HISTORY Dalmatia under Roman Rule, A.D. 9–1102.—The history of Dalmatia may be said to begin with-the year 18o B.C., when the tribe from which the country derives its name declared itself jndependent of Gentius, the Illyrian king, and established arepublic. Its capital was Delminium1; its territory stretched northwards from the Narenta to the Cetina, and later to the Kerka, where it met the confines of Liburnia. In 156 B.C. the Dalmatians were for the first See also:time attacked by a Roman See also:army and compelled to pay See also:tribute; but only in the time of See also:Augustus (31 B.C.—A.D. 14) was their land finally annexed, after the last of many formidable revolts had been crushed by Tiberius in A.D. 9. This event was followed by total submission and a ready See also:acceptance of the Latin civilization which overspread Illyria (q.v.). The downfall of the Western Empire left this region subject to Gothic rulers, See also:Odoacer and See also:Theodoric, from 476 to 535, when it was added by Justinian to the Eastern Empire. The great Slavonic See also:migration into Illyria, which wrought a complete See also:change in the fortunes of Dalmatia, took place in the first half of the 7th century. In other parts of the Balkan Peninsula these invaders—Serbs, Croats or Bulgars—found little difficulty in expelling or absorbing the native population. But here they were baffled when confronted by the powerful maritime city-states, highly civilized, and able to rely on the moral if not the material support of their kinsfolk in See also:Italy. Consequently, while the country districts were settled by the Slays, the Latin or Italian population flocked for safety to Ragusa, Zara and other large towns, and the whole country was thus divided between two frequently hostile communities. This opposition was intensified by the See also:schism between Eastern and Western See also:Christianity (1054), the Slays as a rule preferring the Orthodox or sometimes the Bogomil creed, while the Italians were firmly attached to the Papacy. Not until the 15th century did the rival races contribute to a See also:common civilization in the literature of Ragusa. To such a See also:division of population may be attributed the two dominant characteristics of See also:local history—the total See also:absence of national as distinguished from civic life, and the remarkable development of art, See also:science and literature. Bosnia, Servia and See also:Bulgaria had each its period of national greatness, but remained intellectually backward; Dalmatia failed ever.to attain political or racial unity, but the Dalmatian city-states, isolated and compelled to look to Italy for support, shared perforce in the See also: In 8o6 Dalmatia was added to the See also:Holy Roman empire, but was soon restored; in 829 the coast was ravaged by See also:Saracens. A See also:strange republic of Servian pirates arose at the mouth of the Narenta. In the loth century description of Dalmatia by See also:Constantine Porphyrogenitus (De Administrando Imperio, 29-37), this region is called Pagania, from the fact that its inhabitants had only accepted Christianity about 89o, or 250 years later than the other Slays. These Pagani, or Arentani (Narentines), utterly defeated a Venetian See also:fleet despatched against them in 887, and for more than a century exacted tribute from Venice itself. In 998 they were finally crushed by the See also:doge Pietro See also:Orseolo II., who assumed the title See also:duke of Dalmatia, though without See also:prejudice to Byzantine See also:suzerainty. Meanwhile the Croatian See also:kings had extended their rule over northern and central Dalmatia, exacting tribute from the Italian cities, Trail, Zara and others, and consolidating their own See also:power in the purely Slavonic towns, such as Nona or Belgrad (Zaravecchia). The Church was involved in the general confusion; for the See also:synod of Spalato, in 1059, had forbidden the use of any but Greek or Latin liturgies, and so had accentuated the See also:differences between Latin and Slay. A See also:raid of See also:Norman corsairs in 1073 was hardly defeated with the help of a Venetian fleet.
1 Also written Dalminium, Deminium, and Delmis. See also: It was evidently a stronghold of considerable size and importance, and See also:Appian (De bellis Illyricis) alludes to its almost impregnable fortifications. Rivalry of Venice and Hungary in Dalmatia, 1102—1420.—Unable amid such dissensions to stand alone, unprotected by the Eastern empire and hindered by their See also:internal dissensions from uniting in a defensive See also:league, the city-states turned to Venice and Hungary for support. The Venetians, to whom they were already bound by race, language and culture, could afford to concede liberal terms because their own principal aims was not the territorial aggrandizement sought by Hungary, but only such a supremacy as might prevent the development of any dangerous political or commercial competitor on the eastern Adriatic. Hungary had also its partisans; for in the Dalmatian city-states, like those of Greece and Italy, there were almost invariably two jealous political factions, each ready to oppose any measure advocated by its antagonist. The origin of this division seems here to have been economic. The farmers and the merchants who traded in the interior naturally favoured Hungary, their most powerful See also:neighbour on land; while the seafaring community,looked to Venice as See also:mistress of the Adriatic. In return for See also:protection, the cities often furnished a contingent to the army or See also:navy of their suzerain, and sometimes paid tribute either in See also:money or in See also:kind. Arbe, for example, annually paid ten pounds of See also:silk or five pounds of See also:gold to Venice. The citizens clung to their municipal privileges, which were reaffirmed after the See also:conquest of Dalmatia in 1102—1105 by See also:Coloman of Hungary. Subject to the royal assent they might elect their own chief See also:magistrate, bishop and See also:judges. Their Roman law remained valid. They were even permitted to conclude separate alliances. No alien, not even a Hungarian, could reside in a city where he was unwelcome; and the man who disliked Hungarian dominion could emigrate with all his household and See also:property. In lieu of tribute, the See also:revenue from customs was in some cases shared equally by the king, chief magistrate, bishop and See also:municipality. These rights and the analogous privileges granted by Venice were, however, too frequently infringed, Hungarian garrisons being quartered on unwilling towns, while Venice interfered with trade, with the See also:appointment of bishops, or with the tenure of communal domains. Consequently the Dalmatians remained loyal only while it suited their interests, and insurrections frequently occurred. Even in Zara four outbreaks are recorded between 118o and 1345, although Zara was treated with special See also:consideration by its Venetian masters, who regarded its See also:possession as essential to their maritime ascendancy. The doubtful allegiance of the Dalmatians tended to protract the struggle between Venice and Hungary, which was further complicated by internal discord due largely to the spread of the Bogomil See also:heresy; and by many outside influences, such as the vague suzerainty still enjoyed by the Eastern emperors during the 12th century; the assistance rendered to Venice by the armies of the See also:Fourth Crusade in 1202; and the See also:Tartar invasion of Dalmatia See also:forty years later (see See also:TRAU). The Slays were no longer regarded as a hostile race, but the power of certain Croatian magnates, notably the See also:counts of Bribir, was from time to time supreme in the northern districts (see CROATIA-SLAVONIA); and See also:Stephen Tvrtko, the founder of the Bosnian kingdom, was able in 1389 to annex the whole Adriatic littoral between Cattaro and See also:Fiume, except Venetian Zara and his own See also:independent ally, Ragusa (see BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA). Finally, the rapid decline of Bosnia, and of Hungary itself when assailed by the See also:Turks, rendered easy the success of Venice; and in 1420 the whole of Dalmatia, except Almissa, which yielded in 1444, and Ragusa, which preserved its freedom, either submitted or was conquered. Many cities welcomed the change with its promise of tranquillity. Venetian and Turkish Rule, 1420—1797.—An See also:interval of peace ensued, but meanwhile the Turkish advance continued. See also:Constantinople See also:fell in 1453, Servia in 1459, Bosnia in 1463 and Herzegovina in 1483. Thus the Venetian and Ottoman frontiers met; border See also:wars were incessant; Ragusa sought safety in friendship with the invaders. In 1508 the hostile league of See also:Cambrai compelled Venice to withdraw its See also:garrison for See also:home service, and after the overthrow of Hungary at See also:Mohacs in 1526 the Turks were able easily to conquer the greater part of Dalmatia. The peace of 1540 left only the maritime cities to Venice, the interior forming a Turkish See also:province, governed from the fortress of Clissa by a Sanjakbeg, or See also:administrator with military See also:powers. See also:Christian Slays from the neighbouring lands now thronged to the towns, outnumbering the Italian population and introducing their own language, but falling under the influence of the Roman Catholic Church. The pirate community of the See also:Uskoks (q.v.) had originally been a See also:band of these fugitives; its exploits contributed to a renewal of See also:war between Venice and Turkey (1571—1573). An extremely curious picture of See also:con-temporary manners is presented by the Venetian agents,' whose reports on this war resemble some knightly See also:chronicle of the middle ages, full of single combats, tournaments and other chivalrous adventures. They also show clearly that the Dalmatian levies far surpassed the Italian mercenaries in skill and courage. Many of these troops served abroad; at See also:Lepanto, for example, in 1571, a Dalmatian See also:squadron assisted the allied fleets of See also:Spain, Venice, Austria and the Papal States to crush the Turkish navy. A fresh war See also:broke out in 1645, lasting intermittently until 1699, when the peace of Carlowitz gave the whole of Dalmatia to Venice, including the coast of Herzegovina, but excluding the domains of Ragusa and the protecting band of Ottoman territory which surrounded them. After further fighting this delimitation was confirmed in 1718 by the treaty of Passarowitz; and it remains valid, though modified by the destruction of Ragusan See also:liberty and the substitution of Austria-Hungary for Venice and Turkey. The intellectual life of Dalmatia during the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries reached a higher level than any attained by the purely Slavonic peoples of the Balkan Peninsula. Its chief monuments are described elsewhere, the work of the Ragusan poets and historians as a part of Servian literature, the scientific achievements of R. G. See also:Boscovich and See also:Marcantonio de See also:Dominis in separate See also:biographies. Architecture and art generally have been discussed above. But this intellectual development was the work of a small and opulent minority in all the cities except Ragusa. Popular education was neglected; Zara had no See also:printing-See also:press until 1796; Venetian Dalmatia possessed only one public school, and that an ecclesiastical See also:seminary; and even the sons of the See also:rich, though See also:free to visit the See also:universities of Italy, See also:France, See also: The republics of Ragusa and See also:Poglizza retained their See also:independence, and Ragusa See also:grew rich by its See also:neutrality during the earlier See also:Napoleonic wars. By the peace of See also:Pressburg in 1805 the country was handed over to France, but its occupation was ineffectually contested by a See also:Russian force which seized the Bocche di Cattaro and induced the Montenegrins to render aid. Poglizza was ' Long extracts from these reports or diaries are published by See also:Wilkinson, Dalmatia and Montenegro (See also:London, 184o), ii. 297-35o. 776 deprived of its independence by See also:Napoleon in 1807, Ragusa in 18o8. In 1809 the See also:French troops were withdrawn, but in the same year Dalmatia was restored to France and united to the Illyrian kingdom by the treaty of See also:Vienna. A See also:British See also:naval force under See also:Captain See also:Hoste, after a successful engagement with a small French squadron off Lissa, occupied the islands of Curzola, Lesina and Lagosta from 1812 to 1815, and established a considerable overland trade through Dalmatia, Austria and See also:Germany. The allied British and Austrian forces drove out the last French garrison in 1814, and in 1815 Dalmatia was finally incorporated in the Austro-Hungarian empire, with which its history has since been identified. Its subsequent tranquillity has only been disturbed by the ineffectual risings of 1869 and 1881-1882, which took place near Cattaro (q.v.). Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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