Lentorama 2023: It Happened on Holy Saturday

Day 9: Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On

For centuries, Dubrovnik was the capital of the Republic of Ragusa, a political entity on the southern Dalmatian coast. It's nominal independence came with fealty to larger powers (like Venice or the Ottoman Empire), and despite calling itself a republic it was run by the aristocracy. None of this mattered when, on April 6, 1667, the city suffered what is estimated as a 6.4 magnitude earthquake.

The quake devastated the city, destroying upwards of three-quarters of all public buildings. The death toll was estimated as between 3000 and 5000 people. The casualties included a number of aristocrats and the city's leader, the rector Simone Ghetaldi. Not surprisingly, the city entered a period of lawlessness after the quake, though the majority of the crime was theft of building materials.

The quake did hasten the decline of the republic, which would eventually be conquered by Napoleon and made part of the Kingdom of Italy. Dubrovnik today is part of an independent Croatia, and is very popular with tourists, thanks in part to its distinctive architecture - which came as a a result of the rebuilding after the earthquake.