Povijesni prilozi, Vol. 43 No. 66, 2024.
Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.22586/pp.v43i66.28325
The City of Dubrovnik Has Been Joined by Another, New City, Previously Called a Suburb: Stages in the Formation of Dubrovnik’s burgus during the 13th Century
Irena Benyovsky Latin
orcid.org/0009-0005-9820-2368
Ivana Haničar Buljan
orcid.org/0000-0002-6604-9830
Abstract
This paper employs a combined approach of urban history, archaeology, and spatial analysis to enhance our understanding of Dubrovnik’s spatial development and urban planning during the 13th century, a very dynamic period in the city’s history. Formation of the suburbs is traced from the expansion beyond the city core (nucleus) to the completion of the medieval city in the first decades of the 14th century by integrating new areas. The study is based on primary written sources, recent archaeological and conservation research, and spatial analyses of the preserved urban fabric to identify communication routes that existed before the statutory regulation of streets, reconstructing the planning phases that predated the Statute.
During the period of Venetian rule (1205-1358), Dubrovnik underwent significant political and social changes, transforming into a major maritime and trade centre in the southern Adriatic. Rapid population growth led to increased housing demand and the expansion of the old town’s boundaries. During this period, the city nearly tripled in size, leading to planned long-term projects such as filling in marshland between the old city on the peninsula and the coast (reinforcing and levelling the terrain) and (re)organizing the (new) suburban land in several stages. This complex process changed the size of blocks, introduced new communication routes, redirected old ones, and led to the construction of new lines of walls. By the early 14th century, this prolonged work-in-progress culminated in the unification of various suburbs and their final annexation to the old city. This dynamic formation resulted in intense residential mobility and a completely transformed relationship between the centre and the periphery. The (re)organization of suburban land into a new city centre evolved alongside changes in the area’s function, the character and number of its inhabitants, the construction of new public buildings extra muros, the development of the city port, and various responses to crises (wars, fires, economic changes). By the mid-13th century, the suburb had become a residential area attracting some of Dubrovnik’s richest families (both newcomers and locals), mainly nobles, but also wealthy commoners and various institutions. The area’s economic potential was bolstered by its proximity to the new political, economic, and administrative city centre.
Keywords
urban history; Dubrovnik; 13th century; suburbs; urban planning; centre and periphery
Hrčak ID:
319224
URI
Publication date:
8.7.2024.
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