Hvar Brief History

The Illyrians, who fought numerous battles with Greek colonisers in the 4th century BC, first settled the island. The Greeks won and established the colony of Faros on the site of present-day Stari Grad. The Romans conquered the island in 219BC but it was not an important outpost for the Romans and there are a few remains from that period. With the collapse of the Roman Empire, Hvar came under Byzantine rule.

In the 7th and 8th centuries Slavic tribes settled the island, and in the 11th century it became part of Croatia under King Petar Krešimir. After several centuries in which Venice, Byzantium and Croat-Hungarian kings ruled the island; in 1331 it opted for the most powerful of the lot – Venice – as protection against the notorious pirates of Omis. With a few interruptions, Venetian rule lasted until 1797.

Hvar town square

Ancient columns in the town Hvar

The island staged several serious rebellions that were ruthlessly crushed by Venice's superior forces. After the fall of Venice in 1797, the island's history followed that of Dalmatia, passing to Austrian, French then Austrian rule before finally becoming part of the kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes after WW1.

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Hvar Brief History

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