Venetian fortified town deep in the Mediterranean sea cliff - Natural and Culture-Historical Region of Kotor 125; Venetian Works of Defence between the 16th and 17th centuries: Stato da Terra - Western State Da Mar 1533
What and Why
Kotor (Montenegrin: Котор) is a beautifully landscaped historic fortification built largely by the Republic of Venice (Venetian: Venèçia) around the Mediterranean inner bay, between the rugged mountains and the serene waters. The fortification was actually built as early as the 6th century CE by the Byzantine Empire (Greek: Βασιλεία Ῥωμαίων, Basileía Rhōmaíōn) against foreign attacks. After all the area changed hands multiple times due to its strategic maritime location, with fortification undergoing constant reconstructions and modifications and finally consolidated during the Venetian times. Ironically one of the main reasons for the consolidation was ironically to protect the city from the Ottoman Empire (Ottoman Turkish: دولت عثمانيه, Devlet-i ʿʿOsmānīye), a reincarnated ownself of the Byzantine Empire.
Highlighted with the impressive landscape and added to its rich historical heritage, Kotor is now a very cozy and picturesque touristic spot along the Balkan coastlines. The city is also home to a number of traditional cultural festivals. The Kotor Carnival (Котор карнавал), a festival with a 500-year history and tradition, is one of the most anticipated events, featuring parades, masked balls, and performances that celebrate the town's history and community spirit. Another important festival is the Boka Night (Бокељска Ноћ, Bokeljska Noć), which is an annual festival organised to celebrate the maritime heritage of the city. This festival, featuring floats at the bay, has been organised since 809 CE and has been inscribed as an ICH. Unfortunately we did not manage to be part of this festival due to our timing of visit.
Toponymy
There are two theories regarding the toponymy of Kotor, and both came from Greek origin. The first one comes from the Greek word 'κατερέω (katereo)' meaning 'hot'; while the second one derives from the old Greek name of the town δεκατέρα (dekatera), with 'deka (δέκα, déka)' meaning 'ten' and the stem '-tera' coming from 'θύρα (thura)' meaning 'gates', referring to the ten gates in the fortification.
See
Kotor’s old town is a labyrinth of narrow streets, squares, and stone buildings that transport visitors back to the Middle Ages, with ingredients from Venice, Byzantine Empire to Austria-Hungary (German: Österreich-Ungarn). All the sites are located inside the citadel and as usual many of the inner part of the fortified town has turned into shops and restaurants. The main entrance is the Sea Gate (Врата од Мора, Vrata od Mora) as below.
Trg od Oružja (Трг од оружја)
The main thoroughfare of the citadel is Trg od Oružja (Трг од оружј), meaning 'arms square'. Its name hails from Venetian times, when munitions were made and stored here.
The main square is landmarked with the not-so-conspicuous clock tower, as below with the building located far behind the Napoleon's theatre (Наполеоново позориште, Napoleonovo pozorište). It was the first Western-style theatre built in the Balkan areas, but now served as the city hall.
Right next to the clock tower stands a small pyramid that was once used as a pillory to shame wayward citizens.
Other part of the town.
Saint Tryphon Cathedral (Катедрала Светог Трипуна)
Saint Tryphon Cathedral (Катедрала Светог Трипуна, Katedrala Svetog Tripuna) is the local Catholic diocese which worships Saint Tryphon (Трифон), who is venerated as the local saint. Saint Tryphon acquired fame as a healer, and is considered one of the Holy Unmercenaries, particularly invoked on farms. The cathedral, as marked was built in the year 809 CE, but reconstructed in the 12th century CE with a pinkish Romanesque design. Its inner altar-screen is considered Kotor's most valuable treasure.
Saint Nicholas Church (Црква Светог Николе)
Saint Nicholas Church (Црква Светог Николе, Crkva Svetog Nikole) is another impressive Romanesque church, built recently in the early 20th century CE. Saint Nicholas (Greek: Άγιος Νικόλαος, Agios Nikolaos) is a Christian saint of Greek descent, is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, repentant thieves, prostitutes, children, brewers, pawnbrokers, unmarried people, and students in various cities and countries around Europe. Most importantly, however, was his legendary habit of secret gift-giving to children which eventually gave rise to the traditional model of Santa Claus through Sinterklaas.
Town wall (Tврдина)
Clearly the highlight of the tour is to step onto the city wall and enjoy the landscape and the sceneries of Kotor. The present fortification is a combination of ramparts, towers, citadels, gates, bastions, forts, cisterns, and various ancillary buildings and structures, integrated during the Venetian times, incorporating constructions all the way from the ancient Illyria (Greek: Ἰλλυρία), Byzantine to Venetian to the latest Empire of Austria (German: Kaiserthum Österreich).
The citadel is located at a triangular tip at the Kotor bay (Бока которска, Boka kotorska), highlighted by the main bastion the Kampana (Кампана) tower. The main part of the walls stretch around 0.5 km at sea level only.
The main draw of the trip is the hike all the way up to the top of the fortification. It does require an athletic body to hike up the 300 m ascent via 1,350 stone-steps. The reward is the unforgettable and unrivalled scenery of the old town and the bay. It took us approximately one hour walk back and forth.
Part of the trails, which is called the Ladder of Kotor (Которске Лествице, Kotorske Lestvice) is not very well managed and some of the paths are quite worn-down.
The top is landmarked by the Saint John's Fortress (Тврђава Светог Јована, Tvrđava Svetog Jovana).
Buy and Do
Climb up the fortification or take a boat trip around Kotor the enjoy the beautiful landscape. As usual the entire old town is now a big tourist shopping trap.
Eat and Drink
Njeguški pršut (Његушки пршут)
Kotor adopts a special ham from its neighbour Njeguši (Његуши), called Njeguški pršut (Његушки пршут). This is adopted from the Italian prosciutto, but is added with its distinct flavour through the mixture of sea and mountain air and beech wood burnt during the drying and curing process.
We had one serving of this ham in Caffe Bar Siempre along Trg od Oružja.
Travel Suggestions and Logistics
Getting up the the athletic walk to the top requires EUR 8€. Kotor is a touristic place to spend at least a day there, where everything including Saint John's fortress is accessible on foot.
We came by a coach bus, and vehicles are not allowed inside the citadel.
I would suggest including the neighbouring coastal town Budva (Будва) and the capital Podgorica (Подгорица) in a two or three day itinerary. The capital Podgorica is only two hour away from Kotor. Another possibility is to take a cruise to Kotor or Budva and use either of them as a base.
UNESCO Inscription
In the Middle Ages, this natural harbour on the Adriatic coast in Montenegro was an important artistic and commercial centre with its own famous schools of masonry and iconography. A large number of the monuments (including four Romanesque churches and the town walls) were seriously damaged by the 1979 earthquake but the town has been restored, largely with UNESCO’s help.
This property consists of 6 components of defence works in Italy, Croatia and Montenegro, spanning more than 1,000 km between the Lombard region of Italy and the eastern Adriatic Coast. The fortifications throughout the Stato da Terra protected the Republic of Venice from other European powers to the northwest and those of the Stato da Mar protected the sea routes and ports in the Adriatic Sea to the Levant. They were necessary to support the expansion and authority of the Serenissima. The introduction of gunpowder led to significant shifts in military techniques and architecture that are reflected in the design of so-called alla moderna /bastioned, fortifications, which were to spread throughout Europe.
References
Venetian Works of Defence between the 16th and 17th Centuries: Stato da Terra – Western Stato da Mar | UNESCO World Heritage Centre
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Please share your thoughts and comments about the blog. If you need suggestions to build a travel itinerary, please let me know. More than willing to help. I would also like to build a bespoke-travel community around UNESCO WHS and ICH.
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