Old City of Dubrovnik

The Dalmatian coast's "Pearl of the Adriatic" developed into a significant maritime force in the Middle Ages. Dubrovnik's lovely Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque churches, monasteries, palaces, and fountains were able to survive the devastating effects of an earthquake in 1667. Armed strife caused further damage to it in the 1990s, and it is now the subject of a significant repair program overseen by UNESCO.

The city of Dubrovnik was founded in the seventh century when Slavs and Romans moved along the Adriatic Sea coast. It developed as a significant trading force, earning Lord Byron the moniker "Pearl of the Adriatic" in the 19th century. The "Old City" or "Old Town" section of Dubrovnik was declared a World Heritage site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization in 1979.

The city sustained significant damage in 1991 and 1992 when Dubrovnik was under siege as a result of the Yugoslav Wars. Projectiles struck more than two-thirds of the Old City's structures, and three of them caught fire. The former Yugoslav general Pavle Strugar was given an eight-year prison term in 2005 by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for war crimes that included destroying Dubrovnik's historical landmarks.

• Country: Croatia