This page contains a brief history of the island. It is not complete at this time. Information presented here is my attempt to summarize chapters from Otok Solta by Miro A. Mihovilovic (Mladost, Zagreb 1990). History of Solta can be divided into following periods:
The oldest evidence of life on Solta date from the Stone Age. The island was inhabitated by Iliri, particularly by the members of their tribe Delmati. The whole coastal region of what is now Croatia was named Delmatia (Dalmatia, Dalmacija) when Romans conquered it at the beginning of the millenium. The Roman name for Solta was Solenta -- the island of Sun. Several archeological sites on the island show the Roman presence on the island, including the remains of the fishery of the Roman emperor Diocletian.
Croats invaded Roman provinces in the 6th century. In the 7th century they conquered Salona (Solin), then the capital of Dalmatia. The people escaped from Salona and settled on the islands nearby: Solta, Brac, Hvar, Vis and Korcula. From these islands, they have launched raids on Croat settlements on the coast. The raids were so often and violent that Croats did not dare to live on the coast. However, people from Salona got tired of the life on the island where the land was poor and water was scarce, and they wanted to go back to their homes. So they boarded their ships and looked for places on the coast where they could settle. At the same time, Croats started to arrive on the Dalmatian islands. Until the 15th century, Dalmatia has been ruled by Bizantine Empire, Croatian state, and Venetian Republic.
The occupation of the Dalmatian coast by the Venetian Republic did not affect Solta much. While Split, with its native nobility and wealthy citizens, had its political and economic freedom greatly reduced, Solta only changed its owners and retained its colonial status.
About forty years after Venice established its rule in Dalmatia, Bosnia fell to the Ottoman Empire. It was the beginning of a very disturbing times. After the Ottomans took over Klis, a strategic road crossing above Split in 1537, they often raided the Dalmatian coast. In the following years many men from Solta joined the Venetian navy and fought against Ottomans.
At the same time, Ivan Alberti, a noble from Split, brought Uskoks to one of the Solta's bays, Senjska. Uskoks were rebels based in the city of Senj that fought both Venetians and Ottomans. In 1596, Uskoks from Solta attempted to liberate Klis.
Repeated attacks on Solta by pirates forced Soltans to organize militarily. The defence of each village and surrounding territory was the duty of people called harambase and alfiri. Day and night they kept watch for the arrival of enemy. Their sentry posts were located on the highest hills near Grohote and Gornje Selo (both hills are now called Vela Straza - Great Guard).
From 1797 to 1813, Dalmatian islands were occupied either by Austria, Napoleon's France, or even Russia. In 1813, Austria regained control over Dalmatia. Due to the revolutionary movements in Europe in 1848, the colonial system in the most of the Austrian provinces was abolished. However that was not the case in Dalmatia. The continuation of the feudal relationship between Split and Solta resulted in unrests. Solta's autonomy in the Split county was abolished several times. In 1870, the administration of Solta decided that the land on Solta should be owned by Soltans rather than the county of Split. People of Solta took the matter to the court. After three years of court battle, the people of Solta lost and remained Split's colons.
The whole history of Solta tells us about its close relationship with Split. Modern sources tell us that Dalmatia and Istria were the least developed provincies till the end of Austrian rule (1918). The Austro-Hungarian Monarchy did not have any interest in economical development of that territory. The Dalmatian population was urbanized quite slow. Small and isolated villages with villagers were the prevailing type of settlement for a long time. From the beginning of XX. century through the Second World War the island of Solta is partly isolated with agriculture being major production activity. Besides wine and olive-oil production, the islanders planted some sorts of fruit and rosemary. Fishing was an additional source of peasants' income. Between the World Wars, peasants constituted farm-cooperatios to protect and improve their interests.
|
Solta Homepage Support Information
Web Maintenance: Marin Bezic
|