Prevlaka () is a small
peninsula
A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...
in southern
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
, near the border with
Montenegro
)
, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Podgorica
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = M ...
, at the entrance to the
Bay of Kotor
The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...
on the eastern
Adriatic
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...
coast.
Because of its strategic location in the southern Adriatic, in the aftermath of the
SFR Yugoslav breakup, the peninsula became subject to a territorial dispute between Croatia and
FR Yugoslavia
Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup
A relationship breakup, breakup, or ...
, a federal state that included
Montenegro
)
, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Podgorica
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = M ...
. The territory was functional under
UN until 2002. The UN mission ended in December 2002 and the territory that had previously been part of SR Croatia was returned to the Republic of Croatia. An agreement was signed by both sides five days before the departure of the UNMOP that demilitarized Prevlaka and effectively made it a neutral territory, though implementation still has a temporary character.
Geography
The narrow, uninhabited peninsula is 2.6 kilometers long and only 150–500 meters wide, covering an area of 93.33 hectares (just under 1 square kilometer).
The word ''prevlaka'' means
portage
Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...
. Cape Oštro (Punta d'Ostro), located at the very tip of the peninsula, is the southernmost point of mainland in Croatia. Along with the small Montenegrin island of
Mamula, which sits some 2 kilometers east of Cape Oštro, in addition to being two sides of an international maritime border, the two spots present observation entry points into the Bay of Kotor.
North of the Prevlaka isthmus, just within the Bay of Kotor, lie the two less prominent capes Konfin and Kobila, to the northwest of which is a road
border crossing
Border control refers to measures taken by governments to monitor and regulate the movement of people, animals, and goods across land, air, and maritime borders. While border control is typically associated with international borders, it a ...
between Croatia and Montenegro. The
D516 highway connects it to
Konavle
Konavle () is a municipality and a small region located southeast of Dubrovnik, Croatia.
It is administratively part of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County and the center of the municipality is Cavtat.
Demographics
The total municipality population wa ...
and the
D8; northwards the road connects to
Njivice,
Sutorina
Sutorina (, ) is a village and a river located in Herceg Novi Municipality in southwestern Montenegro.
The village is located near the border with Croatia, some three kilometers northwest of the Adriatic Sea in Igalo.
The surrounding region, incl ...
and
Igalo
Igalo ( cnr, Игало, sr, Игало) is a small town in the Herceg Novi Municipality of Montenegro. It is accessible via the E65/ E80 north headed to Dubrovnik, Croatia. According to the 2003 Census, it has a population of 3,754. The town adj ...
.
History
Konavle
Konavle () is a municipality and a small region located southeast of Dubrovnik, Croatia.
It is administratively part of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County and the center of the municipality is Cavtat.
Demographics
The total municipality population wa ...
and the Prevlaka peninsula was bought by the
Republic of Ragusa
hr, Sloboda se ne prodaje za sve zlato svijeta it, La libertà non si vende nemmeno per tutto l'oro del mondo"Liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world"
, population_estimate = 90 000 in the XVI Century
, currency = ...
from the
Bosnian Kingdom
The Kingdom of Bosnia ( sh, Kraljevina Bosna / Краљевина Босна), or Bosnian Kingdom (''Bosansko kraljevstvo'' / Босанско краљевство), was a medieval kingdom that lasted for nearly a century, from 1377 to 1463, and ...
in the early 15th century to protect its eastern flank. Ragusans fortified Cape Oštro in 1441. Cape Kobila was the boundary with Sutorina under the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
's control since 1699.
In 1806, during
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
's
conquest of Europe, King
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg.
The son of ...
was intent on stopping French advances in the Adriatic and to that end deployed a Mediterranean expedition led by vice-admiral
Dmitry Senyavin
Dmitry Nikolayevich Senyavin or Seniavin (russian: Дми́трий Никола́евич Сеня́вин; – ) was a Russian admiral during the Napoleonic Wars.
Service under Ushakov
Senyavin belonged to a notable noble family of sea ...
, that by September 1806 made considerable territorial gains in the area, including Prevlaka and the entire Bay of Kotor. In July 1807, the Russians and the French struck a deal in the
first Treaty of Tilsit for the area to be handed over to the
First French Empire
The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Eu ...
. In 1808, the French assigned the newly acquired territory over to their
client state
A client state, in international relations, is a state that is economically, politically, and/or militarily subordinate to another more powerful state (called the "controlling state"). A client state may variously be described as satellite state, ...
called the
Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy
The Kingdom of Italy (1805–1814; it, Regno d'Italia; french: Royaume d'Italie) was a kingdom in Northern Italy (formerly the Italian Republic) in personal union with Napoleon I's French Empire. It was fully influenced by revolutionary Franc ...
before in 1810 reassigning it back into the First French Empire proper as part of the
Illyrian Provinces
The Illyrian Provinces sl, Ilirske province hr, Ilirske provincije sr, Илирске провинције it, Province illirichegerman: Illyrische Provinzen, group=note were an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province of France d ...
, their recently created autonomous subdivision.
Following Napoleon's defeat, former Ragusan territory including Prevlaka came under the rule of the
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...
in 1813. Austrian rule was ratified by the
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...
in 1815, and the territory became part of its newly created internal administrative subdivision, the
Kingdom of Dalmatia
The Kingdom of Dalmatia ( hr, Kraljevina Dalmacija; german: Königreich Dalmatien; it, Regno di Dalmazia) was a crown land of the Austrian Empire (1815–1867) and the Cisleithanian half of Austria-Hungary (1867–1918). It encompassed the entir ...
. It remained as such after the transformation of Austrian Empire into the dual monarchy of
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
following the
Congress of Berlin
The Congress of Berlin (13 June – 13 July 1878) was a diplomatic conference to reorganise the states in the Balkan Peninsula after the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, which had been won by Russia against the Ottoman Empire. Represented at th ...
in 1867. Towards the end of the 19th century, on the suggestion of General
Lazar Mamula Lazar Mamula (22 May 1795 – 12 January 1878) was an Austro-Hungarian general and governor of Dalmatia. Of Serbian ancestry, he is today often associated with the contentious Prevlaka peninsula where he constructed a fort on the slip of land over ...
, the Austro-Hungarian authorities decided to build a fort on Punta d'Ostro, along with another in the island of Mamula in order to ensure military control over the entrance into the Bay of Kotor. The Austrian authorities successfully fortified cape Mirište and the islet of Mamula. The authorities reportedly also decided to compensate local farmers for the expropriated land, but no money was paid until the collapse of the dual monarchy.
In 1918, after the end of
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and collapse of Austria-Hungary, Prevlaka became part of the newly created
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
Kingdom commonly refers to:
* A monarchy ruled by a king or queen
* Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy
Kingdom may also refer to:
Arts and media Television
* ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...
. By 1922, once the new state determined its internal administrative subdivisions, dividing its territory into 33 oblasts, the peninsula got included in kingdom's Dubrovnik Oblast. In 1929, as Kingdom of SCS transformed into the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
along with its internal administrative subdivisions being reconfigured into 9 banovinas, Prevlaka was included into
Zeta Banovina
The Zeta Banovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Zetska banovina, Зетска бановина), was a province ( banovina) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1941. This province consisted of all of present-day Montenegro as well as ...
together with Dubrovnik. During the 1930s,
Royal Yugoslav Army
The Yugoslav Army ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Jugoslovenska vojska, JV, Југословенска војска, ЈВ), commonly the Royal Yugoslav Army, was the land warfare military service branch of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia (originally Kingdom of Serbs ...
further fortified Prevlaka. In 1939, the area was assigned to the newly created
Banovina of Croatia
The Banovina of Croatia or Banate of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Banovina Hrvatska, Бановина Хрватска) was an autonomous province ( banovina) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1939 and 1941. It was formed by a merg ...
subdivision of the Yugoslav kingdom.
World War II was the only period since the 15th century when the boundaries of Konavle were modified. In April 1941
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
invaded Yugoslavia, conquering it in less than three weeks before proceeding to dismember its territory by creating a handful of locally-administered fascist puppet states. Due to its strategic importance, the
Axis
An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis
*Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinate ...
-aligned
Kingdom of Italy
The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
under prime minister
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
would not let either of the two newly propped up local fascist puppet regimes, the
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...
or the
Italian governorate of Montenegro
The Italian governorate of Montenegro ( it, Governatorato del Montenegro) existed from October 1941 to September 1943 as an occupied territory under military government of Fascist Italy during World War II. Although the Italians had intended t ...
, control the Bay of Kotor region. The Bay of Kotor along with its surrounding areas including eastern Konavle and Prevlaka was controlled directly by Italy based on the May 1941
Treaties of Rome
The Treaty of Rome, or EEC Treaty (officially the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community), brought about the creation of the European Economic Community (EEC), the best known of the European Communities (EC). The treaty was sig ...
.
As World War II dragged on, in summer 1943, in response to the Allied advances in their
Italian campaign, Nazi Germany took over the administration of the Bay of Kotor including Prevlaka. On 22 December 1944, the
Yugoslav Partisans
The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод ...
took control of the region, and after the war Prevlaka became part of the newly proclaimed
FPR Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yugo ...
, specifically its constituent unit the
People's Republic of Croatia
The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), or SR Croatia, was a constituent republic and federated state of the Sociali ...
.
In 1955, the
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska a ...
(JNA) closed down access to Prevlaka because of its coastal artillery installations.
During the
Yugoslav Wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SFR Yugoslavia from ...
that followed the
breakup of Yugoslavia
The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...
, the territory was occupied by Yugoslav forces like most of the Dubrovnik region during the
siege of Dubrovnik
The siege of Dubrovnik ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, opsada Dubrovnika, опсада Дубровника) was a military engagement fought between the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and Croatian forces defending the city of Dubrovnik and its surroundings dur ...
. At one point, the Croatian military gained temporary control over Prevlaka, before it was retaken. The two sides agreed on the demilitarization of the peninsula and the
United Nations Security Council Resolution 779
United Nations Security Council resolution 779, adopted unanimously on 6 October 1992, after reaffirming Resolution 743 (1992) and subsequent resolutions and noting a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali submitted pursuant to res ...
of October 6, 1992 extended the mandate of
UNPROFOR
The United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR; also known by its French acronym FORPRONU: ''Force de Protection des Nations Unies'') was the first United Nations peacekeeping force in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav War ...
to the implementation of this agreement, together with the
European Community Monitoring Mission
The European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM), between 1991 and 2000 known as the European Community Monitoring Mission (ECMM), was a mission of the European Union in the former Yugoslavia.
History
The European Union Monitoring Mission began opera ...
.
A resolution to the conflict took shape in 1996 when the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
mediated the conflict and established an
observer mission (UNMOP) which oversaw the demilitarization and acted as a buffer.
The Konfin/Kobila border crossing has operated since 1999.
The UN mission ended in December 2002 and the territory that had previously been part of SR Croatia was returned to the Republic of Croatia. An agreement was signed by both sides five days before the departure of the UNMOP that demilitarized Prevlaka and effectively made it a neutral territory, though implementation still has a temporary character.
In 2002, the two states agreed on a temporary solution stipulating that Croatia would receive the entire land mass of the Prevlaka peninsula including some 500 meters of the sea belt entrance into Boka Kotorska while the sea bay on the side of Prevlaka facing
Herceg Novi
Herceg Novi ( cyrl, Херцег Нови, ) is a coastal town in Montenegro located at the Western entrance to the Bay of Kotor and at the foot of Mount Orjen. It is the administrative center of the Herceg Novi Municipality with around 33,000 in ...
was declared no man's waters.
Montenegro
became independent in 2006 and the temporary agreement remained in effect. In 2008, a mixed commission was created, tasked with preparing the legal case for the border settlement in front of the
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...
at
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
. In search of the permanent border settlement, the two states have the option of settling the issue between themselves
bilaterally or opting for the
international arbitration.
Gallery
Prizor s Prevlake.JPG
Spomenik u utvrdi na Prevlaci.JPG
Utvrda na Prevlaci.JPG
Utvrda na Prevlaci 29. ožujka 2015.JPG
Utvrda na Prevlaci (Hrvatska).JPG
Utvrda na Prevlaci 2015.JPG
Na Prevlaci 29. ožujka 2015.JPG
Ulaz u Zaljev hrvatskih svetaca.JPG
Boka kotorska (2015.).JPG
References
Sources
*
External links
Prevlaka Park
{{Authority control
Peninsulas of Croatia
Bay of Kotor
Landforms of Dubrovnik-Neretva County
Territorial disputes of Croatia
Territorial disputes of Montenegro
Croatia–Montenegro border