Preko ( lit. "Across") is a village and a municipality in

Zadar County Zadar County ( hr, Zadarska županija ) is a county in Croatia, it encompasses northern Dalmatia and southeastern Lika. Its seat is the city of Zadar. Geography Among the largest towns in the county of Zadar are: Zadar, Benkovac, Bibinje, Bi ...

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 ...

. It is situated, as the name suggests, opposite of

Zadar Zadar ( , ; historically known as Zara (from Venetian and Italian: ); see also other names), is the oldest continuously inhabited Croatian city. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar serv ...

, on the island of

Ugljan Ugljan () is a Croatian island and the first in the Zadar Archipelago. It is located northwest of the island of Pašman and southeast of the islands of Rivanj and Sestrunj. Separated from the mainland by the Zadar Channel, it is connected with t ...

. Its old centre consists of typical Dalmatian architecture with numerous patrician family summer houses. According to the 2011 census, there are 3,805 inhabitants, 88% which are

Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, G ...

. Sitting in the mountains above Preko, is the castle of St. Michael, built by

Eastern Roman empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

in the 6th century. The castle was rebuilt by the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

in the 13th century. Its main purpose was control above channel of Zadar and group of islands behind the island of Ugljan. The castle was sacked by English

crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

on their way to the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...

, and by the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The high position of the castle made it the perfect lookout and listening station for the occupying Germans. Today, the castle is home to a telecommunications station. About 80 m from Preko lies the islet of Galevac (Školjić). The 11th century Romanesque church of St. John the Baptist is situated on the eastern side of the locality, near the ferry port. Preko is the closest starting point for the excursion to St. Michael's fortress (265 m above the sea level). The view from the fortress spreads over more than 200 islands of the archipelago of Zadar and

Kornati National Park The Kornati archipelago (; it, Isole Incoronate) of Croatia, also known as the Stomorski islands, is located in the northern part of Dalmatia, south from Zadar and west from Šibenik, in the Šibenik-Knin County. With length and 89 islands, som ...

Notable natives and residents

Budimir Lončar Budimir Lončar (born 1 April 1924) is a Croatian retired diplomat who served as a Minister of Foreign Affairs of SFR Yugoslavia from 1987 until 1991. He served as Ambassador of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to Indonesia, Germany a ...

References

External links

Municipal websiteIsland Dugljan
Municipalities of Croatia Populated places in Zadar County Ugljan {{Zadar-geo-stub