Srđ is a low

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

just behind the

walled city The following cities have, or historically had, defensive walls. Africa Algeria * Algiers * Ghardaïa * Timimoun Egypt See List of Egypt castles, forts, fortifications and city walls. * Al-Fustat * Cairo * Damietta Ethiopia * Harar Libya *Apo ...

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik, historically known as Ragusa, is a city in southern Dalmatia, Croatia, by the Adriatic Sea. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean, a Port, seaport and the centre of the Dubrovni ...

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

. The mountain, part of the

Dinaric Alps The Dinaric Alps (), also Dinarides, are a mountain range in Southern Europe, Southern and Southcentral Europe, separating the continental Balkan Peninsula from the Adriatic Sea. They stretch from Italy in the northwest through Slovenia, Croatia ...

, has a height of . At its top is a large white stone cross and Fort Imperial, a defensive structure built by the French in 1810 during the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

. Srđ is popular with tourists as a viewpoint from which it is possible to see the walled city of Dubrovnik,

Lokrum Lokrum (, ) is an island in the Adriatic Sea from the city of Dubrovnik, Croatia. It stretches from northwest to southeast and receives regular ferry service from the Old City port. Austrian archduke (and short-lived Emperor of Mexico) Max ...

island, the

Adriatic Sea 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 Se ...

and various local attractions (including restaurants and the Stradun). Srđ was once forested with oak trees which locals called ''dubrava'' (from the old Slavic word ''dub'', "oak tree"), after which the city of Dubrovnik was named. The southern slope was once rich with pine forests, but in the second half of the 20th century and during the 1991–95

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...

, the forest was almost completely gutted through numerous fires. A zigzag Calvary leads up from the town. The mountain was home to one of the fiercest battles of the Independence War, namely 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 ...

, and this is commemorated in a museum in Fort Imperial. The television mast was destroyed by

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domina ...

from the

Yugoslav Air Force The Air Force and Air Defence ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Ратно ваздухопловство и противваздушна одбрана, Ratno vazduhoplovstvo i protivvazdušna odbrana ; abbr. sh-Cyrl-Latn, label=none, separator=/, РВ и ПВ� ...

. The

cable car Cable car most commonly refers to the following cable transportation systems: * Aerial lift, such as aerial tramways and gondola lifts, in which the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable ** Aerial tramway ** Chairlift ** Gondola lift *** ...

that was disabled during this time has since been reopened, and Srđ has been developed as a tourist attraction, with a restaurant and a base for buggy safaris.

References

External links

200 years of Fort Imperial atop of Mount Srđ
Dubrovnik Mountains of Croatia Hills of Croatia Landforms of Dubrovnik-Neretva County Tourism in Dubrovnik {{DubrovnikNeretva-geo-stub