RECONNECT WITH NATURE

A beautiful purple night over St. Stefan, the capital of the municipality of Paštrovići in 1423.

The earliest record of Saint Stephen is as the capital of the municipality of Paštrovići, which became a protectorate of the Republic of Venice in 1423, as independent from the twelfth century. Paštrovići accepted Venetian sovereignty because they were afraid of Turkish attacks. They retained considerable autonomy and paid no tribute to Venice, in exchange for an end to piracy against Venetian ships.

According to the legend told by Stjepan Mitrov Ljubiša, the city fortification was created after the Paštrovići looted the Turkish ships moored in front of Jaz during Barbaroda’s siege of Kotor in 1539. The city was destroyed soon after, during the Fourth Ottoman-Venetian War. After continuous pleas from Paštrović, the Republic of Venice agreed to restore it in the 16th century. In the 15th century, the fortified village was built to defend against the Turks and became a haven for pirates from the Adriatic.

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