Pula - City of Croatia

Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula. Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, tame sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing, shipbuilding, and tourism. Pula has also been Istria's administrative center since ancient Roman times.

The town was known to early Greek voyagers, since its founding was attributed to the Colchis. It was mentioned in the mythological story of Jason and Medea, who had stolen the golden fleece. The Colchis, who had chased Jason into the northern Adriatic, were unable to catch him and ended up settling in the region where the Illyric tribe lived. They called the place Polai, signifying "city of refuge". Greek pottery and a part of a statue of Apollo have been found, attesting to the presence of the Greek culture.

Pula then slowly went into decline. This decay was accelerated by the infighting of local families: the ancient Roman Sergi family and the Ionotasi and the clash between Venice and Genoa for the control of the city and its harbour .

Pula is quoted by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri, who had visited Pula, in the Divine Comedy: "come a Pola, presso del Carnaro ch'Italia chiude e i suoi termini bagna" or "as Pula, along the Quarnero, that marks the end of Italy and bathes its boundaries". The "Istarski Razvod" (1325), dates from this same period. This is a crucial Croatian manuscript written in Latin, German, and Croatian, using the oldest Croatian alphabet called Glagolitic alphabet.

Pula and the whole of Istria - except the territory of Kastav - were given to Italy under the Peace Treaty. That period was marked by economic and political unrest. Under the fascist government of Benito Mussolini, non-Italians, especially Slavic residents, faced huge political and cultural repression and many fled the city and Istria altogether. Italian rule lasted until its capitulation during World War II, in September 1943. The Nazi German army entered to fill the vacuum left by retreating Italian soldiers. During German military rule, Pula saw a very difficult period: arrests, deportations and executions of people suspected of helping the Partisans' guerrilla struggle. Also, Allied strategic bombings repeatedly destroyed whole parts of the city.


As a result of its rich political history, Pula is a city with a cultural mixture of people and languages from the Mediterranean and Central Europe, ancient and contemporary. Pula's architecture reflects these layers of history. Residents are commonly fluent in foreign languages, especially Italian, often also German and English. From October 30, 1904 to March 1905 Irish writer James Joyce taught English at the Berlitz School; his students were mainly Austro-Hungarian naval officers who were stationed at the Naval Shipyard. While he was in Pula he organized the local printing of his broadsheet The Holy Office, which satirized both William Butler Yeats and George Russell .

Lidia Bastianich, television chef and author was born in Pula.
Alida Valli, Italian actress, was born in Pula.
Physician Robert Koch worked on the nearby Brijuni islands.
Herman Potocnik a rocket engineer and pioneer of cosmonautics was also born in Pula.
Georg Ritter von Trapp - Austrian naval hero and head of the famous singing family immortalized in the musical The Sound of Music lived in Pula.
Hede von Trapp, Austrian painter
Among the "polesi" is Sergio Endrigo, one of the most famous Italian singer-songwriters.
Wolf von Aichelburg, Rumanian-German writer
Franz Karl Ginzkey, Austrian officer, poet and writer
Karl Albrecht von Habsburg-Lothringen, Austrian and Polish officer and landowner
Johann Palisa, discoverer of ca.30 asteroids
Antonio Smareglia Italian composer
Stiven Rivic, Croatian footballer of the German club Energie Cottbus
Alojz Gradnik, Slovenian poet, worked in Pula as a judge .

The natural beauty of Pula's surrounding countryside and turquoise water of the Adriatic have made the city an internationally popular summer vacation destination. The pearl nearby is Brijuni national park visited by numerous world leaders since it was the summer residence of Josip Broz Tito. Roman villas and temples still lie buried among farm fields and along the shoreline of the dozens of surrounding fishing and farming villages. The coastal waters offer beaches, fishing, wreck dives to ancient Roman galleys and World War I warships, cliff diving, and sailing to unspoiled coves and islands large and small.

Pula is the end point of the EuroVelo 9 cycle route that runs from Gdansk on the Baltic Sea through Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia and Croatia.

It is possible to track dinosaur footprints on the nearby sea shores; certain more important finds have been made at an undisclosed location near Bale.