Insel Lokrum - südl. Dubrovnik

Lokrum was first settled by the Basilians in 915. The Benedictine monastery was built in 1023 by the inhabitants of Dubrovnik, making it one of the oldest Benedictine monasteries in Dubrovnik. The monastery also had a church, a three-nave basilica. It was built in the Romanesque style. Later it was extended twice, so that the tower now stands in the church.
According to a legend, Richard the Lionheart found refuge on the island of Lokrum in 1191, escaping a shipwreck during a storm.He promised Dubrovnik to build a church on the island. However, he kept this promise only partially, as he instead contributed money and resources to the further construction of the cathedral in Dubrovnik.
In 1631, 200 Venetian soldiers began to fortify the island. However, when Dubrovnik opened fire from the fortress of St. John, the soldiers retreated.
In 1667, the monastery was severely damaged by the Dubrovnik earthquake.
The monastery was abandoned by the Benedictines in 1798 and purchased by 12 wealthy citizens of Dubrovnik. Fort Royal fortification was built during the Napoleonic wars and in the 19th century Austrians added the "Maximilian Tower". This was named after Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg, who later became Emperor of Mexico and bought the island of Lokrum in 1859. On the destroyed part of the monastery a castle was built by his order. In addition, he had a park with many exotic plants built around the entire monastery. After Maximilian's death, the island changed owners several times. Among them was the Austrian Crown Prince Rudolf. In order to save the buildings from decay, Franz Joseph I gave the island to the Dominican Order. Lokrum is a popular place for both locals and tourists. The island offers many bathing possibilities. One side of the island is rather flat and easily accessible by boat. The other side, on the other hand, is rather steep and difficult to reach. There is also a 10 meters deep saltwater lake surrounded by high rocks, called "dead sea", in Croatian "mrtvo more", which has a very high salt content. On the shallow side there is a nudist beach with its own café. There are also two restaurants and several smaller cafes on Lokrum. A place of interest is the botanical garden, which was opened in 1959. Today you can find here more than 800 different species of plants, including many exotic trees and bushes. The Benedictine monastery and the church attract numerous tourists. Lokrum became a tourist attraction especially when several episodes of the US television series Game of Thrones were filmed on the island. In July 2015, a small museum was opened where, among other things, you can sit on the "iron throne" from the series. The island can only be reached by boat. From April to October, boats run between the old port of Dubrovnik and the small port of Lokrum (Lučica Portoč) every half hour. The island is used as a stage for various theater and concert performances. For example, plays are performed as part of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, such as "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by William Shakespeare (in 2007). Since 2015, the so-called Lokrum evenings (Lokrumske Veceri) have been held with concerts by international musicians.