1667 Dubrovnik earthquake

Dubrovnik's region is located in the eastern part of the Adriatic Sea and is a narrow strip of land, dotted by a series of bays, with the Dinaric Alps in the background, and hundreds of islands along the coast. The city of Dubrovnik was built in the most seismically active area in Croatia, which makes earthquakes the strongest in the whole country. It is the only Croatian town that is shown in red on the seismic map, which means that it is exposed to potential hazard of the strongest earthquakes, those of 10 degrees in the Mercalli scale. == Earthquake ==

The earthquake occurred at around 8 in the morning on April 6, 1667. Survivors of the event witnessed a rumbling sound followed by a tremendous kick that rocked the city. It occurred at about 8:45 in the morning, and lasted between 8 and 15 seconds. This event is thought to be the biggest one in the history of Dalmatia and practically defines seismic hazard in the coastal area of Croatia. It is assumed that the large scale of destruction is due primarily to two factors: the previous earthquakes of 1520 and 1639, and the poor properties of the adhesives, prepared using brackish and sea water, used in the construction of the buildings. The Rector's Palace, the Major Council Hall and Sponza Palace all suffered severe damage. All the buildings lining the Stradun were destroyed, and passage through the street was blocked by rubble. Although the Franciscan Church and Monastery weren't destroyed by the earthquake, the subsequent fire destroyed much of the monastery, as well as its great library. Citizens of the city witnessed huge stones rolling down the hill of Srđ destroying everything in their way. Large cracks appeared in the land, and the city's water sources dried up. The dust created by the destroyed buildings was thick enough to obscure the sky. Later, a powerful tsunami devastated the port, flooding everything near the shore. Strong winds fueled fires from homes and bakeries, and the resulting blaze would not be extinguished for almost 20 days. == Aftermath ==

The Sponza and the Rector's palace were the only buildings that survived the natural disaster. The city was reconstructed in the baroque style that has survived intact to this day. Despite the reconstruction, the decline of the Mediterranean as a hub for trade meant that Dubrovnik, like other Mediterranean ports, began a steady decline. According to the historian Robin Harris, the earthquake killed around 2,000 inhabitants of the city and up to 1,000 in the rest of the republic. Among the dead were the Rector and half of the members of the Great council. The effects of the earthquake also resulted in the loss of half of the nobility population. In the period between June 21, 1667, and December 31, 1676, ~70% of theft reports concerned material used in the city reconstruction, while 30% of the reports concerned theft of personal items and valuables. Water shortages The earthquake had done significant damage to various sources of fresh water, due to the damage done to the city's aqueduct. Furthermore, the wells around the city either dried up, or gave a yellowish, thick mass instead of water. Water had to be imported, gathered from rainfall or drawn from the wells of the Gruž Dominican monastery, which were surprisingly undamaged. Consequently, significant funds had to be diverted into the reconstruction of the aqueduct. ==See also==