Somewhere along the Adriatic coast, hidden in the shadows of the black Dinaric mountains, lays a hidden gem of the Balkans. Montenegro is a small country with a long history, blessed with natural wonders and unmatched beauty.
It is difficult to summarize everything in a small article when a country is old over two millennia. Still, I will give my best shot to introduce you to this ancient world of fairytales and legends, my homeland.
Let’s start from the beginning…
A Warrior’s Past
The first known inhabitants of lands, which is a current Montenegrin territory, were Illyrians. The name Illyrian is derived from old Greek, meaning “standing soldier” in free interpretation. As the name suggests, The Illyirians were people with war in their genes.
There were many Illyrian tribes across current Montenegro, and each was a separate tribe with no genetic connection to other tribes whatsoever. Still, in the eyes of ancient Greeks, they were all Illyirians. The first and essential tribe was The Ardiei tribe, which in old Latin meant “Heron,” which the Ardiei worshipped as one of the gods since they were still a primitive tribe whose main religion was “animal totemism.”
When the great Roman Empire started to advance from the north, Ardiei decided to gather other local tribes, such as Taulantii, Pleraei, Endirudini, Sasaei, and many others, to form a brand new tribe called Diocleatae tribe.
Thus began the war, which lasted from 6 AD to 9 AD and was called “The Great Illyrian Revolt.” The Roman army was more prominent in numbers, better equipped, and had actual tacticians, but suffered great losses, losses so great that they had to gather all of their armies from western fronts to battle the Illyirians.
Chains couldn’t bind the Illyrian spirit, and they fought until their last breath, but after three years of a bloody war, they succumbed to the Romans, and in the year 9 AD, they surrendered.
After the Illyrian capitulation, The Great Roman Empire created a new country called Doclea, inhabited by the defeated tribes. Romans didn’t interfere with their internal politics and didn’t want to destroy them. Since the Illyrians were excellent and brave warriors, they only wanted military allegiance and taxes.
The Doclea will later become Zeta and ultimately Crna Gora or Montenegro for the rest of the world.
The remains of the city of Doclea are in today’s capital of Montenegro in Podgorica and can be seen in person free of charge. They are a 10-minute drive from the city center.
Influence of Christianity
Montenegrins are Orthodox Christians for the most part. A small number of Muslim groups have stayed after the Montenegrins defeated the Turks, but we will get there.
After 9 AD, the South Slavs came, and they mixed with the native Illyrians, but contrary to what modern historians are saying, a very small part of Montenegrin people carry Slavic genes. Mostly, Montenegrins are native Illyrians, which DNA tests confirmed.
To get back on track, After South Slavs, Christians came, and Docleatans slowly started taking up Christianity and leaving already primitive animal totemism.
After the division of Christianity into Ortodox and Catholicism, Montenegrins chose the Ortodox option, as it was similar to their rituals, and according to them, it was “the purest form of Christianity.”
Christianity has left a visible mark on Montenegro since they are very religious. They have created some of the most beautiful Orthodox churches and monasteries the world has ever seen.
We will list a couple of them. You can see them in person as well, most of them require no tickets so you can see them free of charge, but even for some which require some entrance payment, it’s a meager and symbolic sum which is usually not greater than 5 euros per person.
The Ostrog Monastery
Carved onto the mountain, this monastery is considered the holiest place in the Balkans, going head to head with The Hilandar monastery in Greece. Dedicated to one of Montenegro’s most important saints St. Basil (Sveti Vasilije), the monastery was built in the 17th century. While today’s looks aren’t original, since it was renovated around 100 years ago, the original monastery is still there. It has a somewhat different outer look, so it can withstand the centuries that pass.
The remains of St. Basil lie in the monastery. They were fully preserved without an embalmment process. The body never decayed and is fully preserved.
The monks who serve at the monastery change the Saint’s shoes from time to time, and even though St. Basil hasn’t been alive for more than four centuries, every time the monks change the shoes, they are worn out, as if the Saint has been walking through the monasteries corridors.
The Cetinje Monastery
The symbol of the Montenegrin fight for liberty, the Cetinje Monastery was burned five times by Turks, as they wanted to enslave Montenegrins, and the best way to crush their spirit was to keep destroying the holiest place that they knew of.
The Cetinje Monastery was home to Montenegrin archbishops, and the most important one was Saint Peter I Petrovic Njegos, who was not only an archbishop but was also a great warrior who led his forces in the battle against Turks and Venetians many times. He was known for bringing potatoes from Russia to Montenegro, for creating the first Montenegrin law codex, and for trying to make peace amongst the Montenegrin tribes, which were at that time suffering from “Blood revenge” or, as you may know, it, “Vendetta.” If someone was killed in a Montenegrin tribe, their whole tribe had an obligation to avenge him, either by killing the killer or someone from their tribe. This led to great
bloodshed, and Saint Peter tried to stop it. Unfortunately, once he passed, Montenegrins returned to their old traditions.
Turkish Invasion
The Turkish Empire was one of the biggest empires that ruled the world. In the middle ages, it was at the peak of its power and conquered Europe. The whole of Europe, apart from Montenegro. For 500 years, the Turks invaded Montenegro, but they could never defeat it. Montenegrins never surrendered, and even though they were smaller in numbers, every time the Turks invaded, Montenegrins used the knowledge of their lands, high cliffs, and narrow passes to defeat their blood-sworn enemy.
A couple of battles changed the course of the war, where the Turkish army outnumbered the Montenegrin army by eight times, yet the Montenegrins still came victorious.
Origin of The Name
Some of you may wonder what hides behind the meaning of the name “Montenegro.” Crna Gora or Montenegro, either way, translates to Black Mountain. According to legend, the name was given by Italian sailors traveling across the Adriatic sea and on coming upon the magnificent Bay of Kotor.
Since the Bay of Kotor is located below steep cliffs and mountains, which are often covered in thick fog or dark rainy clouds, the sight that sailors saw was mesmerizing yet terrifying at the same time. They saw enormous dark mountains watching over small medieval forts, casting a shadow on them, covering them from sight. So the only things that the sailors saw were black mountains and the blue sea, and so they said, this is Monte Negro! This is the Black Mountain!
Unmatched Beauty of Montenegro
We have dealt enough with the land’s history in this article, so I want to share with you some of the most beautiful places you can visit in Montenegro.
Bay of Kotor
One of the most beautiful bays in the world consists of 3 smaller bays. It is home to several medieval citadels and forts, which were initially Montenegrin, but later, the Venetians took them over. This is considered the wealthiest part of Montenegro. Cities like Kotor, Risan, and Perast kiss the coast of the bay, and with high mountains rising above them, it’s a sight to behold.
Kotor
Kotor is a medieval city and fortress in the Bay of Kotor, the center of Montenegrin tourism. Millions of tourists come each year to visit this magnificent city which is almost 1000 years old!
Perast
A small medieval town that was home to the wealthiest Venetian families living in the Bay of Kotor. The medieval villas still stand today and have hosted celebrities such as Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Naomi Campbell, Maluma, and many others.
Our Lady of The Rocks
This artificial island is located at the heart of the Bay of Kotor. There is a legend of its creation. A while ago, in the middle ages, a huge storm raged across the Adriatic. Some fishermen were in their boats trying to catch something for lunch when the storm caught them, and big waves capsized their boats. They tried to save themselves, swimming in the raging sea, battling huge waves, and the sea pushed them onto some rocks in the middle of the bay. On those rocks was an old icon of Madonna and child, or Mary holding baby Jesus, as you may know it. So the locals swore to build an island in that place.
They built boats filling them with rocks and sinking them in that place until the island was formed. After that, they built a church on the island. There is an embroidery inside a church, which was made by Jacinta Kunic-Mijovic, the wife of the local seaman who sailed as a crew member, earning his wage.
She started making it once her beloved departed and swore to make it until he returned. It is interesting to note that she wove the embroidery with her hair, so you can see where the fibers started turning more and more grey. She kept making it for 25 years until she went blind. Her beloved husband never returned, and it is believed that he died in a shipwreck.
The Mausoleum of Petar II Petrovich Njegosh
One of the rulers from the Petrovic dynasty was Petar II Petrovich Njegosh, one of the most famous poets of Montenegrin history. He wasn’t a military commander, like his predecessors, but rather an artist. He published many amazing songs and stories translated into over 100 languages worldwide.
The mausoleum is his tomb. It is the second-highest peak of Mount Lovcen, and it was his dying wish to be buried there. He said he didn’t want the highest peak since he wanted some future, better ruler of Montenegro to be buried there. There were no rulers to this day to be buried on the highest mountain top of Mount Lovcen.
Initially, there was a small church where Njegosh was buried, but it was bombed during World War II, so it was later rebuilt, and the master behind the mausoleum’s design was Croatian sculptor Ivan Mestrovic.
The Skadar Lake
The Balkan’s biggest lake. It is located in the southeast part of Montenegro, and its area is 2/3 in Montenegro, while the remaining 1/3 is in Albania.
Skadar Lake is a national park home to many protected species of fish and birds. It is the last remaining natural European habitat for Pelicans, Herons, and many other birds.
Many fishing villages around the lake are great tourist attractions. This includes Rijeka Crnojevica, Virpazar, and Radus, the deepest part of the lake with freshwater springs in the lake’s depths.
Tara River Canyon
The second deepest canyon in the world, right after the Grand Canyon! The Tara River flows through the canyon, the cleanest river in Europe, nicknamed “The Tear of Europe.” The river’s waters are turquoise blue, and you can drink water straight from the river.
The Bridge of Djurdjevica on Tara is one of the highest bridges in Europe, and it is a great place to take photos or even bungee jump! It was created 100 years ago, and its creator was forced to destroy it during World War II so the Germans couldn’t cross it. After the war, the bridge was rebuilt.
Sveti Stefan
Sveti Stefan, or St. Stephen, is a small luxury peninsula near the city of Budva. It is the most prestigious place in Montenegro and was visited by Beckhams, Dan Bilzerian, and many other celebrities.
Near the peninsula are The King’s and Queen’s beaches, two of the most beautiful beaches in Montenegro.
Porto Montenegro
Porto Montenegro is a luxury complex built by billionaire Peter Munk in the city of Tivat. It consists of elite hotels, Michelin-star restaurants, and high-end designer shops. The most beautiful part of this complex is the marina, where you can see some of the world’s most famous yachts, such as the Maltese Falcon.
Montenegro is a beautiful place hidden among the black mountains and blue sea. It is a place where a mountain wraith goes through your hair, and the Adriatic hugs you with a gentle touch of its waves, calling you to come and never leave.
