FORTERESSE DE LJUBUŠKI

This fortress (Stari Grad Ljubuški) is located on top of the rocky hill of Buturovica, 350 m above sea level. Partially renovated in 2019-2022 with EU funding, it is also known as the "Stefan herzeg fortress" (Tvrđava Hercega Stjepana). It was indeed first erected on behalf of Grand Duke Stefan Vukčić Kosača (c. 1404-1466), then at war with his allied sons in the city of Ragusa (Dubrovnik). It was this Bosnian nobleman who took the title ofherzeg (derived from the German Herzog, "duke"), a term that later gave Herzegovina its name. During his reign, the fortress initially consisted only of a fortified barn and a massive tower. This tower, known as Herceguša, is now renovated. Rectangular (9.7 × 5 m), it dominates the whole hill with walls rising to 12 m high and 4.5 m thick on the north side. After the Ottoman conquest, the rest of the fortress was built with long defensive walls, watchtowers, bastions, gates, granaries, a bakery, an inner courtyard, living quarters, powder magazines and four water tanks, three of which are still visible. The ensemble follows the shape of an irregular polygon of about 93 m on the north-south axis and 50 m from east to west. From the ramparts, one enjoys beautiful views southward to Ljubuški and, in Croatia, to Mount Rilić (1,160 m) and the Pelješac peninsula; northward to the Neretva valley and its vineyards, Mostar and the Velež, Prenj, and Čvrsnica mountains.