Homeland War Museum (Fort Imperial)

The Homeland War Museum occupies Fort Imperial on Mount Srd, the ridge that rises about 400 metres above Dubrovnik, Croatia. The French army built the fort in 1810 during the Napoleonic occupation of the former Republic of Ragusa, and it was later used by the Austrian army. On 6 December 1991 it became a focal point of the siege of Dubrovnik, when Croatian defenders held the fort against the Yugoslav People's Army, which was shelling the old town from the surrounding hills. The fort held out and the old town, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979, was damaged but preserved. The museum opened inside the fort, now part of the Dubrovnik Museums network, to document the siege from 1991 to 1992. Its displays include photographs of burning buildings and damaged streets, weapons and munitions, uniforms, personal belongings of defenders, press reports, maps and documents, with screens showing footage from the siege. A map of the old town marks the number of hits on each building, showing the scale of the bombardment, and the exhibition honours the civilians and defenders who died. The approach is documentary and chronological, with the fort's vaulted rooms and rooftop forming the setting, and it concentrates on the facts of the siege rather than interpretive theatre. From the rooftop terrace visitors have a sweeping view of the old town, the harbour and the islands, which helps explain how the artillery positions overlooked the city. A large cross on the summit, the cable car station and the fort sit close together. The museum is reached by cable car from near Ploče Gate, by taxi or on foot by a steep path, and information boards are in Croatian and English.