Rab: The Island of Four Bell Towers and the Founder of San Marino
Rab is a town on the island of the same name, in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Croatia. The municipality has 8,065 inhabitants (2021 census) and the island 7,161. The town of Rab, built on a narrow peninsula on the island's south-western coast, is famous for its four medieval bell towers that rise in a row above the historic core's skyline, creating a unique image on the Adriatic.
History Liburnian Illyrians inhabited Rab from 360 BC under the name Arba. Emperor Augustus elevated the city to municipium status in 10 BC, granting it the honorary title of felix ("fortunate"), the first such title awarded to a city in Roman Dalmatia. According to tradition, Saint Marinus —the founder of the Republic of San Marino— was born on Rab and fled the island in 301 AD to escape the persecution of Emperor Diocletian. Under Venice (1409–1797), Rab was an important commercial centre with up to 10,000 inhabitants. The island passed through Austrian, French, Italian, and Yugoslav rule before joining independent Croatia in 1991.
Heritage The Cathedral of St Mary the Blessed (13th century), whose Romanesque campanile is considered the finest on the eastern Adriatic, and the churches of St Andrew, St John the Evangelist, and St Justine —the last converted into a museum of sacred art— form the ensemble of four bell towers. King Edward VIII of England and his companion Wallis Simpson swam naked on Rab's beaches in 1936, helping spread the fame of naturism on the island, a tradition firmly rooted there today. The Medieval Rapska Fjera Festival (July) revives the Middle Ages with crossbow tournaments, artisans, and performances in the walled city.
Points of interest: - Population: 8,065 (municipality, 2021); 7,161 (island). - Getting there: Ferry from Stinica (mainland) or from the islands of Krk and Pag. The island was declared a Geopark in 2008.