History

At the site of the present tower Spanjola were found fragments of pottery of the Illyrian people. To date are preserved toponyms of Greek origin - Skopelos, Otok (island), Igo, Igalo - Aigialos, Obala (coast), plaza (beach). Names that have been encountered in various forms of Greek origin: Dalafota, Dalafodum. The current Croatian name Lopud is derived from the Roman name of origin Lafota. The remains of the old Croatian culture from the 9th and 10th century are the pre-Romanesque chapels: St. Elias, John the Baptist, St. Nicholas. Many monuments and Dubrovnik historians assure us that the island of Lopud was a Croatian village already in the 9th century. It was probably a small fishing village, which was situated on the south-west of the island just at the point where we find old Croatian church St. Elijah.
Houses weren’t then built at sea for fear of troublesome pirates, especially those from Ulcinj and Turkey, who were then terrorizing the Adriatic Sea, and they were known by their ships which would burst into any coastal town to rob it. Lopud was largely exposed to incessant onslaughts, especially of those pirates who had their hiding places on the east side of the nearby island of Mljet. It is not surprising that this fishing village had no houses at the coast, but somewhere away on the hill. Later in the 15th and 16th century fortresses and defense towers were built. Since Lopud homes and property were not surrounded by massive walls, nearly every house on the coast was built as a small fort, both wings had loopholes, windows were built high and just above the entrance to the house was a so called roof ledge through which folks would throw burning pitch, hot oil and other deadly things on the enemy. Thus protected Lopud could peacefully and undisturbed continue to be developed by its seafarers, captains and sailors. Documents from the Dubrovnik archives indicate that in the sixteenth century Lopud had up to one hundred large commercial ships.