Gardens of the Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg on the Island of Lokrum near Dubrovnik

What is it about?

In the second half of the 19th century, the island of Lokrum, Lacroma, has been bought by the Austrian archduke, Ferdinand Maximilian Joseph the I. (1832-1867), a member of the Habsburg-Lothringen dynasty, at that time the supreme commander of the Austrian navy, and since 1864 Mexican Emperor. Maximilian turned the whole island into a unique landscaped area with elements of a botanical garden. His idea was to establish an experimental station for acclimatizing exotic species at the island Lacroma. Maximilian already had an Imperial residence on the Adriatic coast - the Miramare Castle near Trieste, therefore Island Lacroma residence has been formed as an Empire countryside castle, yet the island has been Maximilian's favorite residence. Maximilian was intensively planing enhancements and renovations of the gardens and Lacroma castle even during his residence in remote Mexico. Maximilian commissioned projects from his royal architects and landscape architects for Lacroma Island. By analyzing and comparing the above projects, the Austrian Cadastre from 1837 and it's reambulation from 1876, the paper introduces the scale of the garden interventions on the island that was carried out during Maximilian's time. Considering the scope of the project, the conceptual design and the size of the investment, Maximilian's intervention is a unique and the most significant monument of 19th-century landscape architecture in the city of Dubrovnik. This article seeks to contribute to the recognition of the importance of Maximilian's imperial gardens on Lokrum, on the global map of Habsburg empire residences.

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Why is it important?

Research is important because defines principles for restoration of gardens on the Island Lokrum from the second half od the 19th century. For the first time are presented original plans for the Island and authors who realitet Maximilian s ideas.