In the city of Pula, western Croatia

 “The Colosseum is a testament to the power and ambition of the Roman emperors.” -- Augustus

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(in western Croatia) Pula is found at the southern tip of the Istrian peninsula and is the area's largest city. Located beneath seven hills and with views of the Adriatic Sea, Pula's unspoiled natural surroundings are magical. Known for its mild climate and tame, beautiful sea, Pula also has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing, and shipbuilding. It is also home to many ancient Roman buildings, including the well-preserved, magnificent amphitheater.

+ A wealth of Roman architecture lifts otherwise-workaday Pula (ancient Polensium; Pola in Italian) from the humdrum. The star of the show is the remarkably well-preserved Roman amphitheater (shown here) in the heart of the city, which dominates the streetscape and doubles as a venue for summer concerts and festivals.

+ Pula, a major port and industrial center, lies at the southern tip of Istria at the head of the Bay of Pula and has a large, almost landlocked harbor in which there is a naval base and the Uljanik shipyards.
+ Conquered by Rome in the 2nd century BCE, Pula by the 2nd century CE was the seat of a Christian bishop, and in later centuries it was part of the territories of Byzantium, of the Franks, and of Venice. In 1380 the Genoese exacted revenge raids on Pula. Plagues reduced the population to only hundreds in the 1630s. Austria took the town in 1797; after 1866 it became the main harbor and arsenal of the Austro-Hungarian navy. It passed to Italy in 1920 and after 1947 became part of Croatia (then part of Yugoslavia).

+ Pula At the southern tip of the Istrian peninsula in northwestern Croatia, with a population of 52,220 in 2021. It is known for its multitude of ancient Roma  buildings, the most famous of which is the Pula Arena, one of the best preserved Roman amphitheaters. The city has a long tradition of wine making, fishing, shipbuilding, and tourism. (It was the administrative center of Istria from ancient Roman times until superseded by Pazin in 1991.

+ After World War II, the Istrian Italians of Pula left Yugoslavia towards Italy (a.k.a. the Istrian-Dalmatian exodus). For two years after 1945, Pula was administered by the Allied Military Government for Occupied Territories AMG). Pola formed an enclave within south Istria that was occupied by Yugoslavia since 1945 with the help of Churchill. The AMG was occupied by a company of the United States 351st Infantry and a British battalion of the 24th Guards Brigade. Istria was partitioned into occupation zones until the region became officially united with the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFR Yugoslavia) on 15 September 1947, under terms of the Paris Peace Treaties. The city became part of the Socialist Republic of Croatia, a federal state within SFR Yugoslavia, upon the ratification of the Paris Peace Treaties on 15 September 1947. Since the collapse of Yugoslavia in 1991, Pula has been part of the Republic of Croatia.