Palace of Ivan Burović – “Burovina”

The imposing Palace of Ivan Burović used to stand at a prominent site in the southwest part of Herceg Novi, near St. Anthony’s monastery. The building was named “Burovina” after it owner Ivan Burović. Ivan Burović was from Perast and he gained fame as the leader of 360 people of Perast during the liberation of Herceg Novi from Turkish rule in 1687. The Venetian Republic rewarded him for this deed with the house of the Turkish “dizdar” (commander) Mahmut Bašić, together with his whole estate in the surroundings of Herceg Novi. At the end of the 17th century, Ivan Burović reconstructed the house, turning it into a palace. The Burović family was related to the Zmajević family of Perast because one of the three daughters of Matija Zmajević, the famous seaman and Russian admiral, was married to Count Burović.
That was the reason why the famous library of Archbishop Andrija Zmajević was transferred from Perast to the Burović Palace in the 18th century, when all male heirs of the Zmajević family died out. Unfortunately, the library which was said to be one of the largest in Dalmatia, with books on theology, history and literature, was destroyed by fire together with the palace in 1806. It happened during the campaign fought by the combined forces of Russia, Montenegro and Boka Kotorska against French rule in the Bay. According to data from the Parish Archives of Herceg Novi, Russian soldiers set fire to the palace because they feared the French, led by General Marmont, might take the palace and use it as a base for the conquest of Herceg Novi which was then held by the Russians.

Thanks to the efforts of Frano-Učelini Tice, the Bishop of Kotor, in 1910 the palace was restored and converted into the Institute for Girls’ Education. After that, for a longer period, a primary school was based in the palace.

Burovina was torn down after the earthquake of 1979 and Park Hall was constructed on its site. One building which used to be part of the Burovina complex, today houses the theatre of Herceg Novi.