Brioni
dive site type: wreck
difficulty: difficult
depth range: 0-65 m (wreck 38-65 m)
distance from the diving center: 7 nm
short characteristic: a well-preserved, densely covered by yellow sponges, cargo-passengers wreck lying close to the islet of Ravnik and by many acclaimed as the most beautiful wreck of Vis
The history of the Balkans has been tumultuous basically from the ancient times. From the 14th to the beginning of the 20th century, most of the Balkan Peninsula was influenced by the Ottoman Empire. In the second half of the 19th century, Turkey lost almost all possessions in the Balkans, but it was not until 1912 that Albania gained independence as a result of the First Balkan War. Although countries situated on the Adriatic Coast differed politically, the years of common history, ethnic similarity and short distance resulted in lively economic relations. In the beginning of the 20th century trade between Croatia and Albania was booming, and numerous cargo and passenger ships sailed across the Adriatic Sea.
One of such ships was Brioni, built in 1909 in a shipyard in Monfalcone, located in the north of Italy, to the order of the biggest Austro-Hungarian transport company, the Österreichischer Lloyd. During the World War I the steamship along with the entire company to which it belonged, got into thr Italian hands and sailed as a cargo ship of the Italian navy. After the World War I and the fall of Austria-Hungary, the company remained Italian and continued to function under the name of Lloyd Triestino (since 2006 Italia Marittima, currently part of the Taiwanese conglomerate Evergreen Group). For six years after World War I, Brioni sailed in his fleet, to be sold in 1925 to the shipping company of Apulia (Societa di Navigazione a Vapore Puglia) and continue cargo and passenger cruises on the Adriatic.