Historical background to Opatija
The old Opatija used to live of fishing, it protected itself from pirate attacks that were often in those days on the Adriatic. Some traces of older days can be seen on some of the facades of the old houses. The houses of old Opatija, before its reconstruction in the 19th century, were grouped in a way, which protected them from the uncertainty of the coast. There were also rules on how and where to build houses since the pirates quite often attacked the coast. However, things changed rapidly in the 19th century when Opatija got a new appearance.
By the end of the 19th century Opatija was reconstructed. During that time Austro-Hungarian noblemen discovered mild and pleasant climate of Opatija Riviera as well as other advantages for tourism development. If we would like to sort out periods of its history, we could say that the new period in Opatija history started in 1844 when Hignio Scarpa, Rijeka's patrician, built villa Angiolina.