Via de Zenta, known simply as Zeta was a medieval road connecting the Adriatic with Nemanjić'

House of Nemanjic

The Nemanjić was the most important dynasty of Serbia in the Middle Ages, and one of the most important in Southeastern Europe. The royal house produced eleven Serbian monarchs between 1166 and 1371. It's progenitor was Stephen Nemanja, who descended from a cadet line of the Vukanović dynasty...

 Serbia

Serbia

Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

 (see Serbian Grand Principality, Kingdom, Empire

Serbian Empire

The Serbian Empire was a short-lived medieval empire in the Balkans that emerged from the Serbian Kingdom. Stephen Uroš IV Dušan was crowned Emperor of Serbs and Greeks on 16 April, 1346, a title signifying a successorship to the Eastern Roman Empire...

). It started from the mouth of the Bojana, the Skadar port, (alternatively Bar

Bar

-Food and drink:* Bar , a retail establishment that serves alcoholic beverages* Bar , the counter at which drinks are served by a bartender* Dessert bar, a type of cookie-Law:...

 then Cetinje

Cetinje

Cetinje , Цетиње / Cetinje , Italian: Cettigne, Greek: Κετίγνη, Ketígni) is a town and Old Royal Capital of Montenegro. It is also a historical and the secondary capital of Montenegro , with the official residence of the President of Montenegro...

) along the Drin Valley

Drin Valley

The Drin valley is a valley in northern and eastern Albania along the Drin river....

 to Prizren

Prizren

Prizren is a historical city located in southern Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and district.The city has a population of around 131,247 , mostly Albanians...

, then to Lipljan, then through Novo Brdo

Novo Brdo

Novo Brdo is a town and municipality in the Pristina district of eastern Kosovo. The population of the municipality is estimated at 6,720 people .-History:...

 to Vranje

Vranje

Vranje is a city and municipality located in southern Serbia. In 2011 the city has total population of 82,782, while the urban area has 54,456...

 and Niš

Niš

Niš is the largest city of southern Serbia and third-largest city in Serbia . According to the data from 2011, the city of Niš has a population of 177,972 inhabitants, while the city municipality has a population of 257,867. The city covers an area of about 597 km2, including the urban area,...

. The Republic of Venice

Republic of Venice

The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...

 and Ragusa

Republic of Ragusa

The Republic of Ragusa or Republic of Dubrovnik was a maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik in Dalmatia , that existed from 1358 to 1808...

 used the road for trade with Serbia and Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

. The road ended its use with the conquering of this part of Serbia by the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 (1392), the Ottomans had earlier conquered the southern provinces of Macedonia

Macedonia (region)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...

 (1371), beginning their European conquest in Gallipoli

Fall of Gallipoli

The fall of Gallipoli to the Ottomans occurred in March of 1354. After suffering a half-century of a string of defeats at the hands of the Ottomans, the Byzantines had lost nearly all of their possessions in Anatolia...

 (1354).

The Venetian traders, who were the most using this road, used it for export

Export

The term export is derived from the conceptual meaning as to ship the goods and services out of the port of a country. The seller of such goods and services is referred to as an "exporter" who is based in the country of export whereas the overseas based buyer is referred to as an "importer"...

 of wheat, animals, silver and grape from Serbia and Bulgaria to Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

. It was the second most important communication link by land of Ragusa. The other road connecting hinterland Serbia with the Adriatic was that from Niš, through the mining-oblast

Oblast

Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...

s of Kopaonik

Kopaonik

Kopaonik ; is one of the larger mountain ranges of Serbia. It is located in the central part of Serbia, while a small portion extendeds to North Kosovo. Its highest point, Pančić's Peak, is above sea level....

. From Niš continued the ancient Roman road of Via Militaris

Via Militaris

Via Militaris or Via Diagonalis was an ancient Roman road, starting from Singidunum , passing by Danube coast to Viminacium , through Naissus , Serdica , Philippopolis , Adrianopolis , and reaching Constantinople...

 all the way to Constantinople

Constantinople

Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

. Two other [smaller] roads were those to the northeast: one from the canyons of the Neretva

Neretva

Neretva is the largest river of the eastern part of the Adriatic basin. It has been harnessed and controlled to a large extent by four HE power-plants with large dams and their storage lakes, but it is still recognized for its natural beauty, diversity of its landscape and visual...

, the other from Split, over the Dinarides through Klis

Klis

Klis is a village located around a mountain fortress bearing the same name. It is located in central Dalmatia, Croatia, located just northeast of Solin and Split near the eponymous mountain pass...

 and Sinj

Sinj

Sinj is a town in the continental part of Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia. The town itself has a population of 11,448, while the population of the administrative municipality which includes surrounding villages is 24,832 ....

, to Bosnia

Bosnia (region)

Bosnia is a eponomous region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It lies mainly in the Dinaric Alps, ranging to the southern borders of the Pannonian plain, with the rivers Sava and Drina marking its northern and eastern borders. The other eponomous region, the southern, other half of the country is...

.

It had an important cultural role as in connecting the hinterlands with the Adriatic cities which also had a Latin population, and Venice.

Sources

• Prince Stephan Lazar Eugene Lazarovich-Hrebelianovich, The Servian people:their past glory and their destiny, Vol 1, p. 298, C. Scribner's sons, 1910
• Dimitri Obolensky, Vizantijski komonvelt, pt. 13
• Francis W. Carter, Dubrovnik (Ragusa): a classic city-state, pp. 141-142, Seminar Press, 1972