Antonio Bajamonti (19February 182213January 1891) was an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

and

Dalmatian Italian Dalmatian Italians (; ) are the historical Italian national minority living in the region of Dalmatia, now part of Croatia and Montenegro. Historically, Italian language-speaking Dalmatians accounted for 12.5% of population in 1865, 5.8% in 18 ...

politician and longtime

mayor of Split The Mayor of the City of Split (), colloquially the ''Poteštat'' (derived from "''podestà''"), is the highest official of the Croatian city of Split, Croatia, Split. From 1990 to 2007 the mayor was elected by the city assembly. Since 2007 Croati ...

. He is remembered as one of the most successful mayors of the city, occupying the post almost continuously for twenty years (1860–1880). He was a

medical doctor A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the study, diagnosis, prognosis ...

by profession. Bajamonti's parents were Giuseppe Bajamonti (Pretorial Chancellor of Vis) and Elena Candido of

Šibenik Šibenik (), historically known as Sebenico (), is a historic town in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka (Croatia), Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is one of the oldest Croatia, Croatian self-governing cities ...

Mayor of Split

Bajamonti became

Mayor of Split The Mayor of the City of Split (), colloquially the ''Poteštat'' (derived from "''podestà''"), is the highest official of the Croatian city of Split, Croatia, Split. From 1990 to 2007 the mayor was elected by the city assembly. Since 2007 Croati ...

on 9January 1860 for the

Autonomist Party The Autonomist Party (; ) was an Italian-Dalmatianist political party in the Dalmatian political scene, that existed for around 70 years of the 19th century and until World War I. Its goal was to maintain the autonomy of the Kingdom of Dalmati ...

(succeeding

Šimun de Michieli-Vitturi Simeone de Michieli-Vitturi was a Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notabl ...

) and stayed in office until 1864, when he was relieved because of his opposition to

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n centralism. He was replaced by Frano Lanza, but in 1865 he united with the People's Party into the Liberal Union and won the elections again. He would go on to hold the post for over two decades, until 1880, when he retired from office and was succeeded by Aleksandar Nallini, another Autonomist. After democratic reforms allowed for a greater part of the populace to vote, Bajamonti's Autonomist Party lost the 1882 elections. Croatian Dalmatians, who made up the majority of the population of Split, were able to influence the vote sufficiently and a People's Party mayor was elected,

Dujam Rendić-Miočević The Mayor of the City of Split (), colloquially the ''Poteštat'' (derived from "''podestà''"), is the highest official of the Croatian city of Split. From 1990 to 2007 the mayor was elected by the city assembly. Since 2007 Croatian mayors have b ...

, a prominent Split lawyer.

Diet of Dalmatia

Bajamonti was also a member of the

Diet of Dalmatia The Diet of Dalmatia (, ) was the regional assembly of the Kingdom of Dalmatia within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was founded in Zadar in 1861 and last convened in 1912, before being formally dissolved in 1918, with the demise of the Empire. ...

(1861–91) and the Austrian Chamber of Deputies (1867–70 and 1873–79). He married Alojzija Kružević on 6October 1849. For many years Bajamonti enjoyed the support of Croats and Italians and in this period of relative social peace was the propeller of important public works. In 1859, before his election, he built a public theatre with his own money. During his administration, gas lighting was installed instead of oil, the Society for the construction and embellishment of Split was established, the west wing of the representative building on the Prokurative square was built and the old Diocletian's aqueduct waterworks were renovated. For his initiative Split was also equipped with a square surrounded by galleries. His most famous work was the construction of a large fountain that was named later after him. Three months after the second opening the fountain Antonio Bajamonti died. The fountain was demolished in 1947 by city authorities as a symbol of

fascism Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...

and Italian occupation. Bajamonti instituted the policy Dalmatian Society (1886) and Società Accommodation Split (1888), until, severely indebted, died in his hometown on 13January 1891. When he died, the information about his death was displayed in almost all the press in Italy.

Mayor of Split

Diet of Dalmatia

See also

References

Further reading