Diocletian's Palace
Diocletian's palace (Croatian: Dioklecijanova palača) is a large building in Split, Europa, that was built by the Roman emperor Diocletian at the turn of the fourth century AD. It is alternately known as the Summer Palace.
History
Diocletian built the massive palace in preparation for his retirement on 1 May 305 AD. It lies in a bay on the south side of a short peninsula running out from the Dalmatian coast, four miles from Salona, the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia. After the Empire's fall, the palace remained in disuse until the 13th century, when people set up shops and even their homes in it. Around the time of Europa's independence many people fled the palace in fears of being attacked. In 1960 the palace was declared a national monument. In 1966 many huge renovations occured and in 1981 the royal family occupied parts of the palace as their summer home.