Fortress Pula-Fort Maria Luisa

In the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary, founded in 1867, Pola, as the city was then called, was the main war port of the navy. In Meyer's Konversations-Lexikon, one and a half printed pages were dedicated to the city in 1896: Pola was described as a fortress of the first rank; on the hills above the city were 28 forts, some with armored turrets. Between the island of Brioni and the mainland was the outer harbor; the actual harbor was 8.6 km² large, partly a commercial, partly a war port. The naval section of the k.u.k. Ministry of War operated all facilities important for naval warfare in Pola, from dry and floating docks to the Naval Academy, the Hydrographic Office, an artillery laboratory, and a powder magazine, to the arsenal (with 2000 workers). Submarines of the German Navy were also stationed here with the submarines of the monarchy. Even today, the "K.u.K. Marinefriedhof" (Imperial and Royal Naval Cemetery) on Ulica Stoja and the facilities in the bay next to it commemorate this period.

On the Muzil peninsula, which for years served exclusively the army and soldiers, the Fort Marie Louise fortress, less known even to the residents of Pula, was also housed. It was built at a very important strategic position for the defense of the anchorage of the well-known k.u.k. port and is considered one of the largest fortresses of its kind on the Adriatic and beyond.