Consuls and the Consular Service of Dubrovnik (Communes) and the Dubrovnik Republic in the Hinterland of the Balkans (12th - 15th Century)

Srednjovjekovni će Dubrovnik već od XII. stoljeća usmjeriti razvoj trgovine kao važne gospodarske grane prema zemljama balkanskog zaleđa, gdje će biti osnovana prva naselja dubrovačkih trgovaca (trgovačke kolonije). Zbog nesređenih društveno-ekonomskih odnosa koji vladaju u zemljama balkanskog zaleđa vlasti u Dubrovniku, da bi osigurale prosperitet trgovine i pružile zaštitu stanovnicima trgovačkih kolonija, na njihovo će čelo postaviti konzula plemića. Izabrani konzuli Dubrovnika na Balkanu, osim funkcije zaštitnika interesa dubrovačke trgovine i trgovaca, obavljaju i funkciju konzula sudaca (tzv. jurisdikcijski konzuli). Rad konzularne službe na ovom području već od početka XIV. stoljeća pravno je normiran propisima „De ordinibus Consulis elligendi pro iure reddendo inter Racuseos in Sclauonia, Bosnia, Servia et Bulgaria“, čije je naslijeđe danas prisutno u suvremenim kodifikacijskim izvorima konzularnog i diplomatskog prava.From as early as the 12th century, medieval Dubrovnik guided the development of trade, as an important branch of the economy, towards the countries of the Balkan hinterland, where the first settlements of the merchants of Dubrovnik were established (merchants’ colonies). Due to the unregulated social and economic relations in the countries in the Balkan hinterland, the authorities in Dubrovnik, in order to ensure the prosperity of trade and provide protection to the inhabitants of the merchants’ colonies, appointed a consul-nobleman at their head. The elected consuls of Dubrovnik in the Balkans, in addition to the function of protecting the interests of trade and the merchants of Dubrovnik, also performed the function of consuls magistrates (also known as consuls of justice). The operation of the consular service in these areas from the beginning of the 14th century was legally regulated by a piece of legislation titled “De ordinibus Consulis elligendi pro iure reddendo inter Racuseos in Sclauonia, Bosnia, Servia et Bulgaria“, whose legacy can be seen even today in the modern codified sources of consular and diplomatic law