After the death of the Illyrian King Agron, power was assumed by his wife Teuta, who ruled Illyria from 231 to 227 BC in place of her minor stepson, Pines. In 229 BC, she entered into a war with the Romans due to Illyrian piracy in the Adriatic.
There are many legends about Teuta and her courts. Among other things, it is mentioned that she stayed on Šolta and Hvar, in Ploče, and in Jezero near Jajce. In the Široki Brijeg area, it is said that King Agron built her a summer residence in Borak near the source of the Lištica River, where the remains of a fortress can still be found today.
Also, one of the legends says that after her defeat, the queen retreated to the fortress of Rhizon (Risan in the Bay of Kotor). Surrounded by Roman forces and unwilling to fall into their hands, she chose death by jumping from a cliff above Risan. From the cave that bears her name flows Sopot, a spring that appears only twice a year, which according to legend was created from Teuta's tears shed while watching the Romans conquer her kingdom. Groves of wild oleander, called Queen Teuta's flowers, grow in Risan. Legend says that they were brought to this region by Teuta's warriors who protected the fortress. They coated the tips of their arrows with the poisonous juice of the oleander (called “zlojesina”), which caused coma and death.
(Željka Šaravanja)
