Paz

Paz, historically known as Passo or Passberg, is a small village and ruined castle located in the municipality of Cerovlje within Istria County, Croatia. Situated in the north-eastern part of the Istrian peninsula, the settlement lies near an ancient trade route that once served as the shortest passage through the valley between the Boljunčica and Pazinčica rivers. First documented in the 12th century as part of the Aquileia church estates under the name Paas, the site gained strategic importance in the 1290s when Friedrich of Eberstein received it as a feud and initiated the construction of a fortress. The location later became integral to the Jozefina road built in 1785, which connected Učka to Pazin, solidifying its role in regional transit.

The castle possesses a turbulent history marked by shifts in ownership and military conflict. After remaining with the Eberstein family until 1374, it passed to the Habsburg Pazin principality and was subsequently managed by the Walderstein family. During the War of the League of Cambrai in 1508, Venetian forces conquered and burned the structure. It was recaptured the following year by Austrian general Krsto Frankopan and eventually inherited by the Barbo family. In the late 16th century, Messaldo Barbo renovated the damaged Gothic fort into a Renaissance fortified residence, a transformation evidenced by historical inscriptions. Today, Paz is a quiet village with a population of roughly 62 people, where the castle remains in a ruined state, standing as a testament to the region's complex medieval and early modern heritage.