 It is recorded that the galley-fleet of Pope Alexander III landed on Palagruža on 9 March 1177.In the 15th and 16th centuries, there was a rise in fishing in the area, making the island the centre of a traditional fishing-ground of the community of Komiža, island of Vis, Croatia.Palagruža is closer to Italy than to the Croatian mainland, being some from Monte Gargano.