The military border


The Serbs who fled from their captured country continued to fight against the Turks in the territory of Hungary, Austria and the Venetian Republic. They inhabited the Military Border, which Austrian rulers from parts of Croatian lands had organized militarily as protection against the Turks.

The Military Border area was continually expanded and there were a number of such areas. The military district from the coast to the Kupa with Zumberak made up the Croatian Border Area which was named after its seat, Karlovac general headquarters and followed by the Coastal Border Area, which spread from the coast to Kapele and dependant on the Karlovac general headquarters; Banska Border Area from Karlovac to Invanic to the Drava River, afterwards also known as the Varazdin general headquarters.

The villages encompassed within the Military Border had no obligations towards the Croatian feudal lords since their contribution towards the state was its warriors and in the administrative sense, they were subjugated to the ruler as their supreme commander. In 1630 the “Vlaski Statute” (Statuta Valachorum) officially recognized certain privileges for the Serbs in order to establish a more liberal and peaceful life for them. In the 18th century there were 30 attempts to regulate and make the border area more contemporary, which shows that Austria was unable to find a final solution. The Military Border was demilitarized in 1873.

The life of the border guards developed into an endless battlefield where they often clashed not only with the Turks but also with the Croatian gentry, which found it hard to renounce its revenues from the border village estates. The border area soldiers were settled into wooden fortresses joined by enclosed porches. The border guards warned others of imminent danger with shots fired from the enclosed porches. The houses were made of wood, covered with mud and straw or reed mace and cane. They had one room without a floor, which served as a room, kitchen and stall. The hearth was situated in the middle, which was used for cooking and heating. Filed along the walls were wooden beds covered with straw.

The best looking houses belonged to the clergy and officers. Their houses had a number of rooms, a kitchen and auxiliary rooms, and they also had built-in furnaces. Those furnaces were made of clay tiles, made up of a hundred to two hundred pieces with openings towards the rooms.


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