The Historical Geography of Croatia: Territorial Change and Cultural Landscapes (Historical Geography and Geosciences)

This monograph gives a comprehensive but in-depth analysis of the territorial development of Croatia and historical processes of significant spatial impact. It covers the millennial time span – from prehistory till the present, through relevant periods, e.g., prehistory, antiquity, Middle Ages, period of Ottoman progression and retreat, Post-Ottoman period of development of the Central European railway network, the period of South Slavic political associations (old and new Yugoslavia), and the post-Yugoslav period of independent Croatia. The book is highly illustrated with maps and figures. It is written by scholars from the region, based on the original research and the vast body of literature. It is one of the only books in English that interprets the overall development of the territory and cultural landscape of Croatia. Its scientific but comprehensive approach makes it of use to scholars, students and anyone interested in historical and geographical processes and features of Croatia and the Balkan region. Foreword Preface Translator’s Note Contents 1 Introduction—The Territory Abstract 1.1 Croatia—Territory and the Process of Bordering 1.1.1 The Position of Croatia Within Europe and the Mediterranean 1.1.2 The Formation of Contemporary Croatian Borders 1.2 Outline of the Environmental Setting 1.2.1 Landforms 1.2.1.1 The Pannonian Basin 1.2.1.2 The Dinarides (Dinaric System) 1.2.1.3 Coast and Sea-Level Change 1.2.2 Climatic-Vegetation Areas 1.2.2.1 Peri-Pannonian/Pannonian Area 1.2.2.2 Dinaric Area 1.2.2.3 Mediterranean Area References 2 Prehistory—The Early Interactions Between Humans and Their Environment Abstract 2.1 Paleolithic—Human Interactions with the Environment Prior to the Holocene 2.2 Human Relations with the Environment in the Neolithic 2.2.1 The Development and Definition of the First Settlement Zones in the Neolithic 2.3 Geographical Origins of Indo-European Migrations 2.4 Environmental Priorities in the Aeneolithic—Mountains and Hillforts References 3 Antiquity—The First Model of Territorial Organisation Abstract 3.1 The Spatial Impact of Ancient Greek Colonisation 3.2 Ancient Roman Civilization as a Turning Point in the Formation of the Cultural Landscape 3.2.1 The Urban Network as the Main Bearer of Spatial Organisation 3.2.1.1 Town and ager—The Functional Whole 3.2.2 The Transportation System—A Crucial Element of Spatial Organisation and Transformation 3.2.3 Administrative Organisation as an Element of Spatial Transformation 3.2.4 The Geographical Heritage of Roman Antiquity—Cultural Landscape, Toponymy, and Regional Concepts References 4 Early Middle Ages and the Croatian State—Spatial Organisation and a New Cultural Landscape Abstract 4.1 Deurbanisation and Decline of the Roman Cultural Landscape 4.2 Historical–Geographical Implications of Slavic Colonisation 4.3 Primary Geopolitical Nuclei and Territorial Organisation in the Context of New Environmental Values 4.4 Beyond the Nucleus—Conceptualisation of Croatian Historical Regions 4.5 Župa (Comitatus)—The Primary Territorial Unit 4.6 Pagania—Integration of Bordering Principalities 4.7 Landscape Change—The Duality of Adriatic and Continental Croatia 4.8 Population Change as a Consequence of Slavic Colonisation References 5 High Middle Ages—Economic and Political Stabilisation, Re-urbanisation, and Regional Differentiation Abstract 5.1 New Geopolitical Nuclei and Development of the Geographical Concepts of Croatian Regions 5.2 Slavonia—Urban and Transportation Networks as Indicators of Political and Economic Change 5.3 Adriatic Croatia South of Gvozd 5.3.1 Dalmatia—Changes in the Spatial Concept; Urban and Economic Continuity 5.3.1.1 The Venetian Republic—An Emerging Spatial, Economic, and Political Power in the Adriatic 5.3.2 Dubrovnik 5.3.3 Istria—A Political and Cultural Contact Area 5.4 Historical–Geographical Developments of Neighbouring Lands in the Middle Ages 5.4.1 The Geographical Nucleus and Spatial Developments of the Bosnian State 5.4.2 Medieval Serbia References 6 Ottoman Conquest and Its Impact on Territorial Reduction and Spatial Change of Croatian Territory Abstract 6.1 The Medieval European Feudal Crisis as a Prerequisite of Spatial Disintegration 6.2 Ottoman Conquests in Europe 6.3 Croatian Lands Under Ottoman Rule 6.3.1 Territorial Organisation of Ottoman Croatia 6.4 The Impact of Ottoman Conquests on the Development of the Spatial Concepts of Croatian Regions 6.5 Elements of the New Cultural Landscape 6.5.1 Urban Development—The Oriental-Islamic Town 6.6 Croatian Borderlands 6.7 Migration Flows as a Consequence of Ottoman Conquests 6.7.1 Vlachs/Wallachians/Morlachs—the People and the Territory References 7 The Early Modern Era—Ottoman Decline Abstract 7.1 Internal Degeneration of the Ottoman State 7.2 New Prosperity in Christian Europe 7.3 The Military Frontier—A New Territorial Entity 7.4 Cultural Landscape Change Along the Military Frontier and in Civil Croatian Territories 7.5 Ottoman Territorial Retreat and the Development of a New Border 7.5.1 Implications for the Spatial Concept of the Slavonia Region 7.6 The New Pannonian–Adriatic Developmental Axis and Its Implication for the Cultural Landscape of Slavonia and the Military Frontier 7.7 The Cultural Landscape of Dalmatia—A Reflection of the Venetian Politics 7.7.1 The Impact of Land Reform on Migration and the Cultural Landscape of the Venetian Acquisto Nuovo 7.7.2 Manufacturing, Transportation, and Commerce 7.7.3 Population 7.8 The Republic of Ragusa (Dubrovnik) and Istria—Developments and Crisis in the Borderlands 7.9 The Urban Network 7.10 Settlement and Landscape Change as a Consequence of the Ottoman Territorial Retreat References 8 Spatial Impacts of Industrial Development Within the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy Abstract 8.1 The Political–Geographical Context of Change Under Austria–Hungary 8.2 Political and Regional Divides Within the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy 8.3 Railway Networks—Implications of the Three Railway Concepts for the Territory of Croatia 8.3.1 The Austrian Railway Network 8.3.2 The Hungarian Railway Network 8.3.3 The Bosno-Herzegovinian Narrow-Gauge Railway Network 8.4 Industrialisation, Urbanisation, and Regional Differentiation of Economic Development 8.5 Croatia Proper—Under the Direct Rule of Croatia’s Ban 8.6 The Impact of Political–Geographical Marginality on the Development of Istria and Dalmatia 8.7 Industry—the Urban Network 8.8 Population Changes—Great Migration Waves References 9 Croatia Within South-Slavic Political Associations Abstract 9.1 Croatia Within the Yugoslav Monarchy—A Continentally-Oriented Agrarian Land 9.1.1 Integration and Disintegration Processes 9.1.2 Croatia’s Significance Within the Yugoslav State in Terms of Transportation 9.1.3 Economic-Geographical Development 9.1.4 New Developments and Hierarchy Within the Urban Network 9.2 The Transformation of the Spatial Structure of Croatia Within the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) 9.2.1 Political–Geographical Integration Processes 9.2.2 Post-WWII Restoration and Development 9.2.3 Population Flows 9.2.4 The New Urban Network and the Foundation of the Nodal Regional Structure 9.2.5 Cultural Landscape Change 9.2.6 Spatial Implications of the New Administrative Organisation References 10 Stepping Out of the Past—Developmental Tendencies of Croatia Since the 1990s Abstract 10.1 The Political–Geographical Context of Change 10.2 The Geographical Dimension of the Croatian War of Independence 10.3 The Geographical Dimension of the Economic Transition 10.4 The Change of Administrative Organisation 10.5 Urban Network Development Tendencies and Change in Gravitational and Nodal Relations 10.6 Integration Processes and Their Implications for Economic Development and Quality of Life 10.7 Closure References This monograph gives a comprehensive but in-depth analysis of the territorial development of Croatia and historical processes of significant spatial impact. It covers the millennial time span -- from prehistory till the present, through relevant periods, e.g., prehistory, antiquity, Middle Ages, period of Ottoman progression and retreat, Post-Ottoman period of development of the Middle European railway network, the period of South Slavic political associations (old and new Yugoslavia), and the post-Yugoslav period of independent Croatia. The book is highly illustrated with maps and figures. It is written by scholars from the region, based on the original research and the vast body of literature. It is one of the only books in English that interprets the overall development of the territory and cultural landscape of Croatia. Its scientific but comprehensive approach makes it of use to scholars, students and anyone interested in historical and geographical processes and features of Croatia and the Balkan region