engleski

Changes in the size and use of forests of Slavonia during Ottoman rule

During Ottoman rule in the region of Slavonia, i.e. from 1526 to 1691, Slavonia abounded in large areas of forests. More than 70% of the total area of Slavonia was under forest. It was a sparsely populated region in which forests were utilized for military needs during Ottoman-Habsburg wars and for the individual needs of civilians. With time, agricultural expansion, war industry and construction of fortifications led to deforestation, especially around fortresses and settlements. In the bibliography on the Ottoman-Habsburg frontier one can find assertions about the aggressive deforestation caused by both warring sides. The aim of this work is to dispute these assertions through the analysis of unpublished and published sources, both Christian and Ottoman, and bibliography on the history of Slavonia in the Ottoman period. A number of questions are posed: how large were the forest areas of Slavonia during Ottoman rule, what was their geographical location and spatial extent, and what changed after the Ottoman withdrawal? The conclusions are that the Slavonian forest areas were huge and heavily used by the military and civilians but with little effect on the quantity of forests, whose spatial distribution remained almost intact throughout the Ottoman period. The only visible change occurred on the Habsburg-Ottoman border in Western Slavonia, where the military needs changed the situation significantly in favor of the forest fund and to the detriment of a hitherto well populated area. The Slavonian forest fund experienced reduction only after the end of Ottoman rule.

Ottoman Empire; Slavonia; forests; war industry; deforestation

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