Authors

Cathie Carmichael¹;  ¹ University of East Anglia, UK

Discussion

After 1685, a state border traversed the lower Neretva River (between Počitelj and the Adriatic). cutting through both the surrounding hills, with a border post at the fortress of Gabela. Reputed to one of the most malaria-stricken regions in Europe, it was easy to see the territory on either side from raised ground and to cross the border through smaller unguarded passes. The populations on either side continued to communicate and trade; regular caravans left the coast for Mostar carrying salt. Traditional customs, fishing, and transhumant routes united people on the border. Turmoil opened up the lower Neretva region as the reorganisation of the Eyalet of Hercegovina after 1851 led to prolonged instability in the region which drove people to towards the coast. In 1852, the Habsburg authorities in Dalmatia deported six deserters and one common criminal at Unka back to Ottoman territory. 23 years later as instability continued, Gabela and the villages around Hutovo blato were the at the epicentre of a rebellion that emptied the wider region, and some 2000 refugees fled to Metković living as a precarious minority just a few miles from their homes. Many homes on the Ottoman side of the border were then destroyed by fire or demolished. By 1878 the Habsburg regime had capitalised on Ottoman weakness at the Treaty of Berlin, launching its military occupation via the lower Neretva. By 1882, when other parts of Hercegovina were in rebellion, the Neretva region was rapidly pacified. In this paper, I will assess the impact of the crisis years on both sides of the old border.