Velebit in the Middle Ages
Velebit during the Medieval and Early Modern Period
Velebit in Middle Ages – all of this was gone after the fall of the Roman Empire, at the close of the ancient period and during the early Middle Ages. With the collapse of the Roman Empire these once wealthy urban centres went into decline and their once lively trade routes with the remote parts of the Empire were cut off. From this period and the time of arrival of Croats in the early Middle Ages (7th – 9th centuries) too little material or written evidence is available to allow us to reconstruct the historical processes. Here too, much room is left for future research. For now, we can only assume that the way of life had not changed significantly during this period.
The towns and villages in the foothills still depended for sustenance on their links with the interior and exploitation of all the available resources of mountain pastures, arable land, pathways, water sources etc. Only the government structure has changed from the global Roman Empire to the government structure of the Croatian Kingdom, embedded in the Austro-Croatian Kingdom since the 12th century, which was fragmented into individual smaller or larger feudal estates. During different periods of the medieval times, parts of the Velebit area were ruled by the members of the noble families of Kurjakovićs (southern Velebit), Frankopans – the rulers of the island of Krk (middle and northern Velebit) and others. Exploitation of forests was one of the main activities from which these noble families derived their wealth and power. Being the ruler of the Velebit area also meant being in control of the trade routes between the coastal and inland regions, but also to be able to utilize the vast expenses of forest and other resources provided by the mountain.
The immediate threat of Ottoman invasions during the 15th and the 16th centuries significantly influenced the course of history in this region. Being located at a border point, Velebit was caught in a vortex of interests of the powers of the time: Venice, Turkey (Ottoman Empire) and the Habsburg state. The vast expenses of the Velebit mountain thus became a scene of conflict, at the same time serving as a place of refuge and shelter, especially since the Ottoman invaders were never able to completely occupy and control this area.
During the early modern period (15th – 18th centuries) there was a new wave of settlement in the Velebit foothills, mostly by refugees from regions that were successively falling under Ottoman domination (Dalmatia, Lika, Herzegovina, Bosnia etc.). These people, whose descendents still inhabit these areas, soon embraced the way of life found in the regions they settled (which was probably similar to the way of life they had in the home regions they fled). They brought with them their knowledge, traditions, beliefs and culture, which became interwoven with the existing traditions of the past millennia, the material legacy carved into the slopes of Velebit. It is, of course, possible that at least a minimum number of people remained as direct bearers of material and non-material heritage.
Source: NP NORTHERN VELEBIT