engleski

Josephinic Beschreibung des Warasdiner Generalats (1783): Perception of a Traditional Society between Militarization and Sustainable Development

The paper examined a narrative source that evaluated the conditions and the introduction of reforms in the Croatian Military Frontier, more precisely in the Varaždin Generalate (situated in present-day north-west Croatia). The Description of the Varaždin Generalate was written by a military official in 1783. The paper aimed to outline the Habsburg perception of the Military Frontier area and its people at the end of the 18th century, based on the mentioned document. The author focused on several groups of research questions relevant for determining cultural identifiers in a society living amid permanent preparation for war and attempts to organize sustainable social and economic development. The Beschreibung could also be seen as a narrative on the formation of identities in the frontier society, on the basis of its dual function - military and agrarian.

Croatian Military Frontier; Habsburg Monarchy; 18th century; reform; society; cultural identity

ASEEES - Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies