Abstract

This historical account provides a detailed 18th century picture of the social, political, and military conditions along the Venetian-Ottoman frontier in the territories surrounding Cattaro, Castelnovo, Budua, Spizza, Antivari, and the neighbouring Montenegrin highlands. The author describes a frontier society characterised by persistent blood feuds, territorial disputes, violence, and weak central authority, in which Venetian officials were repeatedly required to mediate between their own subjects and neighbouring Ottoman populations.

Particular attention is given to the Pastrovichi, the inhabitants of Spizza and Antivari, the Montenegrins, Albanians formerly resident in Cattaro, and the mixed Albanian-Croatian forces known as the Ultramarini. The text also reveals the pragmatic character of Venetian frontier governance: arbitration, financial compensation, expulsion, diplomatic negotiation, patronage, pensions, and religious authority were all employed to preserve stability.

The author portrays the Montenegrins as nominal Ottoman subjects who nevertheless exercised considerable autonomy, while simultaneously recognising the strategic importance of maintaining their goodwill. The discussion of Albanian-Montenegrin feuds further demonstrates how individual killings could produce wider cycles of collective retaliation.

Finally, the description of the Ultramarini illustrates the military value of Albanian and Croatian populations to the Venetian state, despite their perceived resistance to formal military discipline. Taken together, the account portrays the eastern Adriatic frontier not as a clearly divided border between states, but as a complex zone of overlapping jurisdictions, ethnic communities, personal loyalties, economic interests, and inherited conflicts.

Venetian Administration and the Management of the Frontier

An equally important figure is the Superintendent of the County of Cattaro, Stephan Vragen. He is responsible not only for handling dispatches to and from Constantinople but also for the crucial task of dealing with the subjects of the upper province—Montenegrins and Turks—whenever disputes or conflicts arise among them that might disturb the peace.

While these people may appear gentle and mild-mannered on the surface, they are in reality extremely unrestrained, hot-headed, and difficult to manage—however brave and well-disposed toward the Republic they may otherwise be. True to this temperament, the inhabitants of the Bocche di Cattaro, in particular, are cruel and unforgiving in their private feuds.

Blood Feuds and the Risano–Crivota Disputes

Attempts are made to pacify them through arbitration, yet peace rarely lasts long, for they hold to the barbaric custom whereby the vow to avenge the blood of a murdered kinsman is passed down to one’s heirs. The only disputes existing between these subjects and the Turks are those that have long persisted between the inhabitants of Risano and Crivota.

They inhabit rugged, rocky terrain and lack sufficient arable land to derive a livelihood from it; consequently, for many years, they have cultivated—as tenants and lessees paying an agreed annual fee—the neighboring fields belonging to the Captains of Clobuch and Nirich. During my stay in Cattaro, I had to listen to numerous complaints and grievances from these two and other commanders.

Although I succeeded in appeasing the Turks and persuading them to come to Cattaro within a set timeframe—where their adversaries would also be summoned to settle their disputes before the Extraordinary Provveditore—murders and killings soon broke out again, and there was reason to fear that further conflicts might arise from this.

The Turks, the Pasha of Bosnia, and Venetian Arbitration

Yet, only a few weeks ago, the Pasha of Bosnia sent an Aga to me with an escort of horsemen; he wrote a sensible letter asking me to dispatch someone—just as he intended to send someone to the border at Castelnovo—to investigate the matter and resolve it by providing full satisfaction to the aggrieved and burdened parties, thereby sparing them the need to appeal to the Porte.

I accepted his proposal, informed the Extraordinary Provveditore, and instructed him to exert all his efforts—with the assistance of the Superintendent Wrackien—to bring the matter to a conclusion by August.

The Spizzanotti, Pastrovichi, and the Disputes with Antivari

Troublesome disputes between our subjects of Pastrovichi and the neighboring Turks of Spizza and Antivari stemmed from a similar source. When I visited this region during my very first year, I entered into negotiations with the Captain of Antivari.

He is a very reasonable yet self-interested man, with whom I soon settled everything in Castelnovo. Aga Osman appeared on behalf of the Turks of Spizza and Antivari, and Colonel Dominicus Bubich on behalf of the Pastrovichi; a settlement was quickly reached.

This is the approach one must take on all such occasions. If the honor of the Republic is to be upheld, then in any settlement of disputes with the Turks, there must always be someone present to act as an advocate and representative for the subjects—handling the payouts and arranging for other forms of redress.

Pastrovichi and the Alienation of Venetian Land Rights

However, I have forbidden the Pastrovichi from selling or mortgaging any further land to their neighbors; otherwise, they invariably alienate state rights as well, effectively doing nothing but further constricting this small yet vitally important territory, where such loyal and well-behaved subjects who have no other fault than being divided into factions among themselves—thereby becoming a burden to both themselves and their neighbors.

Budua and the Killing of a Man from Antivari

When, some months ago, a man from Antivari was killed at the seaport of Budua and the Captain of Antivari lodged a complaint, I ordered the expulsion of the Nicolicowich brothers, who bore the greatest blame for the incident.

At the same time, however, I instructed the local governor to inform the people of Paštrovići that they should enter into negotiations with the Captain himself, so that the relatives of the murdered man might be satisfied and so that the blood feud they threatened might be averted if possible—a matter about which I also informed the Bailo.

Montenegro: Nominal Ottoman Subjects Beyond Effective Authority

The wild nature and insolence of our own subjects are to blame for the fact that our neighbors are incensed and that disturbances are constantly being stirred up in the upper province. Far more troublesome to the territories of Cattaro and Castelnovo than the Turks themselves are the wild peoples of Montenegro; although they are subjects of the Ottoman Porte, they yield no obedience and pay no tribute.

While the Republic may court them in hopes of securing their friendship in the event of war, they act as enemies even in peacetime, committing almost daily acts of hostility and robbery to the detriment of the subjects of the Bocche.

Venetian Gifts, Pensions, and Montenegrin Chieftains

Having shown such ingratitude for the Republic’s grace and generosity, it was previously deemed best to discontinue their pensions; yet, as it remains in the State’s interest to keep them reasonably satisfied, I was ordered to present their chieftains, counts, and bishop with the customary gifts—cloth, money, and the like—as a token of the Republic’s appreciation for their attitude.

At the same time, I urged them to prove themselves worthy of further and greater benefits through their own moderation. To better convince them of my goodwill and to keep them peaceable as far as possible, I accompanied their petition for the reinstatement of their pensions with a favorable report.

I was also ordered to submit my expert opinion on the matter, and I noted that it would be far better to restore the regular pension payments into mere gratuities for a time, and to make it clear to the recipients that these would be granted or withheld according to the measure of their merits or offenses, so that the innocent would not be punished alongside the guilty.

However, no resolution was reached on this matter; consequently, the suspension of pensions remains in effect.

The Albanians of Cattaro and the Montenegrin Vendetta

Recently, Albanians who formerly resided in Cattaro murdered two of their chieftains; the Montenegrins subsequently descended from their mountains in large numbers with the intention of ravaging Teodo—where the nobles of Cattaro, whom they regarded as supporters of the Albanians, held their estates.

They murdered one subject and wounded several others, but abandoned their plan—though they persisted in declaring their determination to avenge the deaths of their leaders.

Albanese, Montenegrins, and the Failure of Reconciliation

To avoid perpetuating the feuds—and thereby giving rise to troublesome consequences—I proposed to the Senate that the Albanians be removed and distributed throughout the lower province. The Senate, however, insisted on reconciling them with the Montenegrins.

Yet this proved impossible, despite all the efforts I made through the Provveditore Straordinario and Bishop Sava; for they remained so implacable that they resolved to assassinate a nobleman from Cattaro.

They lie constantly in wait, keeping not only the inhabitants but even the garrison officers themselves in a state of perpetual fear. Their bitterness is so intense that—even though I have banished some fugitives and the other Albanians have moved to Perasto and Castelnovo—the Montenegrins (a group comprising only twenty-six armed men) are not yet satisfied with the blood already shed but seek to pursue their vengeance further.

I went there myself; I alternated between threats and persuasion; I demonstrated firmness; and I urged Bishop Sava to use his authority. The Provveditore Straordinario and the Superintendent Wrakien are also sparing no effort to reconcile them with the Albanians and the other subjects from Maina, Pastrovichi, and Zuppa…

Paštrovići and Župa: The Spark of a New Feud

The communities were still embroiled in furious feuds with one another, having murdered each other’s people in turn. Yet, just as the justices of the peace had gathered to investigate such disputes, a man from Paštrovići was killed by a Montenegrin living in Župa.

This ignited a new conflagration. The people of Paštrovići became so enraged against the inhabitants of Župa—whom they viewed as having broken their word—that they remain unreconciled to this day.

Thus, the general reconciliation failed due to the actions of a single bad individual. This illustrates how, among such hot-headed people, a tiny spark can ignite a massive blaze that is difficult to extinguish through authority and force alone; consequently, resorting to violence is ill-advised.

Fortis, Civran, and the Governance of the Rural Population

We also have testimony regarding this from the learned Abbot Fortis—author of a travelogue on Dalmatia, whom I met during my second journey to Italy—as well as from Peter Civran, who served as Provveditore Generale in Dalmatia and whose reports on the region I have before me.

Civran makes a particularly useful observation: the subject population should be divided into two classes—nobles and popolari (commoners)—with individuals from both ranks selected for official posts.

This system was introduced for reasons of state, as such a division of social orders keeps apart minds that, if united, could incite dangerous unrest. While life in the cities remains quite calm, the rural population—living far from the watchful eyes of the governors—subsists more on robbery than on honest labor, and these are the most intractable of all.

The Ultramarini: Albanians and Croatians in Venetian Military Service

Within the Venetian militia in these regions, the Ultramarini are frequently mentioned. They comprise two nationalities—Croatians and Albanians—all of them hardy men capable of enduring the rigors of service on land and at sea. They are inexpensive to maintain.

At one point, they lost their enthusiasm for service, but once they were issued uniforms, they were quickly appeased and once again willingly served on the galleys.

Recruitment proceeds easily there; the men are warlike by nature, though rarely amenable to military discipline. They desire that each nationality—Albanians and Croats alike—have its own colonel as commander, a measure that would likely greatly spur their zeal for service.

Source

Johann Friedrich Le Bret, ordentl. Lehrers der Geschichte am Gymnasio illustri in Stuttgard, und ersten Bibliothekars der Herzoglichen Bibliothek, Magazin zum Gebrauch der Staaten- und Kirchengeschichte, wie auch des geistlichen Staatsrechts catholischer Regenten in Ansehung ihrer Geistlichkeit. Sechster Theil. Volume 6. Johann Friedrich Le Bret. 1777