page_title: Vlachs in the history of Croatia
section_title: Ottoman conquest and Austrian Empire
hierarchical_section_title: Vlachs in the history of Croatia / History / Ottoman conquest and Austrian Empire
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of the Kingdom of Croatia (red) in late 1867 and early 1868 (before the Croatian-Hungarian Nagodba and the establishment of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia). The Kingdom of Slavonia was independent of Croatia at the time, but was under its control for most of the existence of both Kingdoms.
context_page_description: The term Vlachs was initially used in medieval Croatian and Venetian history for a Romance-speaking pastoralist community, called "Vlachs" and "Morlachs", inhabiting the mountains and lands of the Croatian Kingdom and the Republic of Venice from the early 14th century. By the end of the 15th century they were highly assimilated with the Slavs and lost their language or were at least bilingual, while some communities managed to preserve and continue to speak their language.
  Later in the 16th and 17th century with the Ottoman conquest and mass migrations, the term was primarily used for a socio-cultural and professional segment of the population rather than to an ethnicity, and referred to the mostly Slavic-speaking emigrants and refugees from Ottoman-held territories to the Habsburg Empire and Republic of Venice, mostly of Eastern Orthodox faith, lesser Catholic. With the nation-building in the 19th century this population played a significant part in the national ideologies in Croatia and Serbia, and according to religious confession espoused either Croat or Serb ethnicity.
context_section_description: Vlach migrations to the Austrian Empire from the Ottoman Empire, and vice versa, were generally caused by the loss of financial status or privileges of Vlach laws, rather than from any form of ethnic or religious persecution. Usually the migrations were caused or performed in periods after turbulent events, like Battle of Mohács (1526), the conquest of Dalmatia (1522), Lika and Krbava (1527-28), and subsequent battles. Many Vlachs served in Ottoman armies during their conquests. As part of the military, they often served either as light cavalry or infantrymen, or irregular soldiers (martolosi). However, since the movements of large Ottoman armies towards Inner Austria were rarely routed through Croatia-Slavonia, and military actions were focused on the vicinity of Jajce and Bihać, the role of the Uskok-Vlachs spying on the Ottomans was particularly important. In the 15th century after the fall of the Bulgarian Empire under the Sultan's rule much of the Vlachs arrived in the area between Drava and Sava (Slavonia of that time) and a part of them continued their journey across the Drava to Hungary. Between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries Christians on the Balkan Peninsula fled from the Ottomans to Austrian, Hungarian and Venetian territories, Orthodox Slavs and Vlachs fled into Bosnia and Herzegovina and Dalmatia or they fled across the Danube. Ottoman Vlachs who colonized Dalmatia, Croatia, Slavonia, western parts of Bosnia and Hungary in some extent were Catholic, it can be seen in Venetian and Habsburg sources (Morlachi Catholici in Dalmatia and Rasciani catolici, Katolische Ratzen, Meerkroaten, Illiri, Horvati etc. in Croatia and Hungary).
  The Serb, Vlach and Uskok colonization of Žumberak started between 1526 and 1538, at the same time when in Ottoman-conquered lands Vlachs laws were canceled until 1550, partially or altogether, causing migration because of social and financial status. In June 1531, around 1,000 Vlachs, advised by Ivan Katzianer, settled in Kostel and Polajna, along the Kupa River near Žumberak, of which 700 were fit for military service. King Ferdinand I in September 1538 responded to general commander Nikola Jurišić, who informed him about some Servian or Rascian captains and dukes who are willing to come with their people to serve in military service, that they were given privileges. In October of the same year, Jurišić informed the King that the Ban Petar Keglević and other nobles came from Ottoman-conquered territory around the river Cetina with many Sirfen (Serbs). In the same letter, Jurišić informed the king about the Vlachs who "in our (Croatian) parts are called as Old Romans" (alt Römer genennt), and that came with others from Turkish parts (river Zrmanja), to be given the same promises and privileges which were given to the Serbs. In November, Ferdinand wrote to Keglević about "captains and dukes of the Rasians or the Serbs, and the Vlachs who are commonly called the Zytschy (Ćići)". Serbs from Cetina part of the 1538 migration were taken care of by captain of Bihać Erazmo Thurn and his men, Croatian Ban Petar Keglević, and counts of Slunj, Zrinski, and Blagaj. Military service becomes the main occupation of the new population. 
  In 1530, Vlachs from Lika and Srb, Unac and Glamoč came under Turkish rule. Catholic Vlachs in Prilišće and Rosopajnik settled in 1538, while in 1544 came under the protection of Nikola Šubić Zrinski. Around 1530, in lands of Stjepan Frankopan from Ozalj, in Otok and Hreljin, were settled some Vlachs who in 1540 were mentioned for rewarding by King Ferdinand because of successful spying on Turks. With the growing number of the Ottoman Vlachs passing over the Christian side, the Vlach leader from Glamoč, Ladislav Stipković, traveled to Ljubljana to offer his service, and those of his forces, to the Austrians. In a later battle, the combined forces of the army from Bihać and the Vlachs defeated an Ottoman army at Bihać.
  In 1551, general Ivan Lenković reported to Ferdinand how Turks settled thousands of Morlachs and Vlachs around Srb, and Kosovo field near the t
caption: Croatian Military Frontier in 1868.
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