“Gunsmoke on the water”. Ships and crews from Senj in the 18th century

Abstract

The article focuses on the Habsburg effort to establish a constant navy, securing the establishment of safe maritime trade and navigation in the Adriatic and Mediterranean Seas during the 18th century. The main focus is on the citizens and  ship-owners from the city and port of Senj, located on the Austrian part of the East Adriatic coast. The citizens of Senj were very engaged in the Habsburg efforts of building an effective and constant naval strategy throughout the whole period of the 18th century since their economics depended on such actions alongside their centennial military  experience in the past wars and conflicts with Ottomans. Hence, the paper analyses the engagement of ship-owners of Senj in securing safe  navigation against various enemies, such as privateers of enemy countries and barbary pirates from the North African coast. Similarly, the reconstruction brings the actions of the citizens and aforementioned ship-owners, along with the efforts  of the military government of Military Frontier, to bolster such efforts by manning the ships with  military crews. Additionally, the paper brings the further development of the first steps of building the Habsburg navy in the Adriatic, which also considers the past efforts of the citizens and ship-owners of Senj, including many of them in the first establishment of the official navy in late 1780, and also in the line of defending this legacy in the late 18th century.