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Mobilizing Nature: The Environmental History of the Ottoman Danubian Frontier

Vienna

12–13 March 2026
12 March 2026
Workshop Opening 16:00–16:15

DANFront: An Environmental History of the Early-Modern Ottoman Military Frontier in the Middle and Lower Danube

16:15–16:45

Project Presentation

Onur İnal
Project Manager, DANFront, University of Vienna
Deniz Armağan Akto
Project Researcher, DANFront, University of Vienna

Panel 1: The Danube in Early Ottoman Logistics

17:00–18:30
Faisal H. Husain (Penn State University, USA)
River Systems and Imperial Strategy in Early Modern Ottoman History
Gábor Ágoston (Georgetown University, USA)
The Danube in Ottoman Strategy and Logistics
Dino Mujadžević (Croatian Institute of History, Croatia)
Ecological Impacts of Ottoman Military Actions in the Sava-Drava-Danube Interfluve
Workshop Dinner 19:00–21:00
***
13 March 2026

Panel 2: Fortifying the Danube: Military, Economic, and Ecological Aspects

09:00–10:30
Göksel Baş (Social Sciences University of Ankara, Turkey)
Securing the Danube Frontier: Ottoman Garrisons, Finance and River Fleets (1521–1541)
Mihai Anatolii Ciobanu (A. D. Xenopol Institute of History of the Romanian Academy, Iași Branch, Romania)
Environmental History of Ottoman Fortresses in the Lower Danube. Case Studies of Yergöğü, Hârșova, İbrail and Tulça in the 18th–19th Centuries
Olivier Bouquet (Université Paris Cité, France)
Bridges and Carts: Mobilizing Timber in 17th-Century Danubian Warfare
Rossitsa Gradeva (American University in Bulgaria, Bulgaria)
The Ottoman Danube, Late 14th to Early 18th century: A View from Vidin and Rusçuk

Panel 3: Crossing the Danube: Obstacles and Opportunities

11:00–12:30
M. Fatih Çalışır (Istanbul University, Turkey)
Mapping the Frontier: Ebū Bekr b. Behrām ed-Dimaşḳī and the Environmental Imagination of the Ottoman Danube
Dilek Seniha Cenez Ülker (Istanbul Aydın University, Turkey)
The Operational Role of the Danube in the 1697 Expedition: A Study of Logistics, Strategy, and Geographical Constraints
Seyfullah Aslan (Kırklareli University, Turkey)
Echoes of the River: Nature's Dynamics and Logistics along the Ottoman Danube (17th Century)
Kahraman Şakul (Istanbul Medeniyet University, Turkey)
The Danube and the Köprülü Campaigns
Lunch 12:30–14:00

Panel 4: Perspectives from Across the Ottoman Danube

14:00–15:30
András Vadas (Eötvös Loránd University, Hungary)
Plague in Early Modern East Central Europe: The Case of the Hungarian-Ottoman Frontier
Marian Coman (University of Bucharest, Romania / Nicolae Iorga Institute of History of the Romanian Academy, Romania)
Pre-emptive Strikes Against the Ottomans on the Lower Danube.
Michal Celnar (Slovak Academy of Sciences, Slovakia)
The Danube as a Diplomatic Artery in the Ottoman-Hungarian Borderlands (16th–17th Centuries)
Discussion and Closing 15:30–16:00
The workshop is a closed event due to the meeting format and the venue's limited capacity. There are a few seats available for the audience. Please contact [email protected] if you have an interest in attending one or more panels.