Architectural Landscape at the Periphery of Carolingian EmpireCroatian Historical Territory and Marca Hispanica

Zusammenfassung

Exactly 1220 years ago, on Christmas Day December 25, 800, the old continent got the first formal heir of the ancient world, the new unifier of Europe - Charlemagne. This transformed the powerful Frankish kingdom into the Empire that at the time of its inception would cover the area from the south side of the Pyrenees to the River Elba in present-day East Germany, and south across Bavaria and Carinthia to the eastern Adriatic coast and Istria. The first and the last of the mentioned territories motivated the following dissertation. Although more than 1,300 kilometres stood between them, at that time in history, they were the neighbours of the same ruler, and as such witnessed the expansion of the Frankish territory in almost simultaneous chronological stages. At the foot of the Pyrenees, the border eventually descended to the river Llobregat, next to the Roman Barcino, while on the eastern side it encompassed the Istrian peninsula. The research presents a comparative analysis of architectural models on these peripheral territories of the Carolingian Empire: Istria and Marca Hispanica. However, in order to complement this research and offer an expanded view of the context of both the historical and the architectural processes, the territories of the Principality of Croatia (Ducatus Croatiae) and the Kingdom of Asturias (Regnum Asturorum) have been included in the discussion. Therefore, two essential parts form the backbone of this comparative analysis - the geographical zones of the southwest and the southeast of the Empire, as well as the territories just outside of it. Examples of the early medieval architecture dated to the period of the Carolingian expansion (end of the 8th and during the 9th century) from Istria and the Principality of Croatia were taken as models which were confronted with Catalan and Asturian examples through a synchronous approach. The main objective of this dissertation was to lay the foundations and provide the parameters for further reflections on the models of functioning of the early medieval urban and rural landscape through several particular problems. Special attention was given to the mutual impact and the level of its intensity between the Carolingian expansionistic concept of renovatio imperii and the local historical substrates (Byzantine and Visigothic) which have shaped the landscape, as well as the society, during the centuries prior to the Frankish campaigns.