Faculty of Civil Engineering University of Mostar > Summary of "Das architektonische Erbe Mostars aus der Zeit der österreichisch-ungarischen Verwaltung"

Summary

Under provisions of the Berlin Peace Treaty from 1878, Austro-Hungarian Monarchy got the mandate of governing Bosnia and Herzegovina, till that time a province of the Turkish Empire. Taking control over the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Dual Monarchy was motivated by the idea of realization of its strategic plans on the Balkans, the bases of economical, social and cultural politics in Bosnia and Herzegovina being used for that purpose. Radical social changes happening in the period between 1878 and 1918 opened the systematic transformation of quasi-feudal social establishment of the ex-Turkish province into a modern civil society.

The region of Herzegovina with Mostar as its center, while being a part of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, was recognized as an extremely important territory from the aspect of political and military interests of the new state administration. Being positioned at the only possible traffic direction from the inland towards the Adriatic Sea - in the Neretva river valley, the city of Mostar had the role of a "keeper" of this regional transversal in the system of strategic communications of the Monarchy.

All activities of the state administration concerning Mostar were materialized through the building trade of the Hapsburg Monarchy during their forty-year long governing in this city. Development of building trade in Mostar at that time was a reflection of big social, economical and political changes which suddenly happened in this city, resulting with its growing into a modern regional center with organized traffic and utility services.

The analysis of the planned and realized architectural programme by the state administration showed the bases of the functional conception of Mostar as a traffic and military center in the peripheral system of the Monarchy, emphasizing the socio-psychological dimensions of the investment policy of the state administration as a demonstration of powerful and authoritarian presence of the Dual Monarchy in this town.

Key-words:

architectural heritage, Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, Herzegovina, Mostar