Original scientific paper
The Aristocratic Kegalj Fort (Kegaljgrad)
Krešimir Regan
; Leksikografski zavod 'Miroslav Krleža', Zagreb, Hrvatska
Abstract
In the vicinity of Mokro Polje, there are remains of the aristocratic Kegalj fort (Kegaljgrad), which was first mentioned in documents in 1433. It is presumed that the fort was built by Kegalj, the progenitor of the noble and subsequently aristocratic Keglević family, as the fortified seat of the estate located in the central Zrmanja flow in the Unašice district (the Knin County). The estate itself was territorially not integral; it was rather composed of many smaller landed properties dispersed along the central Zrmanja flow. Apart from Kegalj, on which the aristocratic fort of the same name was located, this estate included the following landed properties: Ramljane, Kočevići, Pokorovnici, Prklji, Dobravoda, and Poričane; after the last one, the Keglević family got their additional aristocratic name of Porechan, de Porychan, Porichan. It hence comes as no surprise that the Keglević family, similar to many other noble families of their time, strived to materialise the widening and integrating of the estate, which consequently caused conflicts with their neighbours. No doubt that in conducting this policy, the safe family fort secured them a significant advantage over their rivals; however, in the conflict with the invincible Ottoman army, the family was forced to withdraw from the fort to the north-western Croatia during the 1520s. The Kegalj fort remained abandoned until the beginning of the XVIIIth century, when Venetian guards in the service of Zaviša Mitrović occupied it for a short while.
The ruins of Kegaljgrad are located not far from Mokro Polje, on the top of a steep stone peninsular encircled from three sides by the river Zrmanja. The fort was built on three altitude levels; its height was approximately 42 m in the north-south direction, while its width was around 34 m in the west-east direction. On the highest point, there are remains of a city core with a watchtower, onto which leans a fortified suburb, divided into three separate parts by defence walls from the western and the south-eastern sides. The configuration of the soil on which the fort was built conditioned its well-intended composition altitude-wise. Diverse structures of its walls may lead to the conclusion that the phases in the process of building this aristocratic complex were conditioned – similar as in cases of many other forts – by: changes in the military doctrine; the financial strength of its owners; the geostrategic importance in individual historical periods; and, finally, the replacing of the defence role by the housing function. Thanks to the fact that the Kegalj fort was abandoned rather early – in the first quarter of the XVIth century – and to its remote location that saved it from a stronger devastation, individual building phases are here much more obvious than in the case of any other Croatian aristocratic fort.
Keywords
burg Kegaljgrad; noble family Keglević; Zrmanja; Mokro Polje; XIVth c. – XVIth c
Hrčak ID:
94334
URI
Publication date:
29.12.2012.
Visits: 4.002 *