Description

The history of Veneto-Ottoman borderlands   
What borders say about political power and nation states

This episode is one for the lovers of history: I had the pleasure of speaking with historian Vuk Uskokovic about the hidden dynamics of early modern borderlands. His research focuses on the rural communes along the frontier between the Venetian Republic and the Ottoman Empire—places often seen as peripheral but, in reality, central to the workings of the two empires. 

Meet the guest 
Vuk Uskoković is a historian from Montenegro and his work focuses on rural communes on both sides of the early modern Veneto-Ottoman border. Vuk obtained his PhD from the History department European University Institute only a few weeks ago! Before his time at the EUI, he studied in Montenegro and at Cambridge. 

Currently, he is a Research Associate at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies. You can find more information about his current and former research projects on his EUI-page. 

Recommendation of the WeekVuk has various recommendations: 

• For the London Review of Books, Alexander Clapp wrote the article ‘Rip their skin off’, in which he talks about the contemporary involvement of Montenegran drug syndicates and their relation to history and borderlands. If you check the website, you see that the Office of the Former President of Montenegro actually reacted to his piece, and it’s clear that they are not happy with his article…. 
• Also, we discuss in our conversation the work ‘The Art of Not Being Governed’ by James C. Scott, a fascinating exploration of how communities across Southeast Asia have historically evaded state control. The work of this historian fits very well into the subjects that Vuk studies! 
• For the real history-lovers, Vuk recommends the Work of the Yugoslav historian Ivan Božić. He produced mostly short articles, about the late medieval history of the South-East Adriatic. Mostly working on the beginnings of the frontiers, the establishment of the Venetian presence and the arrival of the Ottomans. The origin story of Vuk’s frontier, so to say! 
• Last, but not least: Vuk also points out i two different hiking regions, in Montenegro! One for the experienced/fanatic hiker, the other a bit more relaxed….