Vojna služba časnika Gašpara Starešinića kao primjer krajiške vojne mobilnosti i motivacije za rat(ovanje) u prvoj polovici XVII. stoljeća
The Military Service of Officer Gašpar Starešinić as an Example of Grenzer Military Mobility and Motivation in the First Half of the Seventeenth Century

Summary/Abstract: Numerous soldiers from the Croatian and Slavonian Military Frontier served in the Imperial army during the Thirty Years’ War. Their participation took multiple forms typical of early modern warfare and must be understood within the broader context of military entrepreneurship. European armies of the period were raised and organised by commanders who recruited mercenary units through personal and regional networks. At the same time, the Croatian– Slavonian Military Frontier was exposed to continuous frontier warfare (small war), which persisted despite periods of truce with the Ottoman Empire and resulted in chronic insecurity, demographic depletion, and increasing pressure on local resources. This study focuses on the military career of Gašpar Starešinić, a Military Frontier officer who experienced frontier warfare firsthand before leaving his post to enter Imperial service at a critical phase of the Thirty Years’ War. By reconstructing Starešinić’s career, the article examines the effects of the Thirty Years’ War on the Military Frontier and explores the motivations that prompted frontier soldiers to leave their communities and participate in campaigns within the Holy Roman Empire. Through this case study, the paper contributes to a deeper understanding of the interconnectedness of frontier warfare and large-scale European conflicts in the early modern period.

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