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The Venetian Siege of Zemunik in 1647

Finely engraved image of the Siege of Zemunico (Zemunik), led by General Marcantonio Pisani against the Ottoman controlled town of Zemunik, immediately to the east of Zadar.

The image provides a finally detailed account of the siege and battle, with over a dozen strategic places and events noted.  The old and new towns of Zemunik are shown under Ottoman control (with minarets visible), with the road to Zara (Zadar) at the left and the siege forces surrounding the town, the positions of cannon, cavalry and mounted soldiers noted.

The key below identifies many of the commanding officers of the battle.

The view includes the mark of the Italian engraver Giovanni Temini. It was seemingly made for Gerolemo Cippico (Jerolim Cippiko?), who seems to have been a member of the Dalmatian noble Cippiko family dating back to at least the 12th Century.

Note: We were unable to locate another example of this view and the dating is based upon the historical events depicted.

Zemunik

Zemunik is a small village near Zadar. It was the site of an important fortress ever since the start of the Turkish invasion. Zemunik was named for the underground huts that people were living in during ancient times.  

Zemunik came under the Turkish rule in 1570. It was a prosperous time for the village as it grew rapidly into an important outpost of the Ottoman rule in Dalmatia. Close to Venetian Zadar. It had a mosque and a large fortress protecting a local ruler.

In 1647, Venetian general Pisani was conducting a military operation in the vicinity of Zadar and took the town following a siege. Venice had a plan to divide their land in Dalmatia from the Turkish territories by creating a no-mans land by using scorched–earth method. As a result, Zemunik was nearly leveled never to recover. The once prosperous town was now completely abandoned.

In 1669, the peace accord between the Turks and Venetians allowed Turks to return to the area. In 1671, the whole region of Ravni Kotari, near Zadar, belonged to Turks again.  In the year 1682, the grandsons of former ruler Halilbeg, decided to rebuild Zemunik. Hasanbeg came to Zemunik with large a entourage, waving flags and banners, beating drums. He immediately burned down Christian huts and started rebuilding the fortress of his ancestors. 

On September 17, 1682, following an attempt to negotiate a peace, the locals killed 200 Ottoman Turks, which set off another round of fighting and another settlement.