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The population of Stara Gradiška and its surroundings made their uving by cattle-breeding, catching fish and trading and the first records of the village in historical sources go back to 1295.(13) Taking advantage of its geographical position on the border of the Pannonian and Dinaric reaions and the fact that it was connected by road with its hinterland (Bijala Stijena, Pakrac and the settlements of Pežeška Županija), Gradiška developed quickly from a small fishing and agricultural settlement into a significant port and market centre. This development was, however, abruptly interrupted by a new social and political aituation when Slavonia found itself facing the Turkish danaer.
Under the command of Suleiman II, theTurkish army conquered Belgrade in 1521. At the same time a tremendous battle was taking place between the supporters of Ferdinand of Hapsbura and Ivan Zapolje, who both claimed the Hungarian/Croatian throne. The Turks took advantage of this situation in the country and systematically destroyed, in various ways, the economic basis on which social relationships had been established, that is they had been characterised primarily by various factions. Thus, the defence of Slavonia under threat from Turkish invaders was hindered, if not completely paralysed."(14)
Written reports of that time show great concern for the Catholic population who went over to the Turkish side in large numbers. By accepting Islam as their national ideology, the population partly saved its property and subsistence, but at the same time took part in dramatic demographic changes."(15)
The appointment of Duro Baufija, district-prefect of Požega, to the position of military commander in 1535 was an unsuccessful attempt to save Gradiška from invasion by the Turks.(16)
During July 1536, the Turkish army, under the command of the Bosnian Husref-beg, conquered Gradiška and the majority of settlements in the district of Požega. The army, made up of Croatian and Slavonian land owners who encamped on the mountain Dilj, was supposed to oppose the invaders, but after the military success of the Turkish army, it missed the opportunity for a direct military battle and withdrew to the surrounding fortifications."(17)
Gradiška under Turkish Rule
A large part of the population of Gradiška and its surroundings, escaping from the Turks, withdrew in the direction of Bijela Stijena and then headed north-west. Apart the consequences of the war, this population was decimated by contagious diseases that spread among the defenders of Bijela Stijena. For these reasons, the whole area along the River Sava, including Gradiška, experienced far-reaching economical and cultural changes and stagnation. The continuous growth and development of the Gradiška fortress and of the settlements scattered around it was interrupted during the reign of the Turks and after the establishment of the border protection zone (Croatian military border landsj - an area of continuous military action.
Having lost the advantages it enjoyed as a port and market centre with its natural hinterland, Gradiška acquired a new strategic and military significance. This fortified settlement began to grow and develop accordingly, under the Turkish rule. During 1691, Gradiška took on oriental architecture and the devastated area was populated by Moslems who remained the dominant ethnic group until the liberation of Slavonia.
Western cartographers of that time (Wolfango Lazio, 1556) marked two settlements on their maps - "Gradiscia" and "Gradiscia Turcicim". This was, however, one and the same settlement. During the second half of the sixteenth century and the entire seventeenth century, Gradiška spread as an undivided urban whole on the right and left banks of the River Sava. In order to establish a bridgehead in the newly conquered area, the Turks started reconstructing the fortification on the Slavonian bank of the River Sava. Around 1600 most Turkish written reports have records of Gradiška as an important settlement consisting of 300 houses in the beginning, mostly owned by Moslems. According to a report by Father Tomo Ivković, there were records of the presence of a Catholic population in the settlement in 1630. A period of relative peace and religious tolerance was to come, as is confirmed by the fact that Franciscans held church services in Gradiška undisturbed by the Turks. According to reports by Father Marijan Maravić, in 1655 Gradiška had 1800 Moslem houses and 200 Catholic ones, as well as 8 mosques.
Evlija Ćelebi, during his visit to this area, made a probably exaggerated estimate of 26 mosques, of which, according to his statement, the following were famous: the Captain's mosque (Kapetanova džamija), the Czar's mosque within the fortification (Careva džamija) and Hadži-Bekir's mosque. In the town there was a large foundry for casting cannon balls managed by Jusuf-aga Biogradlija." (18)
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