Long-term tree recruitment dynamics of subalpine forests mainly depend on tem-
perature changes, but little is known about the feedbacks between historical land
use and climate. Here, we analyze a southern European, millennium-long dataset of
tree recruitment from three high-elevation pine forests located in Mediterranean
mountains (Pyrenees, northeastern Spain; Pollino, southern Italy; and Mt. Smolikas,
northern Greece). We identify synchronized recruitment peaks in the late 15th and
early 16th centuries, following prolonged periods of societal and climate instability.
Major European population crises in the 14th and 15th centuries associated with
recurrent famines, the Black Death pandemic, and political turmoil are likely to have
reduced the deforestation of subalpine environments and caused widespread rewild-
ing. We suggest that a distinct cold phase in the Little Ice Age around 1450 ce could
also have accelerated the cessation of grazing pressure, particularly in the Pyrenees,
where the demographic crisis was less severe. Most pronounced in the Pyrenees,
the enhanced pine recruitment from around 1500–1550 ce coincides with tempo-
rarily warmer temperatures associated with a positive phase of the North Atlantic
Oscillation. We diagnose that a mixture of human and climate factors has influenced
past forest recruitment dynamics in Mediterranean subalpine ecosystems. Our re-
sults highlight how complex human–climate interactions shaped forest dynamics
during pre-industrial times and provide historical analogies to recent rewilding.
