Smederevo
Encyclopedia
Smederevo is a city and municipality
in Serbia
, on the right bank of the Danube
, about 40 km downstream of the capital Belgrade
. According to official results of the 2011 census, the city has a population of 107,528. It is the administrative center of the Podunavlje District
.
Its history starts in the 1st century BC, with the conquerings of the Roman Empire
, when there existed a town called Vinceia. The modern city traces its roots back to the late Middle Ages
when it was the capital (1430–1439 and 1444–1459) of the last independent Serbian state
before the Ottoman
conquest.
, the city is known as Smederevo (Смедерево), in Latin, Romanian
and Greek
as Semendria, in Hungarian
as Szendrő or Vég-Szendrő, in Turkish
as Semendire.
that prospered in the region.
The Paleo-Balkan tribes of Dacians
and Thracians
emerged in the area in the 2nd millennia BC, with the Celtic Scordisci
raiding the Balkans in the 3rd century BC.
The Roman Empire
conquered Vinceia in the 1st century BC. It was organized into Moesia
, later Moesia Superior, and in the administrative reforms of Diocletian
(244–311) it was part of the Diocese of Moesia
, then the Diocese of Dacia
. It was a principal town of Moesia Superior, near the confluence of Margus and Brongus (Morava rivers, between Mons Aureus and Margum).
in 1430 as the new Serbian capital. When he became lord of Tokaj
in Hungary, he planted vines from Smederevo on his estates there; from these came the famous Tokaji
white wine. Smederevo was the residence of Branković and the capital of Serbia from 1430 until 1439, when it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire
after a siege lasting two months.
between the Kingdom of Hungary
and the Ottoman Empire
the Sultan returned Smederevo to Đurađ Branković, who was allied to John Hunyadi
. On 22 August 1444 the Serb prince peacefully took possession of the evacuated town.
When Hunyadi broke the peace treaty, Đurađ Branković remained neutral. Serbia became a battleground between the Kingdom of Hungary and the Ottomans, and the angry Branković captured Hunyadi after his defeat at the Second Battle of Kosovo in 1448. Hunyadi was imprisoned in Smederevo fortress for a short time.
In 1454 Sultan Mehmed II
besieged Smederevo and devastated Serbia. The town was liberated by Hunyadi. In 1459 Smederevo was again captured by the Ottomans after the death of Branković. The town became a Turkish border-fortress, and played an important part in Ottoman–Hungarian Wars until 1526. Because of its strategic location, Smederevo was gradually rebuilt and enlarged. For a long period, the town was the capital of the Sanjak of Smederevo
.
In autumn 1476 a joint army of Hungarians and Serbs tried to capture the fortress from the Ottomans. They built three wooden counter-fortresses, but after months of siege Sultan Mehmed II himself came to drive them away. After fierce fighting the Hungarians agreed to withdraw.
In 1494 Pál Kinizsi
tried to capture Smederevo from the Ottomans but he was stricken with palsy and died. In 1512 John Zápolya
unsuccessfully laid siege to the town.
in 1806, the city became the temporary capital of Serbia, as well as the seat of the Praviteljstvujušči sovjet, a government headed by Dositej Obradović
. The first basic school was founded in 1806.
During World War II, the city was occupied by German
forces, who placed an arsenal
of ammunition in the fortress. On 5 June 1941 a catastrophic explosion severely damaged the fortress and killed thousands of people in the city.
in 2003; USS Serbia employs over 7,000 workers. The "Milan Blagojević" home appliance
factory is the second most important factory in the city. Smederevo is also an agricultural area, with significant production of fruit and vines. However, the large agricultural combine "Godomin" has been in financial difficulty since the 1990s and is almost defunct as of 2005. The grape variety known as Smederevka
is named after the city. The "Ishrana" factory is an important supplier of bakery products in northern and eastern Serbia.
Company Comico Oil announced its plans for oil refinery erection by 2013. in industrial zone of the city. However, building works should begin just after the local assembly's permission.
In the 2002 census, there was 109,809 residents in the municipality, of which 104,755 were Serbs. The city had population of 77,808, of which 94.47% are ethnic Serbs.
( )* – Population related to the present day boundaries of the city
The population increased between 2002 and 2008. This increase is most likely because of the large number of Serb refugees and internally displaced persons from Kosovo
and Metohija
(in 2003, that number was 7,152, not including those who moved permanently to Smederevo since the last census, and those who came to live with their relatives). They settled mostly in urban parts of Smederevo, but also in some suburban settlements such as Radinac, Lipe, Vucak and Petrijevo. The population of three other suburban settlements (Salinac, Seone, and Udovice) has also risen but that increase has been less substantial than in the above-mentioned settlements.
The latest estimates of internally displaced persons made after 2004, claim that the number of such persons in Smederevo grew from 7,152 to 8,194 in the period of just one year. This happened due to the exodus of the Serb and Roma population from Kosovo following 17 March 2004. Some other estimates claim that the number of these persons is around 10,000.
Seats in the municipal parliament won in the 2008 local elections:
with: Pale, Bosnia Herzegovina Volos
, Greece Herceg Novi
, Montenegro
Municipalities of Serbia
Serbia is divided into 150 municipalities and 24 cities , which are the basic units of local self-government. The city may and may not be divided into city municipalities . Five cities, Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš, Kragujevac and Požarevac comprise several city municipalities, divided into "urban" ...
in Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, on the right bank of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
, about 40 km downstream of the capital Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
. According to official results of the 2011 census, the city has a population of 107,528. It is the administrative center of the Podunavlje District
Podunavlje District
The Podunavlje District lies in Serbia, it expands across the central part of Serbia. The population of the district is 198,184, and the Seat of the District is in the city of Smederevo.-Municipalities:...
.
Its history starts in the 1st century BC, with the conquerings of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, when there existed a town called Vinceia. The modern city traces its roots back to the late Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
when it was the capital (1430–1439 and 1444–1459) of the last independent Serbian state
Serbian Despotate
The Serbian Despotate was a Serbian state, the last to be conquered by the Ottoman Empire. Although the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 is generally considered the end of the medieval Serbian state, the Despotate, a successor of the Serbian Empire and Moravian Serbia survived for 70 more years,...
before the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
conquest.
Name
In SerbianSerbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
, the city is known as Smederevo (Смедерево), in Latin, Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
as Semendria, in Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
as Szendrő or Vég-Szendrő, in Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
as Semendire.
Early
In the 7th millennium BC, the Starčevo culture existed for a millennia, succeeded by the 6th millennium BC Vinča cultureVinca culture
The Vinča culture is a Neolithic archaeological culture in Southeastern Europe, dated to the period 5500–4500 BCE. Named for its type site, Vinča-Belo Brdo, a large tell settlement discovered by Serbian archaeologist Miloje Vasić in 1908, it represents the material remains of a prehistoric society...
that prospered in the region.
The Paleo-Balkan tribes of Dacians
Dacians
The Dacians were an Indo-European people, very close or part of the Thracians. Dacians were the ancient inhabitants of Dacia...
and Thracians
Thracians
The ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes inhabiting areas including Thrace in Southeastern Europe. They spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...
emerged in the area in the 2nd millennia BC, with the Celtic Scordisci
Scordisci
The Scordisci were an Iron Age tribe centered in the territory of present-day Serbia, at the confluence of the Savus , Dravus and Danube rivers. They were historically notable from the beginning of the third century BC until the turn of the common era...
raiding the Balkans in the 3rd century BC.
The Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
conquered Vinceia in the 1st century BC. It was organized into Moesia
Moesia
Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...
, later Moesia Superior, and in the administrative reforms of Diocletian
Diocletian
Diocletian |latinized]] upon his accession to Diocletian . c. 22 December 244 – 3 December 311), was a Roman Emperor from 284 to 305....
(244–311) it was part of the Diocese of Moesia
Diocese of Moesia
The Diocese of Moesia was one of the twelve dioceses in which Diocletian divided the Roman Empire during his administrative reforms. It encompassed most of the central Balkans and the Greek peninsula, stretching from the Danube to Crete...
, then the Diocese of Dacia
Diocese of Dacia
The Diocese of Dacia was a diocese of the later Roman Empire, in the area of modern Serbia and western Bulgaria. It was subordinate to the Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum...
. It was a principal town of Moesia Superior, near the confluence of Margus and Brongus (Morava rivers, between Mons Aureus and Margum).
Middle Ages
The modern founder of the city was the Serbian prince Đurađ Branković in the 15th century, who built Smederevo FortressSmederevo Fortress
Smederevo Fortress , in Smederevo, Serbia, was a medieval fortified city and temporary capital of Serbia. It was built by Despot Đurađ Branković of 1427 to 1430, during the era of the Serbian Despotate. Later that century it was further fortified by the Turks...
in 1430 as the new Serbian capital. When he became lord of Tokaj
Tokaj
Tokaj , is a historical town in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, Northern Hungary, 54 kilometers from county capital Miskolc. It is the centre of the famous Tokaj-Hegyalja wine district where the world famous Tokaji wine is produced.- History :...
in Hungary, he planted vines from Smederevo on his estates there; from these came the famous Tokaji
Tokaji
Tokaji is the name of the wines from the region of Tokaj-Hegyalja in Hungary and Slovakia. The name Tokaji is used for labeling wines from this wine district. This region is noted for its sweet wines made from grapes affected by noble rot, a style of wine which has a long history in this region...
white wine. Smederevo was the residence of Branković and the capital of Serbia from 1430 until 1439, when it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
after a siege lasting two months.
Sanjak of Smederevo
In 1444, in accordance with the terms of the Peace of SzegedPeace of Szeged
The Treaty of Edirne and the Peace of Szeged were two halves of a peace treaty between Sultan Murad II of the Ottoman Empire and King Vladislaus of the Kingdom of Hungary. Despot Đurađ Branković of the Serbian Despotate also had a large role in the proceedings...
between the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
and the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
the Sultan returned Smederevo to Đurađ Branković, who was allied to John Hunyadi
John Hunyadi
John Hunyadi John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: Ioannes Corvinus or Ioannes de Hunyad, Romanian: Iancu (Ioan) de Hunedoara, Croatian: Janko Hunjadi, Serbian: Сибињанин Јанко / Sibinjanin Janko, Slovak: Ján Huňady) John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: ...
. On 22 August 1444 the Serb prince peacefully took possession of the evacuated town.
When Hunyadi broke the peace treaty, Đurađ Branković remained neutral. Serbia became a battleground between the Kingdom of Hungary and the Ottomans, and the angry Branković captured Hunyadi after his defeat at the Second Battle of Kosovo in 1448. Hunyadi was imprisoned in Smederevo fortress for a short time.
In 1454 Sultan Mehmed II
Mehmed II
Mehmed II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446, and later from...
besieged Smederevo and devastated Serbia. The town was liberated by Hunyadi. In 1459 Smederevo was again captured by the Ottomans after the death of Branković. The town became a Turkish border-fortress, and played an important part in Ottoman–Hungarian Wars until 1526. Because of its strategic location, Smederevo was gradually rebuilt and enlarged. For a long period, the town was the capital of the Sanjak of Smederevo
Sanjak of Smederevo
The Sanjak of Smederevo , also known as the Pashaluk of Belgrade , was an Ottoman administrative unit , that existed between the 15th and the outset of the 19th centuries...
.
In autumn 1476 a joint army of Hungarians and Serbs tried to capture the fortress from the Ottomans. They built three wooden counter-fortresses, but after months of siege Sultan Mehmed II himself came to drive them away. After fierce fighting the Hungarians agreed to withdraw.
In 1494 Pál Kinizsi
Pál Kinizsi
Pál Kinizsi was a Hungarian general, legendary commoner commander in the army of king Matthias Corvinus. He was Comes of Temes since 1484 and Captain General of the Lower Parts of the Kingdom of Hungary...
tried to capture Smederevo from the Ottomans but he was stricken with palsy and died. In 1512 John Zápolya
John Zápolya
John Zápolya was King of Hungary from 1526 to 1540. His rule was disputed by Archduke Ferdinand I, who also claimed the title King of Hungary between 1526 and 1540. He was the voivode of Transylvania before his coronation.- Biography :...
unsuccessfully laid siege to the town.
Modern
During the First Serbian UprisingFirst Serbian Uprising
The First Serbian Uprising was the first stage of the Serbian Revolution , the successful wars of independence that lasted for 9 years and approximately 9 months , during which Serbia perceived itself as an independent state for the first time after more than three centuries of Ottoman rule and...
in 1806, the city became the temporary capital of Serbia, as well as the seat of the Praviteljstvujušči sovjet, a government headed by Dositej Obradović
Dositej Obradovic
Dositej Dimitrije Obradović was a Serbian author, philosopher, linguist, polyglot and the first minister of education of Serbia...
. The first basic school was founded in 1806.
During World War II, the city was occupied by German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
forces, who placed an arsenal
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, issued to authorized users, or any combination of those...
of ammunition in the fortress. On 5 June 1941 a catastrophic explosion severely damaged the fortress and killed thousands of people in the city.
Municipality
The municipality of Smederevo includes the following villages (population according to 2002 census given in brackets):
|
Mala Krsna Mala Krsna is a village of about 1800 people near Smederevo, Serbia.It is known as a second biggest railroad knot in Serbia, despite other greater centers. Also it is known by Najdan's circles. It is believed that they have a healing power.... (1753) Malo Orašje Malo Orašje is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1139 people.... (1139) Mihajlovac (Smederevo) Mihajlovac is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 3093 people.... (3093) Osipaonica Osipaonica is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 4071 people.... (4071) Petrijevo Petrijevo is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1093 people.... (1093) Radinac Radinac is a town in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 4920 people.... (4920) Ralja (Smederevo) Ralja is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1537 people.... (1537) Šalinac Šalinac is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 985 people.... (985) Saraorci Saraorci is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 2413 people.... (2413) |
Seone Seone is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 994 people.... (994) Skobalj (Smederevo) Skobalj is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1880 people.... (1880) Suvodol Suvodol is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 849 people.-References:... (849) Udovice Udovice is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 2018 people.... (2018) Vodanj Vodanj is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1314 people.... (1314) Vranovo Vranovo is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 2682 people.... (2682) Vrbovac (Smederevo) Vrbovac is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1108 people.... (1108) Vučak (Smederevo) Vučak is a village in the municipality of Smederevo, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1655 people.... (1655) |
Economy
Smederevo is an industrial city, and the center of Serbia's steel industry. The factory previously known as Sartid was purchased by U.S. SteelU.S. Steel
The United States Steel Corporation , more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an integrated steel producer with major production operations in the United States, Canada, and Central Europe. The company is the world's tenth largest steel producer ranked by sales...
in 2003; USS Serbia employs over 7,000 workers. The "Milan Blagojević" home appliance
Major appliance
A major appliance, or domestic appliance, is usually defined as a large machine which accomplishes some routine housekeeping task, which includes purposes such as cooking, or food preservation, whether in a household, institutional, commercial or industrial setting...
factory is the second most important factory in the city. Smederevo is also an agricultural area, with significant production of fruit and vines. However, the large agricultural combine "Godomin" has been in financial difficulty since the 1990s and is almost defunct as of 2005. The grape variety known as Smederevka
Smederevka
Smederevka is a white wine grape variety grown in Smederevo, Serbia and in Tikveš wine-growing region of Macedonia. The variety's name is derived from the name of Serbian city Smederevo...
is named after the city. The "Ishrana" factory is an important supplier of bakery products in northern and eastern Serbia.
Company Comico Oil announced its plans for oil refinery erection by 2013. in industrial zone of the city. However, building works should begin just after the local assembly's permission.
Demographics
Population through history
- 1805. : 4,000 (estimate)
- 1834. : 3,907
- 1874. : 8,343
- 1884. : 6,600
- 1900. : 7,141
- 1905. : 7,097
- 1910. : 7,411
- 1921. : 8,500
- 1931. : 10,500
- 1941. : 11,500 (estimate)
- 1948. : 14,206 (24,761)*
- 1953. : 18,328 (29,663)*
- 1961. : 27,182 (39,793)*
- 1971. : 40,192 (54,257)*
- 1981. : 55,369 (69,814)*
- 1991. : 61,990 (76,984)*
- 2002. : 62,805 (77,808)*
- 2011. : 63,028 (107,528)*
( )* – Population related to the present day boundaries of the city
The population increased between 2002 and 2008. This increase is most likely because of the large number of Serb refugees and internally displaced persons from Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
and Metohija
Metohija
Metohija , is a large basin and the name of the region covering the southwestern part of Kosovo.It encompasses three of the seven districts of Kosovo, namely the historical :* District of Peć * District of Đakovica * District of Prizren...
(in 2003, that number was 7,152, not including those who moved permanently to Smederevo since the last census, and those who came to live with their relatives). They settled mostly in urban parts of Smederevo, but also in some suburban settlements such as Radinac, Lipe, Vucak and Petrijevo. The population of three other suburban settlements (Salinac, Seone, and Udovice) has also risen but that increase has been less substantial than in the above-mentioned settlements.
The latest estimates of internally displaced persons made after 2004, claim that the number of such persons in Smederevo grew from 7,152 to 8,194 in the period of just one year. This happened due to the exodus of the Serb and Roma population from Kosovo following 17 March 2004. Some other estimates claim that the number of these persons is around 10,000.
Politics
- Democratic Party (14)
- "Movement for Smederevo" citizens group (12)
- "Coalition for better Smederevo" (11)
- Socialist Party of Serbia (7)
- Serbian Radical Party (16)
- Democratic Party of Serbia – New Serbia (10)
Twin towns
Smederevo is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with: Pale, Bosnia Herzegovina Volos
Volos
Volos is a coastal port city in Thessaly situated midway on the Greek mainland, about 326 km north of Athens and 215 km south of Thessaloniki...
, Greece Herceg Novi
Herceg Novi
Herceg Novi is a coastal town in Montenegro located at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor and at the foot of Mount Orjen. It is the administrative center of the Herceg Novi Municipality with around 33,000 inhabitants...
, Montenegro