Smederevo Fortress
smederevo fortress photo1
By order of Despot Djuradj Brankovic began in 1428, at the mouth of the river Jezava and Danube, at the very north of the country, the building of the Smederevo fortress, which became the seat of Serbian secular and clerical authorities of the time. Enormous quantities of stone necessary for the construction were dragged from ancient sites: Viminacium, Margum and Kulic, and Serbian medieval burial grounds were also sacrified. The Small Town – The Court – was built within two years, triangular of shape, with six towers, the strongest of which is the Donjon tower. A red brick inscription on the Despot’s tower that tells of the building of the town is preserved. Inside the Court, facing the Danube, there was a reception hall – MAGNA SALA AUDIENTIAS, that is – with three Gothic bifores where mediaval court life took place. Along with it there was a room with a Romanic bifore designated for the ruling family. In the Small Town there was a famous centre for goldsmiths and transcription work, as well as a coin mint.
The great builder left a monumental inscription in Church Slavonic. The translation would be as follows: "To Christ God, the faithful despot Djuradj, ruler of Serbs and the Zeta shore, by his will this city was erected in 6938 (1430)".
In the period from 1430-1439, The Large Town – The Fortified Town – was erected in accordance with the triangular shape, taking up almost 11 hectares which puts the Smederevo Fortress among the largest European plain fortifications. Originally, Smederevo Fortress was made for defence against cold steel weapons, but it was soon adapted for fire-arms warfare. In a longer, peaceful period from 1444-1453, the Large Town was raised with 19 towers, whose height was more than 20 meters. In this space there were The Court Church and The Church of the Annunciation with the holy remains of St Luke, who is also today the patron saint of the town. The Large Town became known as craft and trade centre in which also a colony from Dubrovnik did their trade. After the Turkish conquest of Smederevo in 1459, the Serbian mediavel state ceased to exist.
In 1480 the Turks raised an outer defence wall around the Smederevo Fortress, and at the corners and at the entry into the Town four polygonal towers with gun openings. The outer wall facing the town and the Turkish polygonal tower at the entry to the Town were pulled down when railway tracks were built in 1880. In World War One, the Smederevo Fortress was badly damaged. The last, largest destruction happened in an explosion of ammunition, on the 5th of June, 1941.!Some of the more interesting architectural parts of the Smederevo Fortress are the following:
The Cross tower a inscription about the building of the tower is written out in built-in bricks.
The Danube Canvas is one of the most representative examples of Serbian medieval building. There are four large double windows on it, carved out of stone, with gothic and roman arches biphores. Those were the despot’s living quarters and reception hall. The famous trading agreement was signed between Venice and Serbia in this hall.
The Donjon Tower where prominent persons retreated during Turkish attacks. The walls are over 4m thick. After the completion of the Small Town, they continued with the building of the Large Town of the Smederevo fortress.
During its long and turbulent past, the Smederevo Fortress was built and destroyed several times, assembled and disassembled, conquered and liberated, and it carries the sign of the times as a mark on its wall canvases and towers, as a testament of the unpredictability of history. It’s battlements are a symbol of the builders’ sacrifices, skill and artistic beauty. Today, it is a cultural and historic commodity of exceptional value, a popular tourist destination, as well being an exclusive location for musical, theatrical and other cultural events.[](https://steemitimages.com
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