Belgrade Fortress

The Belgrade Fortress (Serbian: , Beogradska tvrđava, Hungarian: Nándorfehérvár) is a cultural monument in Belgrade, Serbia in the municipality of Stari Grad. It consists of the old citadel (Upper and Lower Town) and Kalemegdan Park (Large and Little Kalemegdan) on the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers. Located in Belgrade's municipality of Stari Grad, the fortress constitutes the specific historical core of the city. As one of the most important representatives of Belgrade's cultural heritage, it was originally protected right after World War II, among the first officially declared cultural monuments in Serbia. The fortress was declared a Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance in 1979, and is protected by the Republic of Serbia. It is the most visited tourist attraction in Belgrade, with Skadarlija being the second. It is estimated that the total number of visitors (foreign, domestic, citizens of Belgrade) is over 2 million yearly.

Belgrade Fortress is located on top of the 125.5 metres (412 ft) high ending ridge of the Šumadija geological bar. The sandbank stretches at least from the city's Tašmajdan section, originating from the Miocene period, and the oldest stages of the ancient Pannonian Sea. The cliff-like ridge overlooks the Great War Island (Serbian: Veliko ratno ostrvo) and the confluence of the Sava river into the Danube. It borders the neighborhoods of Dorćol (north and north-east), Stari Grad (east) and Kosančićev Venac (Savamala; south). It is bounded by 3 streets (Boulevard of Vojvoda Bojović, Tadeuša Košćuška, and Pariska) plus the railway along the riverside.

Belgrade Fortress is the oldest section of the urban area of Belgrade. For centuries, the city population was concentrated only within the walls of the fortress, and thus the history of the fortress, until most recent times, reflects the history of Belgrade. The first mention of the city is when it was founded in the 3rd century BC as "Singidunum" by the Celtic tribe of Scordisci, who had defeated Thracian and Dacian tribes that previously lived in and around the fort. The city-fortress was later conquered by the Romans and became a part of "the military frontier", where the Roman Empire bordered "barbarian Central Europe". Singidunum was defended by the Roman legion IV Flaviae, which built a fortified camp on a hill at the confluence of the Danube and the Sava rivers. In the period between 378 AD and 441 the Roman camp was repeatedly destroyed in the invasions by the Goths and the Huns. In 476 Belgrade again became the border between the empires: the Western Roman Empire and Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire), and the Slav-Avar State in the north. The Celtic fortification was located on top of Terazije ridge, above the confluence of the Sava into the Danube, where the fortress still stands today. Celts also lived in small, open and fortified settlements around the fort, called oppida. Since it is not known for sure where the Celtic fort was; some historians suggest that it was rather close to the necropolises in Karaburma and Rospi Ćuprija. Celtic settlements belonged to the La Tène culture. The original military camp was probably occupied by the soldiers from the Legio VIII Augusta from 46 AD to 69. Early Singidunum reached its height with the arrival of Legio IV Flavia Felix which was transferred to the city in 86 AD and remained there until the mid 5th century. The presence of Legio IV prompted the construction of a square-shaped castrum (fort), which occupied Upper Town of today's fortress. Construction began at the turn of the 2nd century AD as since the early 100s, Legio IV Flavia Felix became permanently stationed in Singidunum. At first, the fortress was set up as earthen bulwarks and wooden palisades, but soon

Fort data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).