Search This Blog

Wednesday 13 June 2012

Belgrade

Belgrade’s name in English translates to ‘White City.’

It is one of the oldest cities in Europe, first emerging as prehistoric Vinča in 4800 BC.

Belgrade was settled in the 3rd century BC by the Celts, before becoming the Roman settlement of Singidunum.

Throughout history, Belgrade has been a crossroads between the West and the Orient. Because of its strategic location, Belgrade has been battled over in 115 wars throughout history and razed to the ground 44 times.

The First World War was ignited on July 28, 1914 when Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. The following day Belgrade was shelled by Austro-Hungarians and most of the subsequent Balkan offensives occurred near the city.

The Austro-Hungarian government's declaration of war in a telegram sent to the government of Serbia on 28 July 1914

Belgrade fell to German and Austro-Hungarian troops on October 9, 1915. The city was liberated by Serbian and French troops three years later. Since Belgrade was decimated as the front-line city, Subotica overtook the title of the largest city in the Kingdom for a short while.

Belgrade was the capital of Yugoslavia (in various forms of governments) from its creation in 1918, to its final dissolution in 2006. It is currently the capital of Serbia.

Belgrade By Vlada Marinković - Vlada Marinković, Wikipedia Commons

In the Lonely Planet 1000 Ultimate Experiences guide of 2009, Belgrade was placed at the first spot among the top 10 party cities in the world.

The city proper has a population of over 1.1 million, while its metropolitan area has over 1.6 million people, making it one of the largest cities in Southeast Europe.

Belgrade covers 3.6% of Serbia's territory, and 22.5% of the country's population lives in the city.

The Port of Belgrade is on the Danube, and allows the city to receive goods by river

Belgrade has given rise to several world-class tennis players such as Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. Ivanovic and Djokovic are the first female and male Belgraders, respectively, to win Grand Slam singles titles. The Serbian national team won the 2010 Davis Cup, beating the French team in the finals played in the Belgrade Arena.

Source Wikipedia

No comments:

Post a Comment