42 Facts About Belgrade

Belgrade is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe and the world.

Belgrade served as capital of the Serbian Despotate during the reign of Stefan Lazarevic, and then his successor Ðurad Brankovic returned it to the Hungarian king in 1427.

In 1521, Belgrade was conquered by the Ottomans and became the seat of the Sanjak of Smederevo.

Northern Belgrade remained the southernmost Habsburg post until 1918, when it was attached to the city, due to former Austro-Hungarian territories becoming part of the new Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes after World War I Belgrade was the capital of Yugoslavia from its creation in 1918 to its dissolution in 2006.

Belgrade hosted major international events such as the Danube River Conference of 1948, the first Non-Aligned Movement Summit, the first major gathering of the OSCE, Eurovision Song Contest, as well as sports events such as the first FINA World Aquatics Championships, UEFA Euro, Summer Universiade and EuroBasket three times .

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Specifically, Belgrade was at one point inhabited by the Thraco-Dacian tribe Singi; following Celtic invasion in 279 BC, the Scordisci wrested the city from their hands, naming it Singidun .

At the beginning of the 19th century, Belgrade was predominantly inhabited by a Muslim population.

Belgrade conceptualised a regulation plan for the city in 1867, in which he proposed the replacement of the town's crooked streets with a grid plan.

Belgrade shot the first motion pictures of Belgrade in the next year; however, they have not been preserved.

Belgrade was captured by subterfuge, with six German soldiers led by their officer Fritz Klingenberg feigning threatening size, forcing the city to capitulate.

Belgrade was more directly occupied by the German Army in the same month and became the seat of the puppet Nedic regime, headed by its namesake general.

Some of today's parts of Belgrade were incorporated in the Independent State of Croatia in occupied Yugoslavia, another puppet state, where Ustashe regime carried out the Genocide of Serbs.

Belgrade became the first city in Europe to be declared by the Nazi occupation forces to be Judenfrei.

The resistance movement in Belgrade was led by Major Zarko Todorovic from 1941 until his arrest in 1943.

In 1972, Belgrade faced smallpox outbreak, the last major outbreak of smallpox in Europe since World War II.

Josip Broz Tito died in May 1980 and his funeral in Belgrade was attended by high officials and state delegations from 128 of the 154 members of the United Nations from both sides of the Iron Curtain, based on which it became one of the largest funerals in history.

Since the 19th century, the city has been expanding to the south and east; after World War II, New Belgrade was built on the left bank of the Sava river, connecting Belgrade with Zemun.

Belgrade has a humid subtropical climate, according to Koppen climate classification, with four seasons and uniformly spread precipitation.

Belgrade is a separate territorial unit in Serbia, with its own autonomous city authority.

Belgrade is home to many ethnicities from across the former Yugoslavia and the wider Balkans region.

Belgrade used to have one of the largest Buddhist colonies in Europe outside Russia when some 400 mostly Buddhist Kalmyks settled on the outskirts of Belgrade following the Russian Civil War.

New Belgrade is the country's Central business district and one of Southeastern Europe's financial centres.

Microsoft's Development Center Serbia, located in Belgrade, was, at the time of its establishment, the fifth such programme on the globe.

The most internationally prominent artists from Belgrade are Charles Simic, Marina Abramovic and Milovan Destil Markovic.

Artist Marina Abramovic, who was born in Belgrade, held an exhibition in the Museum of Contemporary Art, which the New York Times described as one of the most important cultural happenings in the world in 2019.

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Museum of Aviation in Belgrade located near Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport has more than 200 aircraft, of which about 50 are on display, and a few of which are the only surviving examples of their type, such as the Fiat G 50.

The last of the major Belgrade museums is the Museum of Vuk and Dositej, which showcases the lives, work and legacy of Vuk Stefanovic Karadzic and Dositej Obradovic, the 19th century reformer of the Serbian literary language and the first Serbian Minister of Education, respectively.

Belgrade has wildly varying architecture, from the centre of Zemun, typical of a Central European town, to the more modern architecture and spacious layout of New Belgrade.

Oldest public structure in Belgrade is a nondescript Turkish turbe, while the oldest house is a modest clay house on Dorcol, from late 18th century.

Apart from Ada, Belgrade has total of 16 islands on the rivers, many still unused.

Belgrade is a common stop on the Rivers Route, European cycling route known as "Danube Bike Trail" in Serbia as well as on the Sultans Trail, a long-distance hiking footpath between Vienna and Istanbul.

Belgrade has a reputation for vibrant nightlife; many clubs that are open until dawn can be found throughout the city.

The most recognisable nightlife features of Belgrade are the barges spread along the banks of the Sava and Danube Rivers.

In recent years, Belgrade has given rise to several world-class tennis players such as Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic and Novak Djokovic.

Belgrade was a candidate to host 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympic Games.

Belgrade has two state universities and several private institutions of higher education.

The University of Belgrade, founded in 1808 as a grande ecole, is the oldest institution of higher learning in Serbia.

Belgrade has an extensive public transport system consisting of buses, trams, trolleybuses and S-Train BG Voz .

Belgrade is one of the last big European capitals and cities with over a million people to have no metro or subway or other rapid transit system.

Belgrade bypass is connecting the E70 and E75 motorways and is under construction.

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

Belgrade has received various domestic and international honours, including the French Legion d'honneur, the Czechoslovak War Cross, the Yugoslavian Order of the Karadorde's Star and the Yugoslavian Order of the People's Hero .