Smederevo

Smederevo Fortress is considered the best example of open-air medieval fortifications in Europe. The fortress was built in 1427 by the Serbian ruler Đurađ Branković, the last of the Serbian kings, to serve as the new capital of Serbia. Its design was modeled after the fortifications of Constantinople and includes 25 towers, each 25 meters high. Some of the stones used in its construction were brought from nearby Roman sites. Builders from Dubrovnik and Venice also contributed to the project. The fortress includes an inner city with a keep tower, throne room, treasury, escape tunnels, and more. The walls are between 2.5 and 4 meters thick.

Branković had to navigate the power struggles between the Hungarians and the Ottomans. He was formally a subject of the Hungarian crown and a vassal of the Ottoman Empire. After the death of the former king, Despot Stefan Lazarević, the Ottomans seized the Golubac Fortress at the entrance to the Iron Gates canyon, while the Hungarians took control of Belgrade. As a result, Branković was forced to establish a new capital.

He chose a location midway between the two rival powers, at the strategic confluence of the Danube and Morava rivers. The site controlled the southern route toward Moravia and Macedonia. The Ottomans signed a peace treaty with the Serbs, and Sultan Murad II married Branković’s daughter. Through her mediation, a peace treaty was also signed with the Hungarians. The relics of Luke the Evangelist were brought to Smederevo, which soon became a thriving city.

In 1439, peace collapsed and war broke out between the Ottomans and the Serbs. Although the Ottomans besieged the fortress, they could not breach its walls, and it remained in Serbian hands after another peace agreement. However, this too was short-lived. Under the reign of Mehmed II, the Ottomans finally conquered Smederevo in 1459, after several failed attempts, marking the end of the weakened Serbian kingdom—six years after the fall of Constantinople.