Sremski Karlovci

Just a few kilometers south of the Petrovaradin Fortress lies the town of Sremski Karlovci, a significant destination on the Christian and historical route. At the end of the 17th century, the Serbian Patriarchate relocated there, transforming the town into a Serbian Orthodox holy city. Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, Sremski Karlovci flourished as the center of Serbian spiritual and national life.

At the heart of Sremski Karlovci is a collection of Christian institutions and churches built in the Baroque style, arranged around a central square. These include the Patriarchate building (the residence of the Serbian Patriarch until 1920), the Cathedral of St. Nicholas, the city hall, a high school, and the first Orthodox seminary in the Balkans, established at the end of the 18th century.

Vojvodina was an autonomous region within the Austro-Hungarian Empire until World War I, after which it was united with Serbia, and the Patriarchal seat was moved to Belgrade. However, Sremski Karlovci retained its importance and its religious institutions. The Patriarch would still visit the town in the summer to enjoy local delicacies, such as Kuglof cakes, available in the cafés lining the square in front of the palace.

Sremski Karlovci also features a Catholic church on the main square, and above the town, on a hill, stands a chapel-church commemorating the Karlowitz Peace Treaty, signed there in 1699 between the European powers and the Ottoman Empire. The church, called Kapela Mira (Chapel of Peace), is uniquely shaped like the tent in which the treaty was signed. The town also hosts a museum dedicated to the Serbian Church.

The architectural and cultural revival of Sremski Karlovci is largely attributed to Patriarch Georgije Branković, with the help of architect Vladimir Nikolić. Together, they built a chapel for the Patriarch’s family, blending traditional Serbian style with neoclassical and Islamic architectural elements. The city also honors Branko Radičević, a 19th-century poet revered as a national figure and a reformer of the Serbian language, with a monument that incorporates stones from all parts of Serbia. Many of the city’s buildings, including the seminary, are architecturally impressive and historically significant.