BELGRADE — BELL
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Max Elskamp, Albert Giraud, Fernand Severin, and For a town of nearly 60,000 inhabitants and of such Albert Mockel. (a. sy.) political and commercial importance, which is also the seat of the Metropolitan of Servia, Belgrade has very Belgrade (Servian, Beograd, i.e., White Castle), few churches, and these are of a somewhat modest type. the capital of Servia, situated in 44° 47' N., anc^ 20° 28' There are four Servian Orthodox churches, one Roman E. Belgrade in 1895 contained 59,790 inhabitants, of Catholic chapel, one evangelical chapel (German), one whom 11,471 were foreigners, mostly Austro-Hungarian synagogue, and one mosque. This last is kept up entirely and Turkish subjects. The number of houses in 1895 was at the expense of the Servian Government. 5317, of which 156 were governmental and 67 municipal The first fortification of the rock, at the confluence of the Save buildings. It is the most important commercial town in and the Danube, was made by the Celts in the 3rd century b.c. Servia, and one of the more important of the whole Balkan They gave it the name of Singidunum, by which Belgrade was peninsula. It is situated at the confluence of two great rivers, known until the 7th century a.d. The Romans took it from the Celts, and replaced their fort by a regular Roman castrum, placing in the Save and the Danube, on a triangular ridge of which it a strong garrison. Roman bricks, dug up in the fortress, bear the southern base, having in its centre the pyramid of the the inscription, Legio IV. Flavia Felix. From the 4th to the beAvala hill, leans on the northern slopes of the mountains ginning of the 6th century a.d. it often changed its masters of Central Servia (called Shumadiya). The north-western (Huns, Sarmatians, Goths, Gepids); then the emperor Justinian it once more under Roman, or rather Byzantine, rule, and side of the triangle slopes towards the Save, while the brought fortified and embellished it. Towards the end of the 8th century north-eastern side descends slowly to the right bank of the it was taken by the Franks of Charlemagne. In the 9th century Danube. The northern end of the ridge is formed by a it was captured by the Bulgarians, and held by them until the cliff of Tertiary chalk, about 200 feet high, on which the beginning of the 11th century, when the Byzantine emperor Basilius II. reconquered it for the Greek empire. The Hungarians, citadel (grad) is built. The western side of the cliff is under king Stephen, took it from the Greeks in 1124. From washed by the Save, which, coming from the west, there that time it was constantly changing hands—Greeks, Bulgarians, falls into the Danube. This latter, coming from the Hungarians, replacing each other in turn. During the 14th north, turns at the foot of the citadel in an easterly century it was in the hands of the Servian kings. The Servian prince George Brankovich ceded it to the Hungarians in 1427. direction. Just opposite the citadel, in a north-westerly The Turkish forces unsuccessfully besieged the city in 1444 and direction, half-an-hour by steamer across the Danube, 1456, on which last occasion a glorious victory was obtained by the lies the Hungarian town Zimony (Serv. Zemun; Germ. Christian garrison, led by the famous John Hunyady and the Semlin), which in many respects may be considered as a enthusiastic monk John Capistran. In 1521 Sultan Suleyman took suburb of Belgrade. The position of Belgrade has been it from the Hungarians, and from that year it remained in possession until the year 1687, when the Austrians always considered as of great strategical, political, and Turkish captured it, only to lose it again in 1690. In 1717 Prince Eugene commercial importance. The city was considered to be of Savoy conquered it for Austria, which kept it until 1739, imthe key of Hungary, and its possession was believed to proving the fortifications and giving great impulse to the comsecure possession of Servia, besides giving command of the mercial development of the town. From 1739 to 1789 the Turks again its masters, when, in that last year, the Austrians traffic between the Upper and the Lower Danube. It has, were under General Laudon carried it by assault, only to lose it again in in consequence, seen more battles under its walls than 1792. In 1807 the Servians, having risen for their independence, most fortresses in Europe. The Turks used to call it forced the Turkish garrison to capitulate, and became masters of “ Darol-i-Djehad” “the home of wars for faith.” As Belgrade, which they kept until the end of September 1813, when abandoned it to the Turks. Up to the year 1862 not only the royal residence, the seat of the government, and they was the fortress of Belgrade garrisoned by Turkish troops, but the the centre of the import trade, Belgrade is being rapidly Danubian slope of the town was inhabited by Turks, living under transformed into a modern European town, with wide a special Turkish administration, while the modern part of the streets, electric tramways, and electric lighting. The town (the plateau of the ridge and the western slope) was inhabited by Servians living under their own authorities. This dual governglacis of the citadel has been converted into a beautiful ment was a constant cause of friction between the Servians and the park, from which there are lovely views. Another popular Turks, and on the occasion of one conflict between the two parties resort is the park of Topchider, with an old Turkish kiosk the Turkish commander of the fortress bombarded the Servian of Prince Milosh situated in beautifully-laid-out grounds. part of the town (14th June 1862). The indirect consequence of incident was that in 1866, on the categoric demand of Prince In the adjoining forest of lime-trees, called Koshutnyak this Michael of Servia, and under the diplomatic pressure of the Great (Parc - aux - Cerfs), Prince Michael was assassinated in Powers, the Sultan withdrew the Turkish garrison from the citadel 1868. The highest educational establishments are to be and delivered it to the Servians. (c, Ml) found in Belgrade: the “ Velika Shkola ” (a small uniBelize. See Honduras, British. versity with three faculties), the military academy, the Bell, Alexander Graham (1847 ), in theological seminary, the high school for girls, a commercial academy, and several schools for secondary ventor and physicist, son of Alexander Melville Bell (q.v.), education on German models. A commercial tribunal, was born in Edinburgh on 3rd March 1847. He was edua court of appeal, and the Court of Cassation are also in cated at the University of Edinburgh and the University Belgrade. There is a fine monument to Prince Michael, of London, and removed with his father to Canada in 1870. who succeeded in removing the Turkish garrison from the In 1872 he removed to Boston, and became professor of In 1876 he Belgrade citadel and obtaining other Turkish fortresses in vocal physiology in Boston University. Servia by skilful diplomacy. There are no monumental exhibited an apparatus embodying the results of his buildings in the town, still there are several fine archi- studies in the transmission of sound by electricity, and tectural structures, the New Palace, the High School, the his invention, with improvements and modifications, conNational Bank, and the National Theatre. There is also stitutes the modern commercial telephone (see Ency. an interesting national museum, with Roman antiquities Brit. vol. xxiii. p. 128). He is the inventor also of the and numismatic collections, a national library with some photophone (see vol. xxiii. p. 130), an instrument for 40,000 volumes, with a wealth of old Servian MSS., and a transmitting sound by variations in a beam of light. botanical garden, rich in specimens of the Balkan flora. Bell, Alexander IVIelville(l8i9 ) , teacher To promote commerce there is a stock and produce and phonetist, was born at Edinburgh on 1st March 1819. exchange (Berza), a national bank, privileged to issue Between 1843 and 1865 he was a lecturer at the University notes, and several banking establishments. The insurance and New College of his native city. He was subsequently work is done by foreign companies, amongst which the a lecturer at University College, London, and professor of Gresham and the North British occupy foremost places. philology and linguistics in Queen’s University, Kingston.
