Trg Republike or Square of the Republic (Serbian Cyrillic: Трг Републике) is one of the central town squares and an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, located in Belgrade's municipality of Stari Grad. It is the site of some of Belgrade's most recognizable public buildings, including the National Museum, the National Theatre and the famous statue of Prince Michael. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... The Cyrillic alphabet (or azbuka, from the old name of the first two letters) is an alphabet used for several East and South Slavic languages; (Belarusian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, Rusyn, Serbian, and Ukrainian) and many other languages of the former Soviet Union, Asia and Eastern Europe. ... A town square is an open area commonly found in the heart of a traditional town used for community gatherings. ... Below is a list of all the suburbs in Belgrade, Serbia. ... Belgrade (Serbian: Београд or Beograd  ) is the capital and largest city of Serbia. ... Anthem: Bože pravde (English: God of Justice) Capital (and largest city) Belgrade Serbian written with the Cyrillic alphabet1 Government Republic  - Prime Minister Vojislav KoÅ¡tunica  - President Boris Tadić Establishment    - Formation 814   - First Serbian Uprising 1804   - Internationally recognized July 13, 1878   - Kingdom of SCS created December 1, 1918   - SCG dissolved... Stari Grad is an urban municipality of Belgrade. ... National Museum in Belgrade, Serbia The National Museum (Serbian: Народни музеј) in Belgrade, Serbia was founded in 1844. ... Mihailo (Michael) Obrenović III (Serbian Cyrillic Михаило Обреновић) (1823–1868) was prince of Serbia from 1839–1842 and again from 1860–1868. ...

Location

The square is located less that 100 meters away from Terazije, designated center of Belgrade, to which it is connected by the streets of Kolarčeva (traffic) and Knez Mihailova (pedestrian zone). Many people erroneously consider Square of the Republic to be the center of the city. Through Vasina street it is connected to the fortress and park of Kalemegdan to the west and through Sremska street it is connected to the neighborhood of Zeleni Venac and further to Novi Beograd. It also borders the neighborhoods of Stari Grad and Dorćol, to the north. Terazije (Serbian: Terazije, Теразије) covers an area from Sremska Street to Kralja Milana Street in Belgrade. ... Knez Mihailova ulica (Prince Mihailo Street) is the main pedestrian street in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, with many cafes and expensive shops. ... Kalemegdan fortress complex Kalemegdan (Serbian: Kалемегдан or Kalemegdan) is a fortress located in the same named park. ... Map of the Syrmia region Syrmia (Serbian: Srem (Cyrillic: Срем), Croatian: Srijem) is a fertile region of the Pannonian plain in Europe, between the Danube and Sava rivers. ... Coat of Arms of Novi Beograd Novi Beograd (Нови Београд, New Belgrade) is a part of Belgrade located on the left bank of Sava river. ... Dorćol (Дорћол in cyrilic) is the area of the city of Belgrade, part of the Stari Grad municipality. ...

History

Origin

The present square was formed after the demolition of the Stambol Gate in 1866 and the construction of the National Theatre in 1869. The Gate had been built by the Austrians at the beginning of the XVIII century, and stood in the area between the present monument to Prince Mihailo and the National Theatre building. It was the largest and most beautiful town gate at the time when Belgrade was encircled by a moat. It was named after the road which led through it to Constantinople (Istanbul). The people remembered the Stambol Gate as the place in front of which the Turks executed the "raya", their non-Muslim subjects, by impaling them on stakes. It was also the place where during the attack on Belgrade in 1806 in the First Serbian Uprising, one of the leading Serb military commanders, Vasa Čarapić, was fatally wounded. In memory of this sad event, a street near the square and a monument in the vicinity were named after him. 1866 (MDCCCLXVI) is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... 1869 (MDCCCLXIX) is a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... The moated manor house of Baddesley Clinton in Warwickshire, England Moats (also known as a Fosse) were deep and wide water-filled trenches, excavated to provide a barrier against attack upon castle ramparts or other fortifications. ... Map of Constantinople. ... Istanbul (Turkish: , Greek: / Konstandinúpoli, historically known in English as Constantinople; see other names) is Turkeys most populous city, and its cultural and financial center. ... 1806 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Flag of the First Serbian Uprising First Serbian Uprising was an uprising at the beginning of the 19th century in which Serbs living in Belgrade Pashaluk in the Ottoman Empire, led by Karadjordje, managed to liberate the Pashaluk for a significant time, which eventually led to the creation of modern...

After the establishment of Serbian rule and the demolition of the Stambol Gate, the site of the present square was not laid out for a long time. The National Theatre was the only large building standing here for more than thirty years and until Communist rule after 1945 it was named Pozorišni Trg (Theatre square). The square gradually started to acquire more buildings after the monument to Prince Mihailo was erected in 1882. The place where now the National Museum is, was the location of long single-storied building which housed, among other things, the famous "Dardaneli restaurant". This was the meeting-place of members of the artistic circles at the time. The building was pulled down to make way in 1903 for the Treasury (now the building of the National Museum). In a small park next to the National Theatre, there were the well-known "Kolarac" restaurant and cinema (owned by Ilija Milosavljević-Kolarac, a merchant and benefactor). The "Riunione" Palace, in which the "Jadran" cinema is located today, was built in 1930. 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar. ... 1903 (MCMIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Friday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... Year 1930 (MCMXXX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link is to a full 1930 calendar). ...

In the place of today's Press House, there have been old and single-storied buildings with shops, until World War II.

World War II and later

Most of the buildings were destroyed during the German bombing on April 6, 1941. After World War II the tram tracks were removed (until then, a tram terminus was here), and the square, on which for a short time were the crypt and the monument to the Red Army soldiers died during the liberation of Belgrade in 1944, was removed (their remains have been transferred to the Cemetery of the Liberators of Belgrade). Later, the biggest building on this square, the "Press House" was constructed, so as the "City Restaurant" and the International Press Center. April 6 is the 96th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (97th in leap years). ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian... A CLRV Streetcar in the City of Toronto. ... Year 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1944 calendar). ...

Characteristics

The Square of the Republic is one of the busiest places in Belgrade, as one of the central business areas in the city. Being the intersection of major traffic routes in Belgrade, it is also one of the most polluted areas, with over 20 bus and trolleybus lines of the city public transportation passing through the square. Å koda 14 Tr trolleybus in Vilnius A trolleybus (also known as electric bus, trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tram or simply trolley) is a bus powered by two overhead electric wires, from which it draws electricity using two trolley poles. ...

On one side, the square extends to the Knez Mihailova street, the pedestrian zone and one of the main commercial sections of Belgrade. On the opposite side, the square is occupied by the Staklenac (Serbian for glassy), the Belgrade's first modern glass and steel constructed shopping mall, built in 1989 for the purpose of the IX Non-Aligned Movement summit in Belgrade. The small flat area in front of Staklenac has been officially named 'Plateau of Dr Zoran Đinđić', after the Serbian prime minister was assassinated in 2003. 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Member states of the Non-Aligned Movement (2005). ... Zoran ĐinÄ‘ić Zoran ĐinÄ‘ić   (often Zoran Djindjic, from Serbian Cyrillic: Зоран Ђинђић, pronounced ) (1 August 1952 – 12 March 2003) was a Serbian prime minister, mayor of Belgrade (Beograd), long-time opposition politician and a philosopher by profession. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Trivia

Horse

The bronze statue of Prince Michael on a horse, by the Italian sculptor Enrico Pazzi was erected in 1882. It was erected in honor of his most important political achievement, complete expulsion of the Turks from Serbia and liberation of the remaining 7 cities within (then) Serbian territory, still under the Turkish rule (1867). The names of the cities are carved on a plates on the monument itself, on the statue's pedestal and prince is sculptured with his hand allegedly pointing to Constantinople, showing the Turks to leave. However, his hand points to the opposite direction, to the north-east instead to the south-east. During recent years, the role and honor of prince somewhat fell into the oblivion and the statue became simply known as kod konja (Serbian for 'at the horse'). Even the nearby restaurant is named that way, Kod konja and recent polls showed that the vast number of Belgraders don't even know who is the person riding the horse. 1867 (MDCCCLXVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... A statue of Henry IV of France on a pedestal Pedestal (from French piedestal, Italian piedestallo, foot of a stall) is a term generally applied to the support of a statue or a vase. ...

Clock

In 2000 a modern clock was installed in the square called the Millennium clock which shows temperature conditions and time. Its construction caused a controversy as many prominent architects objected it. The clock has very high stand for a relatively small clock. Two major, digital clocks are being turned to the less frequent sides of the square (from Čika Ljubina and Kolarčeva street), while two small, regular clocks are turned to the more frequent sides (from Knez Mihailova and the National Theatre). Also, the clock and its stand are chromed and metallic, which is in total contrast to the classic look that the square still manages to keep. Also, many people considered its price (225.000 euros) way too high for a clock (even a millennium one), despite it was privately funded. A millennium is a period of time, equal to one thousand years (from Latin mille, thousand, and annum, year). ... ISO 4217 Code EUR User(s) European Union: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Republic of Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain. ...

Opera controversy

The area of the present 'Plateau of Dr Zoran Đinđić', right across the National Theatre was seen for decades as the site of the future Belgrade Opera. However, this became highly controversial issue, both academic and public, in the 2000s, when city government decided to tear down the Staklenac mall (saying it has done its purpose, even though it was built in 1989) and to construct City Gallery, while the Opera is suppose to be built in the swampy and uninhabited area of Ušće in Novi Beograd. Despite a total opposition from the population, ensemble of the opera and most prominent architects and artists, the city government, most prominently the official city architect Đorđe Bobić, stubbornly insists against the popular wishes.

Protests

Ever since the first anti-Slobodan Milošević demonstrations on March 9, 1991, over the student protest 1996-97 and pro-democracy rallies in September and October 2005, the Square of the Republic was a central point of all of them. For that matter, opposition (most notably leader of the Serbian Renewal Movement, SPO, Vuk Drašković) insisted on changing the name of the square to Trg Slobode (Square of the Freedom) but this was never officially done, even during the SPO's rule in Belgrade 1997-2000). Slobodan MiloÅ¡ević Slobodan MiloÅ¡ević   (IPA Serbian Cyrillic: Слободан Милошевић) (Požarevac, 20 August 1941 – The Hague, 11 March 2006) was President of Serbia and of Yugoslavia. ... March 9 is the 68th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (69th in Leap years). ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Serbian Renewal Movement (Srpski Pokret Obnove) is a political party in Serbia. ... Vuk DraÅ¡ković Vuk DraÅ¡ković (Вук Драшковић) (November 29, 1946) is a Serbian politician who is presently the temporary Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia. ...

External links

• City of Belgrade
• Tourist organisation of Belgrade