Kruševac

Kruševac is a city and the administrative center of the Rasina District in central Serbia. It is located in the valley of West Morava, on Rasina river. According to the 2022 census, the city administrative area has a population of 113,582 while the urban area has 68,119 inhabitants.
The city was founded in 1371, by Prince Lazar of Serbia (1371–1389), who used it as his seat.
Etymology
The etymology is derived from the Serbian word for "river stone", krušac which was largely used for a building at that time.
History
Kruševac was founded in 1371, as a fortified town in the possession of Lord Lazar Hrebeljanović. The Lazarica Church (or Church of St, Stephen) was built by Lazar between 1375–78, in the Morava architectural style. It is mentioned in one of Lazar's edicts in 1387, as his seat, when he affirmed the rights of Venetian merchants on Serbian territory. In preparation for the Battle of Kosovo (1389) against the Ottoman Empire, the Serbian army assembled in the city. The site of Lazar's palace is marked by a ruined enclosure containing a fragment of the tower of his spouse Princess Milica, and, according to legend, tidings of the defeat were brought to her by crows from the battlefield. After the battle, the city was held by Princess Milica as her seat. The little that remains of Lazar's city is the Kruševac Fortress, which was declared a Cultural Monument of Exceptional Importance in 1979. Several old Ottoman houses were left at the beginning of the 20th century, besides an old Turkish fountain and bath, which was known as Alacahisar (Aladža Hisar) during Ottoman rule between 1427–1833 (nominally to 1867) when Kruševac was the seat of the Sanjak of Kruševac. The Ottoman rule was interrupted during Austrian occupations between 1688–1690 and 1717–1739.
A large monument dedicated to Serbs fallen at the Battle of Kosovo was sculpted by Đorđe Jovanović and unveiled by King Petar I Karađorđević of Serbia in 1904. A detail on the monument, among others, is a statue of the famous blind Serbian poet Filip Višnjić.
At the beginning of the German occupation of Yugoslavia the units of Yugoslav Army in the Fatherland commanded by Dragutin Keserović and supported by one detachment of communists attacked the German garrison in September 1941 but failed to liberate the town after four days battle. During World War II mass executions of patriots and antifascists occurred on hill Bagdala. Largest execution was in summer of 1943. At place of executions now is a monument named Slobodište (from the Serbian word "sloboda", which means 'freedom'). Kruševac was liberated on 14 October when chetnik collaborators and Germans left the city together. After the regime of communists in Serbia ended the Government of Serbia and its Ministry of Justice established the commission to research atrocities that were committed by members of the Yugoslav Partisan Movement after they gained control over Serbia in Autumn 1944. According to the report of this commission, out of 55,554 registered victims of communist purges in Serbia the new communist regime in Kruševac killed 493 people while 11 people are missing.
Kruševac progressed profusely during the SFRY. A large number of factories were built in that era, while Kruševac became one of the strongest industrial centres in both Serbia and Yugoslavia. The machine factory IMK 14. oktobar Kruševac employed around 7,000 workers.
However, the large Kruševac industry hasn't survived the post-Milošević transition. In 2002 alone 5 factories went bankrupt. From 2002 to 2014 27 factories closed and around 11,000 workers lost their jobs. The unemployment rate in Kruševac was almost 39% in 2015.
Settlements
Aside from the urban area of Kruševac, the city administrative area includes the following 100 settlements:
Bošnjanе
Begovo Brdo
Bela Voda
Belasica
Bivolje
Bovan
Bojince
Boljevac
Brajkovac
Bukovica
Buci
Velika Kruševica
Velika Lomnica
Veliki Kupci
Veliki Šiljegovac
Veliko Golovode
Veliko Krušince
Vitanovac
Vratare
Vučak
Gavez
Gaglovo
Gari
Globare
Globoder
Gornji Stepoš
Grevci
Grkljane
Dvorane
Dedina
Dobromir
Doljane
Donji Stepoš
Đunis
Žabare
Zdravinje
Zebica
Zubovac
Jablanica
Jasika
Jošje
Kamenare
Kaonik
Kapidžija
Kobilje
Komorane
Konjuh
Koševi
Krvavica
Kukljin
Lazarevac
Lazarica
Lipovac
Lovci
Lukavac
Ljubava
Majdevo
Makrešane
Mala Vrbnica
Mala Reka
Mali Kupci
Mali Šiljegovac
Malo Golovode
Malo Krušince
Mačkovac
Meševo
Modrica
Mudrakovac
Naupare
Padež
Pakašnica
Parunovac
Pasjak
Pepeljevac
Petina
Pozlata
Poljaci
Ribare
Ribarska Banja
Rlica
Rosica
Sebečevac
Sezemče
Slatina
Srndalje
Srnje
Stanci
Suvaja
Sušica
Tekija
Trebotin
Trmčare
Ćelije
Cerova
Crkvina
Čitluk
Šavrane
Šanac
Šašilovac
Šogolj
Štitare
Demographics
According to the 2011 census results, the city of Kruševac has a total population of 128,752 inhabitants.
Ethnic groups
The ethnic composition of the city administrative area:
Economy
The most notable large companies based in the city of Kruševac are: Trayal Corporation, 14. oktobar, Rubin and Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Serbia. As of September 2017, Kruševac has one of 14 free economic zones established in Serbia.
The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2019):
Politics
Seats in the city parliament won in the 2016 local elections:
Sports
The city's main football club is FK Napredak Kruševac, who regularly play in the Serbian SuperLiga.
Climate
Famous residents
Stefan Lazarević (1377–1427), medieval ruler of Serbia
Stojan Protić (1857–1923), Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes 1918–1919, 1920
Ljubinka Bobić (1897–1978), Serbian actress
Stanislav Binički (1872–1942), Serbian composer (Marš na Drinu)
Dobrica Ćosić (1921–2014), Serbian writer, first President of FR Yugoslavia
Taško Načić (1934–1993), Serbian actor
Miodrag Petrović Čkalja (1924–2003), One of the most popular Serbian comedians
Bata Paskaljević (1923–2004), Serbian actor
Radmila Savićević (1926–2001), Serbian actress
Ljiljana Jovanović (1930–2012), Serbian actress
America Alonso (1936–2022) Venezuelan actress
Miroslav Mišković (b. 1945), Serbian businessman
Dragiša Binić (b. 1961), Serbian footballer, 1990–91 European Cup winner
Milić Jovanović (b. 1966), Serbian footballer, 1990–91 European Cup winner
Ognjen Petrović (1948–2000), Serbian footballer
Nebojša Bradić (b. 1956), Serbian theatre director, and former Minister of Culture
Goran Grbović (b. 1961), Serbian basketball player, bronze medalist at the EuroBasket 1987
Vojin Ćetković (b. 1971), Serbian actor
Marko Živić (1972–2021), Serbian actor
Bojan Lazić (b. 1974), professional Serbian football player
Nataša Tapušković (b. 1975), Serbian actress
Branislav Trifunović (b. 1978), Serbian actor
Bojan Zajić (b. 1980), Serbian footballer
Aleksandar Mitrović (b. 1982), Serbian volleyball player
Predrag Pavlović (b. 1986), Serbian footballer
Milan Gajić (b. 1986), Serbian footballer
Nikola Milošević (b. 1993), Serbian footballer
Predrag Jovanović (b. 1950), Serbian musician
Dragan Milosavljević (b. 1989), Serbian basketball player, silver medalist at the EuroBasket 2017
Milica Todorović (born 1990), Serbian singer
Sanja Vučić (born 1993), Serbian singer who represented Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 and the Eurovision Song Contest 2021
Ognjen Jaramaz (b. 1995), Serbian basketball player
Tijana Bogdanović (b. 1998), Serbian taekwondo practitioner, European champion and silver medalist at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Mimica Pavlović (b. 1984) Serbian footballer
International relations
Twin towns – Sister cities
Kruševac is twinned with:
Other forms of co-operation and city friendship similar to the twin/sister city programmes:
Gallery
See also
List of cities in Serbia
Rubin (company)
References
External links
krusevac.link portal
037info Kruševac portal
KruševacPRESS portal
Kruševac Parliament portal
Kruševac Info portal
Populated places in Rasina District
Municipalities and cities of Šumadija and Western Serbia
Former capitals of Serbia