The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-08-05
BELGRADE NOW
 A CITY OF RUINS

"An Austrian army, awfully arrayed
 Boldly by battery besieged Belgrade"
 So begins the most famous of allit- erative and alphabetical poems, and to the inhabitants of the stricken city it expresses bitter truth. The Ser bian capital is now a city of ruins, for little has been done by its captors to restore the buildings battered and wrecked by the big guns. The Aus trians had marked off the city in small sections for the concentrated fire of the guns, and when at last they gained full possession there was scarcely a building left intact in all Belgrade.
 To-day is the 2O0th anniversary of one of the most momentous of the former battles fought in the vicinity of Belgrade. The ancient city, taken from the Greek emperor by the Hun garians in 1072 and from the latter by the Turks in 1521, was first be- sieged by the Austrians in 1888. The city was wrested from the Turks, but was retaken by them two years later.
 In 1716 the Austrians again began siege of Belgrade, the army being under the command of Prince Eugene of Savoy, one of the most famous gen. erals of that time. Eugene had ta- ken part in the first successful siege of Belgrade, and later had shared with Marlborough the honors of the victory of Blenheim. Prince Eugene began the siege in May, l7166,6 and was making favorable progress toward the reduction of the city, when a Tur- kish army, 100000 strong, approached to relieve the city's garrison. On Au- gust 5, 17166, Eugene led his army against the Turks at Peterwardein, and although outnumbered, defeated the Moslems with great slaughter. A year later Eugene returned to the siege of Belgrade, and was assai1ed by very su- perior forces, the Turks outnumbering his army six to one. In spite of this great numerical disadvantage, Eugene inflicted upon the Turks what was per haps the greatest defeat they ever ex- perienced. Although wounded in the battle, Prince Eugene continued the assault on the city, and Belgrade again fell into Austrian possession on August g, 1717.
 The Austrian occupation continued from 1717 to 1739, when Belgrade was returned to the Turks. but not until the fine Notifications had been com plete1y demolished. The next Aus trian army awful1y arrayed" to appear before Belgrade was in 1789. The city was stormed and captured, but in the following year it was restored to the Turks.
 The Ottomans remained in undis- turbed possession of Belgrade until 1906, when Kara George, the founder of the dynasty now represented by King Peter, led his Serbian insurgents against the city and captured it. Kara George set up a government and the insurgents remained in control of Bel grade until 1913, when the Turks again brought the city beneath their yoke. Soon afterwards a Serbian prince, un- der Turkish suzerainty, was crowned and established his capital in Bel grade. In 1862 the Serbian rebels against Turkish authority gained the upper hand for few days, but the city was bombarded and forced to submit In 1877 another revolution was started and, with the aid of the Russians, was completely successful. The indepen- dence of Serbia was proclaimed in Bel grade on Aug. 22, 1878.
 Whether Belgrade will be restored and rebuilt on a new and grander scale as the capital of a greater Serbia, or whether it will remain with the con- querors, depends upon the outcome ot the war, Even if the Serbs, with the help of their powerful allies, drive out tho invaders and restore their inde- pendence, it is not at all improbable that the seat of government will be re- moved to Nish or some other interior city less exposed to attack from Ser bias big and envious neighbor,