page_title: Smederevo Fortress
section_title: Construction
hierarchical_section_title: Smederevo Fortress / Architecture / Construction
caption_attribution_description: A view to the water trench and the northern wall from the corner small town tower in Smederevo Fortress.
context_page_description: The Smederevo Fortress is a medieval fortified city in Smederevo, Serbia, which was temporary capital of Serbia in the Middle Ages. It was built between 1427 and 1430 on the order of Despot Đurađ Branković, the ruler of the Serbian Despotate. It was further fortified by the Ottoman Empire, which had taken the city in 1459.
  The fortress withstood several sieges by Ottomans and Serbs, surviving relatively unscathed. During World War II it was heavily damaged, by explosions and bombing. As of 2009 it is in the midst of extensive restoration and conservation work, despite which the fortress remains "one of the rare preserved courts of medieval Serbian rulers."
  Smederevo Fortress was declared a national Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance in 1979. In 2010, the fortress was placed on the tentative list for possible nomination as a World Heritage Site.
context_section_description: There were four main phases in the construction of the fortress. The work on the first part, a fortified manor for Despot Đurađ Branković built at the confluence of the rivers, began in the autumn of 1428.
  Under the eye of George Palaiologos Kantakouzenos, older brother of Despotina Jerina Branković, lumber, lime, and enormous stones from the former Roman cities of Mons Aureus (the modern village of Seone, west of Smederevo), Margum (at the mouth of the Great Morava), and Viminacium were collected.  In the spring of 1429, Greek and Ragusan workers began the brickwork.  In 1430, the elegant manor was completed.  It included a palace stretching along the length of the moat wall; a throne hall against the Danube wall; a keep, Donžon kula (Donjon tower), in the corner formed by the walls; a treasury in a high chamber; and other auxiliary buildings, creating an inner city.
  The throne hall, where Branković received his visitors, was built with four double-arched windows, fashioned in a mixed Gothic/Romanesque style. Donžon kula was intended to be the final line of defense.  It was constructed with walls over 4 meters thick, and housed the nobility during Turkish attacks.  Hidden doors were built into the Jezava wall, allowing for passage towards Hungary.
  The next nine years were spent expanding the fortifications to include a larger fortified suburb, thereby finishing the main fortress.  In the suburb, a sacral complex was built in phases from the 15th century onwards, and a Turkish bath was added by the Ottomans in the 17th century.  There was a ship gate in the suburb's Danube wall, where sailors could enter the fortress.  It is unclear whether any long-term residential buildings were built.
  Between 1460 and 1480, while held by the Ottoman Empire, a larger defensive system was built, including escarpments, low walls, and more towers.  During the first half of the 18th century, fortified trenches were added.
caption: A view to the Danube from an inner city tower
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