Topčider
Topčider
Топчидер | |
---|---|
UTC+2 (CEST) | |
Area code | +381(0)11 |
Car plates | BG |
Topčider (
As a result of the 1923 Belgrade's general plan, where one of the main projects regarding the green areas was forestation of the area between Topčider and the city, a continuous green area Senjak-Topčidersko Brdo-Hajd Park-Topčider-Košutnjak was formed by the 1930s. This continuous forested area makes the largest "green massif" in the immediate vicinity of Belgrade's urban tissue.[1]
Location
This section relies largely or entirely on a single source. (April 2018) |
Geographically, Topčider covers a much larger area than what people generally refer to as Topčider today. The eastern slopes of
In the upper parts, Košutnjak and Topčider forests grow together, while in the lower parts they are divided by the Topčiderska reka and a railway passing through the river valley (both Košutnjak and Topčider have their own, separate train stations). In the extreme north-west Topčider extends into the neighborhood of Careva Ćuprija and in the south-east into Lisičji Potok. It also borders the neighborhood of Kanarevo Brdo in this section.[3][4]
History
Pre-19th century
Topčider is mentioned for the first time in the 17th century
During Ottoman times, the valley of Topčiderska reka and the Topčider wood were locations where the Turkish artillery was positioned, intended to defend Belgrade, being distant from the town itself at the time (thus many military barracks to defend the city from later periods, but the town later sprawled tens of kilometers further). This is how the area got its name as in Turkish it means "artillery men's valley" (top, cannon; topçu, artillery man; dere, valley), though it is usually erroneously thought to mean simply the cannon valley.[citation needed]
19th century
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Milo%C5%A1ev_konak_u_Top%C4%8Dideru.jpg/250px-Milo%C5%A1ev_konak_u_Top%C4%8Dideru.jpg)
Planting of the surrounding park began at the same time and marked the beginning of the planned green areas in Belgrade as the ensuing park was the first park area in the city.
In 1839, Belgrade merchant Joca Đ. Jovanović applied for permit to build the first brewery in town. He wanted to build it in Topčider, but the permit was denied.[11] On 24 May 1860, privately owned predecessor of the public transport in Belgrade was organized. The omnibus line was operated by the diligences. Its starting point was at the kafana "Kod Zlatnog Venca" in Terazije, while the line ended in Topčider. Apparently, it wasn't a lucrative business move so the owner Luka Jakovljević sold it in 1861 to Milan Tešić, who expanded the line from Terazije to Varoš Kapija and lifted the price to 3 groschen.[12]
The importance which Topčider gained for the city population can be seen from the fact that in 1884 it got its
20th century
According to the Belgrade's first
When Serbia began using paper money, the banknotes were printed in France until 1929, when the Banknotes printing office was built in Topčider, close to the railway station. However, the coins were minted on another location, in the privately owned company "The brothers Bošković mint" in the nearby street, today named Bulevar vojvode Mišića. In the mid-1930s a big affair broke out, concerning the counterfeiting of the coins of 50 dinars, so the Banknotes printing office also took over that job. It was always colloquially called the "Mint".[9]
After the
After 1945 city urbanists considered that the way the Topčider-Košutnjak complex had been handled was wrong, especially the expansion of the railway station into the
21st century
In the early 2016, a gradual moving of trains from the
Administration
By 1883, Topčider had a population of 767, and though part of Belgrade, it wasn't organized as a quarter of the city, like the central urban area.[18] According to the censuses, the population was 1,675 in 1890, 2,815 in 1895, 2,818 in 1900, 3,534 in 1905 and 3,510 in 1910.[19]
After the liberation in World War I in 1918, Topčider came under Belgrade's administrative rule.[20] It was organized as a Topčider-Senjak section of Belgrade, which had a population of 8,476 in 1921.[21]
In the second half of the 20th century, the part which was within the Savski Venac municipality was organized as a local community (mesna zajednica), a sub-municipal administrative unit. It was named Topčidersko Brdo and had a population of 5,333 in 1981.[22] It was then merged with Senjak again in the Topčidersko Brdo-Senjak local community which had a population of 7,757 in 1991,[23] 7,249 in 2002[24] and 6,344 in 2011.[25]
Wildlife
Plants
Tree planting began immediately after the konak construction in the 1830s. In the 19th century it was the first
Even older is the almost 180-year-old
Special feature in the park is the group of 8 swamp cypresses.[27]
In 2015, most of the trees in Topčider were 20 to 70 years old, but a significant number of trees was over 100 years old or from the 19th century.[5]
Animals
Topčider is home to 26 species of
Monuments and other features
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/%D0%9E%D0%B1%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B8%D1%81%D0%BA_%D1%83_%D0%A2%D0%BE%D0%BF%D1%87%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D1%80%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%BC_%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%BA%D1%83_2012-09-16_12-44-34.jpg/250px-%D0%9E%D0%B1%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B8%D1%81%D0%BA_%D1%83_%D0%A2%D0%BE%D0%BF%D1%87%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D1%80%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%BC_%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%BA%D1%83_2012-09-16_12-44-34.jpg)
Topčider was the first public park outside the central city area. Today, the total area of Topčider is 35 ha (86 acres),[27] out of which 12.8 ha (32 acres) is covered by the park.[5] The entire Košutnjak-Topčider forest complex covers an area of 3.46 km2 (1.34 sq mi).
Many other monuments are centered on the konak:[5][29]
- binjektaš stone ("hopping stone") which prince Miloš used to jump on a horse;
- Museum of the First Serbian Uprising, in the konak itself;
- four public fountains, with an additional fifth one with lion's heads which was temporarily moved to Topčider in 1911, but restored in 1976 and returned to its original location in Terazije. Two are drinking fountains (Miloš' and Vračar's, built from 1858 to 1860), while the third and fourth are decorative fountains (Great Fount, from the 1920s, and Little Fount, built in the 1980s);
- "Woman harvester" monument, the first park monument in Belgrade. It was sculptured by the Austrian Fidelis Kimmel in 1852;
- stone obelisk erected in 1859, one of the first public monuments in Belgrade. It was erected by prince Miloš to mark his return to power in 1858;
- bronze monument to the Swiss doctor and philanthropist Archibald Reiss, sculptured by Marko Brežanin in 1931.
The northern section of Topčider is the location of the Topčider cemetery (with the
Protection
Topčider was declared a spatial cultural-historical unit in 1987, and placed under the state protection.[30]
The Great Platanus, in front of the konak, was protected as the natural monument in 2001. As the city government declared the entire Topčider Park a natural monument on 23 June 2015, specific protection for the Platanus ceased. In the area of the residential
Northwest section of the Topčider was declared a geological natural monument of "Maša's Quarry". The location is an archaeological excavation site as the fossils of the Mesozoic fish have been found in the sediment layers from the Late Cretaceous. It was named Mašin majdan ("Maša's quarry"), after a quarry owned by Manojlo Maša Dimić who lived in the house above the quarry. He was among the first wealthy Belgraders who built villas in Topčider.[31][32] The quarry was operational until the 1920s and the stone from the quarry was used for the villas on Topčider and Dedinje, but also for the construction of the nearby railroad, paving of Belgrade streets with cobblestone. As the quarry was used before the urbanization of Topčider it is known that the stone was used during the construction of the Prince Miloš' Residence.[33][34]
On the location of the former quarry, the Topčider summer stage was built in 1947. It had 1,800 seats and an excellent acoustics, being embedded into the limestone rocks. A project of Rajko Tatić, despite occasional public actions for its restoration (1999, 2009), by the 2010s the facility was abandoned and deteriorated.[33] The summer complex includes a restaurant, built in 1950, and several auxiliary objects, designed by Radivoj Gibarac.[35]
The ridge was originally protected in 1969 as the "Senonian Sandbank of Maša's Quarry". It is placed under the II category of protection, and covers 4.29 hectares (10.6 acres). The status was revised in 2014 when it was renamed to "Maša's Quarry". The area is scientifically important for stratigraphy, paleontology and petrology reasons. It originates rom the period when the ancient ocean
Controversies
Topčider Tunnel
There are threats of destroying certain parts of the park because the government is planning to build a tunnel in this area which will connect Autokomanda with this part of the city and hopefully solve many car traffic problems in Belgrade. Some environmental groups protested against this project, but the constructing of this tunnel still hasn't progressed further than the idea stage. During the summer of 2007, a general planning idea will be chosen by a tender held by the city government, and it remains to be seen if this plan will contain a solution for park preservation. Ada Bridge, which is part of the same project (Inner ring road) was built and opened on 1 January 2012, but the construction of the tunnel under Senjak, which should free Topčider from heavy traffic, was postponed due to the heavy costs.
In the early 2018, city administration announced that the detailed regulatory plan and the conceptual design are finished, while the invitation to tender for the project was set for later in 2018.[36]
The tunnel would start at the large Radnička interchange, at the beginning of the bridge. That way, it would practically make an extension of the Požeška Street, the main street and commercial area of the neighborhoods of Čukarica and Banovo Brdo. The tunnel would then exit at Partizan Stadium, on the other side of Topčidersko Brdo, above the Autokomanda. The tunnel will allow for the drivers to circumvent the downtown and to allow faster transit. It is planned as part of Belgrade's Inner magistral semi-ring .[37]
Lisičji Potok
The easternmost section of Topčider is a heavily wooded area, so the expansion of the neighborhood of Lisičji Potok was limited. In the early 2000s, due to the political changes which caused a vacuum in all levels of government, private entrepreneurs without gaining regular permits cut down over 1,000 trees in the Topčider woods for the purpose of constructing vast apartment complexes.
Topčider incident
The vast secret military complex of "Karaš" (in Teodora Drajzera street) was built and dug into the hill from 1965 to 1980, with numerous barracks and kilometers of underground passages.
In October 2004, two young guards, Dragan Jakovljević and Dražen Milovanović, were found shot dead under highly mysterious circumstances. The first official army report stated that the two guards got into a fight; one got shot, and the other one committed suicide. The investigation was so obviously sloppy (videos were made public of investigators walking all over the non-secured crime scene, not using any precaution measures or security protocols, etc.) to the point of absurdity, including the notorious statement of then military prosecutor Vuk Tufegdžić who stated that no DNA tests were done because DNA is an "overrated thing" and that "people watch TV too much". Because of the serious rumours and intense public pressure, a more thorough investigation was initiated, this time headed by
See also
References
- ^ a b c d Anica Teofilović, Vesna Isajlović, Milica Grozdanić (2010). Пројекат "Зелена регулатива Београда" - IV фаѕа: План генералне регулације система зелених површина Београда (концепт плана) [Project "Green regulations of Belgrade" - IV phase: Plan of the general regulation of the green area system in Belgrade (concept of the plan)] (PDF). Urbanistički zavod Beograda.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Biljana Đorđević Mironja (21 July 2018). "Андрићев ратни излет" [Andrić's war picnic]. Politika-Kulturni dodatak, year LXII, No. 15 (in Serbian). p. 01.
- ISBN 86-83501-53-1.
- ISBN 86-459-0006-8.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Branka Vasiljević (25 June 2015), "Topčiderski park - od knjazove baste do spomenika prirode", Politika (in Serbian), p. 16
- ISSN 0350-4727.
- ^ Branka Vasiljević (6–7 January 2001). "Kavijar, oktopod, topla čokolada..." [Caviar, octopus, hot chocolate...]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 24.
- ^ "S KOJIM SE PREDZNANJEM IDE NA TOPČIDER I KOŠUTNJAK? O stvarnom značenju ovih naziva i o javnim tajnama koje čuvaju (FOTO)".
- ^ a b c d Dragan Perić (26 November 2017), "Topčider - prvo beogradsko izletište" [Topčider - Belgrade's first excursion area], Politika-Magazin, No. 1052 (in Serbian), pp. 28–29
- ^ Svetlana Brnović Mitić (26 August 2019). "Ličnosti koje su ozelenile Beograd" [People who made Belgrade greener]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 13.
- ^ Goran Vesić (13 March 2020). Кратка историја београдског пиварства [Short history of Belgrade's beer brewing]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 14.
- ^ Branko Bogdanović (20 September 2020). "Terazijska česma – svedok razvoja Beograda" [Terazije fountain - witness of Belgrade's development]. Politika-Magazin, No. 1199 (in Serbian). pp. 28–29.
- ^ Daliborka Mučibabić (10 February 2021). У Топчидеру ботаничка башта, на Великом ратном острву спортски центар [Botanical garden in Topčider, sports center on Great War Island]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 14.
- ^ Goran Vesić (5 July 2019). Историја градског јавног купања дуга 115 година [115 years long history of public swimming]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 14.
- ^ РТС: "Прокоп од данас главна железничка станица", rts.rs; accessed 23 April 2018.
- ^ Dejan Aleksić (16 January 2018). "Posle 134 godine bez vozova u Savskom amfiteatru" [No more trains in Sava amphitheater after 134 years]. Politika (in Serbian). pp. 1, 16.
- ^ Dejan Aleksić (16 June 2018). "Zaboravljeni koloseci od danas glavni za vozove ka Baru" [Forgotten tracks from today are the main ones for trains to Bar]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 13.
- ^ Belgrade by the 1883 census
- ^ Претходни резултати пописа становништва и домаће стоке у Краљевини Србији 31 декембра 1910 године, Књига V, стр. 10 [Preliminary results of the census of population and husbandry in Kingdom of Serbia on 31 December 1910, Vol. V, page 10]. Управа државне статистике, Београд (Administration of the state statistics, Belgrade). 1911.
- ^ Slobodan Kljakić (2 August 2010), "Od šest kvartova do sedamnaest opština" [From six quarters to seventeen municipalities], Politika (in Serbian)
- ^ Final results of the census of population from 31 January 1921, page 4. Kingdom of Yugoslavia - General State Statistics, Sarajevo. June 1932.
- ^ Osnovni skupovi stanovništva u zemlji – SFRJ, SR i SAP, opštine i mesne zajednice 31.03.1981, tabela 191. Savezni zavod za statistiku (txt file). 1983.
- ^ Stanovništvo prema migracionim obeležjima – SFRJ, SR i SAP, opštine i mesne zajednice 31.03.1991, tabela 018. Savezni zavod za statistiku (txt file).
- ^ Popis stanovništva po mesnim zajednicama, Saopštenje 40/2002, page 4. Zavod za informatiku i statistiku grada Beograda. 26 July 2002.
- ^ Stanovništvo po opštinama i mesnim zajednicama, Popis 2011. Grad Beograd – Sektor statistike (xls file). 23 April 2015.
- ^ Branka Vasiljević (26 April 2008), "Vekovi u krošnjama", Politika (in Serbian), p. 32
- ^ a b c Branka Vasiljević (23 June 2013), "Prestonički parkovi - mladići od šezdeset leta", Politika (in Serbian)
- ^ Branka Vasiljević (26 April 2008), "Tajna gospođice sa Topčidera", Politika (in Serbian), p. 32
- ^ Goran Vesić (23 October 2020). Паркови у историји нашег града [Parks in the history of our city]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 14.
- ^ Daliborka Mučibabić (22 May 2021). Крунски венац и Светосавски плато - културна добра [Krunski Venac and Saint Sava Plateau - cultural monuments]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 14.
- ^ Saša Mihajlov. "Letnja pozornica u Topčideru" (PDF). Nasleđe VIII (in Serbian): 126.
- ^ Vesna Vladisavljević, Jelena Jović. "Program za urbanistički plan proistorno kulturno-istorijske celine Topčider" (PDF). Info 23 (2008) (in Serbian). Urbanistički zavod Beograda: 6, 14.
- ^ a b Marija Brakočević (14 June 2009), "Topčiderska pozornica zarasla u korov", Politika (in Serbian)
- ^ a b Branka Vasiljević (15 May 2022). Милиони година сачувани у стенама главног града [Millions of years preserved in the rocks of the capital city]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 16.
- ISBN 978-86-7946-232-9.
- ^ Dejan Aleksić (20 January 2018). "Za pun život Mosta na Adi još tri velika koraka" [Three more big steps for the full life of the Ada Bridge]. Politika (in Serbian). p. 15.
- ^ Daliborka Mučibabić, Dejan Aleksić (30 September 2018). "Нови саобраћајни тунели под водом, кроз брдо и центар града" [New traffic tunnels under water, through the hill and downtown]. Politika (in Serbian).
Sources
- Mala Prosvetina Enciklopedija, Third edition (1985); Prosveta; ISBN 86-07-00001-2
- Jovan Đ. Marković (1990): Enciklopedijski geografski leksikon Jugoslavije; Svjetlost-Sarajevo; ISBN 86-01-02651-6
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)