BELGRADE, Serbia, the capital of the kingdom, situated in the angle formed by the junction of the Save with the Danube, over looked by a citadel on a rocky eminence about 160 feet high. The town has been almost en tirely transformed in recent times and now contains a number of fine buildings and wide streets, being provided with the electric light, tramways, telephones, waterworks, etc., and having generally the aspect of any modern Eu ropean town. It contains the royal palace, residences of various ambassadors or ministers, the chief courts and government departments, archiepiscopal cathedral, Protestant church and school, high school or college, 3 onasia, mili tary school, national library of :1,000 volumes, national museum, etc.; also very fine parks and an old Turkish lciosk. At the head of the educational institutions is a university with faculties of philosophy, jurisprudence and en gineering. It is the seat of the Royal Serbian Academy of Sciences. The most numerous places of worship are the Greek Catholic. There are no industries of any importance, but trade, however, is active, Belgrade being the chief emporium of the kingdom, the place to which rnost of the imports and exports of Serbia are brought, and through which a large transit trade passes between Austria and Tur key. It is now connected by railway with Budapest and with Constantinople and Salonica„ and carries on a large shipping trade by the Danube and also the Save. Under the name of Singidunum, Belgrade was the station of a Roman legion, and in later years was several times destroyed in the contests of the Byzan tines, Bulgarians.and Hungarians. Being the
key of Hungary, it was long an object of fierce contention between the Austrians and the Turks. It was taken by the latter in 1521 and held by them till 1688, when it was retaken by the imperial army. Two years afterward tt was again captured by the Turks, who per petrated every sort of atrocity in the conquered city, besides killing 1,200 of the garrison. From this period it remained in possession of the Turks till 1717, when it was besieged by Prince Eugene. After a desperate conflict between the contending armies the Turks were defeated. In 1739 the Turks came into possession of it hy treaty, retaining. it till 1789, when it was taken by the Austrians. It was restored by treaty to the Turks in 1791; since which time it has shared the varying fortunes of Serbia. Though Serbia became practically independent in the early part of the 19th century, the Turkish g-ar rison was not withdrawn till 1867. In conse quence of a quarrel with the Serbians it was bombarded by the Turkish garrison in 1862. In 1867 it was evacuated by the Turks altogether. and from the Treaty of Berlin (July 1878) until 1914, the capital of an independent stale_ On 9 Oct. 1915, it was occupied by Austrcs German troops, and after the Austro-Bulgarian occupation of the country, completed 2 Dec. 1915, the Serbian government was established at Corfu. An American consul resides here. See SERBIA ; WAR, EUROPEAN. Pop. 90,890.