Golubački grad

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Castle Golubac

The Golubački grad fortress (Голубачки град) is located near the town of Golubac in north-eastern Serbia, on the right side of the river Danube (which marks the border with Romania). It was most likely built during the 14th century, and it is a rather large and well-preserved fortress among those of its time and geographical location. The fortress marks the entrance to the national park "Djerdap" on the Serbian side of the river Danube.

The name of the fortress derives from golub, which is Serbian for pidgeon or dove. The name of the fortress is therefore often translated as "the town of doves".

The fortress was built at the entrance to the Iron Gates gorge on the river Danube. At this point in the river's flow there is a large rock protruding from the riverbed. Story goes that the fortress was built in order to regulate the traffic of merchant ships along the river Danube. Supposedly, a long chain would be stretched across the river, barring passage to ships lest they were deemed worthy of passage and paid a passage tax.

A legend is connected to the naming of the town, that may sound like a dark fairy-tale. A young daughter of a noble family lived in the fortress. She was to be married to a rich merchant that she didn't love. Instead, she was in love with a young and handsome, but poor fisherman. She was so sad about her fate that one day she confided in an old woman passing by. The old woman turned out to be a witch. The witch told the young woman that she could be with her fisherman as early as tonight by turning into a dove and running away to the other side of the river. The witch gave the young woman a potion that would turn her into a dove. That night, the young woman drank the potion, turned into a dove and flew out of the fortress to meet her dear fisherman. The fisherman and the young woman then started crossing to the other side of the Danube. But in the city an alarm was raised when it was discovered that the young lady was missing. The guards found the old witch and she told them that the young woman was running away with the fisherman to the other side of the river. The guards caught up with the young couple halfway across the Danube, near the rock protruding from the riverbed. They killed the fisherman on the spot, and they chained the young woman to the rock for the weather, thirst and famine to finish her off. As the young woman was dying she yelled out repeatedly "Babo, kaj se!" (Grandma, regret your deed!). Hence, the rock - that even today can be seen protruding from the water - is called "Baba-Kajina stena" (Grandma-Kaja's (pronounced Kaya) rock).