Sanjak of Smederevo

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The Sanjak of Smederevo (Serbian: Smederevski sandžak or Смедеревски санџак, Turkish: Semendire Sancağı), also known as the Pashaluk of Belgrade, was an Ottoman administrative unit (sanjak), that existed between the 15th and the outset of the 19th centuries. It was located in the territory of present day Central Serbia, Serbia.

[edit] History

The Sanjak of Smederevo was formed after the fall of the Serbian Despotate in 1459, and its administrative seat was Smederevo. After the Ottoman Empire conquered Belgrade in 1521, the administrative seat of the Sanjak was moved to this city.

The Sanjak was occupied by the Habsburg Monarchy from 1718–1739 but, with the Treaty of Belgrade, the area was ceded to the Ottoman Empire. Belgrade, the center of the region while under Austrian rule, was neglected under the Ottomans and Smederevo (Semendire) was the administrative center. Nevertheless, Belgrade eventually became the seat of a pasha with the title of vizier and the Sanjak began to be referred to as the Pashaluk of Belgrade, although it was still called the Sanjak of Smederevo in official documents.

From 1789–1791, Belgrade was again under Austrian rule during the Kočina Krajina Serb rebellion. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Serbian revolution erupted in the Sanjak. The Serb rebels, led by Karađorđe Petrović, managed to expel the Ottomans from the Sanjak for a significant time, which eventually led to the creation of modern Serbia.

[edit] External links

• Map of the Sanjak
• Map showing the Sanjak in relation to the rest of Serbia