Sremski Karlovci ( sr-Cyrl, Сремски Карловци, ) is a town and municipality located in the

South Bačka District The South Bačka District (, ) is one of administrative districts of Serbia. It lies in the southern part of Bačka and northern part of Syrmia. According to the 2022 census, the South Bačka District has a population of 607,178 inhabitants. The ...

autonomous province of

Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

. It is situated on the banks of the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

, from

Novi Sad Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...

. According to the 2022 census results, it has a population of 7,872 inhabitants. The town has traditionally been known as the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the Habsburg Monarchy. It was the political and cultural capital of

Serbian Vojvodina The Serbian Vojvodina () was a short-lived self-proclaimed autonomous province within the Austrian Empire during the Revolutions of 1848, which existed until 1849 when it was transformed into the new (official) Austrian province named Voivodes ...

after the May Assembly and during the Revolution in 1848.

Name

In Serbian, the town is known as ''Sremski Karlovci'' (Сремски Карловци), in Croatian as ''Srijemski Karlovci'', in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

as ''Karlowitz'' or ''Carlowitz'', in Hungarian as ''Karlóca'', in Polish as ''Karłowice'', in Romanian as ''Carloviț'' and in Turkish as ''Karlofça''. The former Serbian name used for the town was ''Karlovci'' (Карловци), which is also used today, albeit unofficially. The name of the town in Serbian is plural.

Geography

The town is situated along the Danube River, about 12 km from

and 75 km from

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

, in the geographical region of

Syrmia Syrmia (Ekavian sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srem, Срем, separator=" / " or Ijekavian sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srijem, Сријем, label=none, separator=" / ") is a region of the southern Pannonian Plain, which lies between the Danube and Sava rivers. It is div ...

. The town of Sremski Karlovci is the only settlement in the municipality.

History

Ancient, medieval and early modern history

In ancient times, the Romans maintained a small fortress at this location. The town was first mentioned in historical documents in 1308 with the name ''Karom''. The medieval fortress of Karom was built on the ruins of the ancient Roman one. Until 1521, Karom was a possession of Hungarian noble families, of whom the most well known were Báthory and

Morović Morović () is a village located in the municipality of Šid, Srem District, Vojvodina, Serbia. As of 2011 census, it has a population of 1,744 inhabitants. History In the Middle Ages, Morović was a notable town, today known as the Morović For ...

. In 1521, Turkish military commander Bali-beg conquered Karom under the Ottoman Empire's invasion of Europe. During the next 170 years, the town was part of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. The Slavic name for the town – ''Karlovci'', was first recorded in 1532/33. During Ottoman rule, the town was still predominately Serbian in ethnicity, with the smaller part of population composed of

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. According to the Ottoman

defter A ''defter'' was a type of tax register and land cadastre in the Ottoman Empire. Etymology The term is derived from Greek , literally 'processed animal skin, leather, fur', meaning a book, having pages of goat parchment used along with papyrus ...

ler from 1545, the population of Karlovci numbered 547

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

(Serb) houses. The city also had three Orthodox churches and a monastery. From 1557, it belonged to ''Eparchy of Belgrade and Srem'' of the

Serbian Patriarchate of Peć Serbian Patriarchate of Peć (, ''Srpska patrijaršija u Peći''), or simply Peć Patriarchate (, ''Pećka patrijaršija''), was an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate that existed from 1346 to 1463, and then again from 155 ...

Habsburg Monarchy

Between 16 November 1698 and 26 January 1699, the town of Karlovci was the site of a congress that ended the hostilities between the

and the Holy League, a coalition of various European powers including

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

, Poland,

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

and Russia. The congress produced the

Treaty of Karlowitz The Treaty of Karlowitz, concluding the Great Turkish War of 1683–1699, in which the Ottoman Empire was defeated by the Holy League at the Battle of Zenta, was signed in Karlowitz, in the Military Frontier of the Habsburg Monarchy (present-day ...

. It was the first time a

round table The Round Table (; ; ; ) is King Arthur's famed table (furniture), table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status, unlike co ...

was used in international politics. After this peace treaty, the town was considered part of the Habsburg monarchy and was included in its

Military Frontier The Military Frontier (; sh-Cyrl-Latn, Војна крајина, Vojna krajina, sh-Cyrl-Latn, Војна граница, Vojna granica, label=none; ; ) was a borderland of the Habsburg monarchy and later the Austrian and Austro-Hungari ...

. According to 1702 data, the population was composed of 215 Orthodox and 13

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

houses. By 1753, the population of the town numbered 3,843 people, of which 3,110 were classified as ethnic

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

. The town was the spiritual, political and cultural center of the Serbs in the Habsburg Monarchy. The Metropolitan of the

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodox Church#Constit ...

resided here. In the early 21st century, the

Serbian Patriarch This is a list of heads of the Serbian Orthodox Church, since the establishment of the church as an Autocephaly, autocephalous archbishopric in 1219 to today's patriarchate. The list includes all the archbishops and patriarchs that led the Se ...

retains the title of Metropolitan of Karlovci. The town had the earliest Serb (and Slavic in general) gymnasium (Serbian: ''gimnazija''/, French: ''lycée''), founded on 3 August 1791. Three years after this, the Orthodox seminary of Sremski Karlovci was founded here. It was the second-oldest Orthodox seminary in the world (after the Spiritual Academy in

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

), and it still operates. The May Assembly 1848 in Sremski Karlovci

At the Serb National Assembly in Karlovci in May 1848,

declared the unification of the regions of Srem,

Banat Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...

Bačka Bačka ( sr-Cyrl, Бачка, ) or Bácska (), is a geographical and historical area within the Pannonian Plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east. It is divided between Serbia and Hungary. ...

, and Baranja (including parts of the Military Frontier) into the province of

. In the late 18th century, the Habsburg monarchy had invited numerous settlers from Bavaria and southern Germany into some of these regions along the Danube, in order to repopulate the area and re-establish agriculture after the effects of the Ottoman invasion and disease. The Germans, who became known as Danube-Swabians, were allowed to keep their language and Catholic religion. For more than a century, they had fairly autonomous settlements. The first capital of Serbian Vojvodina was in Karlovci; it was later moved to

Zemun Zemun ( sr-cyrl, Земун, ; ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality in the city of Belgrade, Serbia. Zemun was a separate town that was absorbed into Belgrade in 1934. It lies on the right bank of the Danube river, upstream from downtown ...

, Veliki Bečkerek, and Temišvar. At the same time the title of the Orthodox Metropolitan of Karlovci was raised to that of Patriarch. When Serbian Vojvodina was in 1849 organized as the new province named

Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temeschwar The Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temeschwar, or Voivodeship of Serbia and Temes Banat (, , , ), was a crownland of the Austrian Empire that existed between 1849 and 1861, centered in Temeschwar. It was created by reorganization of admini ...

, the town of Karlovci was not included into this province. It was returned to the administration of the Military Frontier (a Petrovaradin regiment that was part of Slavonian Krajina). With the abolition in 1881 of the Military Frontier, the town was included in

Syrmia County Syrmia County (, , , ) was a historic administrative subdivision ('' županija'') of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia. Croatia-Slavonia was an autonomous kingdom within the Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen ( Transleithania), the Hungarian par ...

of Croatia-Slavonia, the autonomous kingdom within

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

and

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

. An Orthodox Patriarchate of Karlovci operated after 1848 in Karlovci until 1920, after World War I. At that time, the position was joined with the Metropolitanate of Belgrade to form the united Serbian Orthodox Church, in what was then the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

. Between 1921 and 1944 the Patriarchate of Karlovci's Palace was the seat of the administration of the

Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (), also called Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia or ROCOR, or Russian Orthodox Church Abroad (ROCA), is a semi-autonomous part of the Russian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Pat ...

Yugoslavia and Serbia (1918–onward)

In 1918, the town became part of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

(also known as the Kingdom of Yugoslavia). In the summer of 1921, the town's former palace of the Patriarch of Karlovci was used as the residence of Russian metropolitan

Antony (Khrapovitsky) Metropolitan Anthony (, secular name Aleksey Pavlovich Khrapovitsky, ; 17 March (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) 1863 – 10 August 1936) was a bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Russian Empire, the Metropolitan of Eparchy of Kiev ( ...

. Together with some refugee bishops from Russia, he organised what a few years later was instituted as the

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox ...

of the

(ROCOR). (Some critics called this ecclesiastical body the ''Karlovatsky Synod'' (), or ″Karlovatsky group″, also known in English as Synod of Karlovci.) In 1922, the town became the headquarters of

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

émigrés under the leadership of General Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel. In 1924 he set up the

Russian All-Military Union The Russian All-Military Union (, abbreviated РОВС, ROVS) is a White movement organization that was founded by White Army General Pyotr Wrangel in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes on 1 September 1924. It was initially headquartered ...

, designed to include all Russian military émigrés the world over. Many emigres went to western Europe, especially France, and to the United States. A monument to Wrangel, sculpted by Vasiliy Azemsha, was unveiled in September 2007 in Karlovci. Between 1929 and 1941, the town was part of Danube Banovina, a province of the

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(1941–1944), after

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

's invasion of eastern Europe, the town was occupied by forces of the

Axis Powers The Axis powers, originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis and also Rome–Berlin–Tokyo Axis, was the military coalition which initiated World War II and fought against the Allies of World War II, Allies. Its principal members were Nazi Ge ...

. It was attached to the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

. During that time its name was changed to ''Hrvatski Karlovci''. After the end of the war, most ethnic Germans were expelled from eastern Europe. The town became part of the Autonomous Province of

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

. Between 1980 and 1989, Sremski Karlovci was one of the seven municipalities of the city of

. In January 2021 PM Igor Mirović announced a reconstruction of the facades of historically important buildings in Sremski Karlovci.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, the municipality of Sremski Karlovci has 8,750 inhabitants. Ethnic composition of the municipality of Sremski Karlovci:

Economy

The following table gives a preview of total number of employed people per their core activity (as of 2017):

Politics

Until 1989 Sremski Karlovci formed one of the urban municipalities of the city of

. After Novi Sad merged six of its municipalities into one ''Novi Sad municipality'', the municipality of Sremski Karlovci held a referendum to separate from Novi Sad, and established a separate municipality independent from Novi Sad. Although Sremski Karlovci lies in

region, the municipality belongs in

, and not in the

Syrmia District The Srem District (, ) is one of administrative districts of Serbia. It lies in the geographical regions of Syrmia and Mačva. According to the 2022 census, the Srem District has a population of 282,547 inhabitants. The administrative center is ...

, because of its close proximity to Novi Sad. In the Serbian local elections held on 24 April 2016, Sremski Karlovci elected a new municipality parliament, ending the rule of the DS in the town. Nenad Milenković, of the Serbian progressive Party, was elected as the new mayor of the municipal parliament.

Schools

* Gymnasium of Karlovci * Clerical High School of Saint Arsenije *Faculty of management *College of Applied Studies in Management and Business Communication

Buildings and structures

Patriarchate Court in Sremski Karlovci 04

* Educational historical buildings: ** Gymnasium of Karlovci, first

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

n secondary school (gymnasium) ** Clerical High School of Saint Arsenije * Administrative buildings: ** Sremski Karlovci City Hall * Religious buildings ** The Patriarchal Court ** The Orthodox Cathedral of Saint Nicholas ** The Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Trinity * Other buildings ** Fountain "Four Lions" ** The Chapel of Peace, Sremski Karlovci ** Archives of Sremski Karlovci

International relations

Twin towns – sister cities

Sremski Karlovci is twinned with: *

Bardejov Bardejov (; , , , , ) is a town in North-Eastern Slovakia. It is situated in the Šariš region on a floodplain terrace of the Topľa River, in the hills of the Beskids, Beskyd Mountains. It exhibits numerous cultural monuments in its completely i ...

, Slovakia * Karpoš, North Macedonia * Prnjavor, Bosnia and Herzegovina * Tivat, Montenegro (2007)

Gallery

File:Karlovačka gimnazija 15.7.2018 013.jpg, Gymnasium of Karlovci File:The Orthodox Cathedral of St. Nicholas.jpg, Sremski Karlovci Orthodox Cathedral File:RS-NS-SK-Karlóca014.JPG, Clerical High School of Saint Arsenije File:Градска скупштина у Сремским Карловцима.jpg, City assembly building File:Kuća Sabov Dejanović u Sremskim Karlovcima.jpg, Sabov-Dejanović's

rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

house, 1790 File:SremskiKarlovciPlatan1.JPG, An old

Platanus ''Platanus'' ( ) is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae. All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. The type ...

, monument of nature protected by the state, in front of a church File:Museum of Sremski Karlovci 01.jpg, City museum File:Muzej pčelarstva, Sremski Karlovci 09.jpg, Museum of beekeeping File:Muzej Podunavskih Švaba 8.8.2018 141.jpg, Museum of

Danube Swabians The Danube Swabians ( ) is a collective term for the ethnic German-speaking population who lived in the Kingdom of Hungary in east-central Europe, especially in the Danube River valley, first in the 12th century, and in greater numbers in the 17 ...

File:Hotel Prezident 8.8.2018 052.jpg, A hotel in the centre File:RS-NS-SK-Karlóca001.JPG, Faculty of management File:Frontal view of Eco-center "Radulovački".jpg, Ecological center Miodrag Radulovacki File:Vidikovac Sremski Karlovci 8295 13.jpg, Monument dedicated to Duško Trifunović and viewpoint of Karlovci

Notes

References

* Milorad Grujić, Vodič kroz Novi Sad i okolinu, Novi Sad, 2004. * Slobodan Ćurčić, Broj stanovnika Vojvodine, Novi Sad, 1996.

External links

* * {{Authority control Populated places in South Bačka District Populated places in Syrmia Municipalities and cities of Vojvodina Populated places on the Danube Spatial Cultural-Historical Units of Exceptional Importance Immovable Cultural Heritage in the South Bačka District Towns in Serbia

Name

Geography

History

Ancient, medieval and early modern history

Habsburg Monarchy

Yugoslavia and Serbia (1918–onward)

Demographics

Economy

Politics

Schools

Buildings and structures

International relations

Twin towns – sister cities

Gallery

See also

Notes

References

External links