Novi Sad
Novi Sad lies on the Danube in Vojvodina. Across the river from the city centre, Petrovaradin Fortress illustrates the military engineering of the Habsburg period. The fortress buildings now also host cultural institutions.
From river settlement to free royal city
The settlement grew on the Danube opposite Petrovaradin Fortress. In 1748 merchants and craftspeople purchased free royal city status from Maria Theresa. Bombardment from the fortress damaged much of the town in 1849. Its later streets and public buildings show the scale of reconstruction.
Two banks of the Danube
Liberty Square and the adjoining streets form the civic centre. The fortress on the opposite bank offers a view back across the river. The different settings make it easy to see how a military stronghold and a commercial city developed side by side.
Culture and memory
Matica Srpska moved from Pest in 1864. The synagogue on Jevrejska Street preserves a different part of the city’s cultural history. On the quay, the Family monument commemorates victims of the January 1942 raid carried out by Hungarian occupation authorities.
People of Novi Sad
Physician and poet Jovan Jovanović Zmaj is remembered in the name of a central street. György Molnár designed both the City Hall and the Church of the Name of Mary. Lipót Baumhorn designed the synagogue.
A walk from Liberty Square
Start on Liberty Square, follow Zmaj Jovina and Dunavska streets, then continue to the Danube quay. Give Petrovaradin Fortress a separate part of the day so there is time for its uphill approach and viewpoints.
Related places
Sources
- https://novisad.travel/en/architecture/petrovaradinska-tvrdava/
- https://novisad.travel/en/istorija-novog-sada-2/
- https://novisad.travel/en/city-centre/
- https://novisad.travel/en/churches/novosadska-sinagoga/
- https://novisad.travel/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Novi-Sad-kultura-ENG-24.pdf
- https://novisad.travel/skriveni-ns/