Dedinje
Encyclopedia
Dedinje is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade
, the capital of Serbia
. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac
. Dedinje is generally considered the wealthiest part of Belgrade, and is the site of numerous villas and mansions owned members of the city's plutocracy
, as well as many diplomatic residences.
, 7-8 kilometers south of downtown Belgrade to which it is connected by the Kneza Miloša street. It borders the neighborhoods of Senjak
(west), Prokop
and Mostar
(north), Stadion
and Diplomatska Kolonija
(actually, Dedinje's sub-neighborhood; east), Banjica
, Lisičji Potok
and Topčider
(south). It is well connected to the other parts of Belgrade by several boulevards (of Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević, Vojvoda Putnik) and broad streets (Teodora Drajzera
, Neznanog junaka, etc). Main street in the neighborhood itself is the Užička
street.
Dedinje belonged to the municipality of Topčidersko Brdo, which in 1957 merged with the municipality of Zapadni Vračar to create the municipality of Savski Venac. Dedinje (local communities which comprise its area) had a population of 8,704 in 2002.
Dedinje became popular among Belgrade's rich even before World War II
, when it was on the outskirts of the city (thus many military barracks intended to defend the city, which later spawned tens of kilometers further). Many beautiful mansions in green neighborhood have been built, but in 1945 when Communists took over, they declared almost all former residents a state enemies and forced them out of their houses, so the new Communist political and military elite moved in, Tito being among the first. It continued after the collapse of Communism in 1980s, when the nouveau riche
(politicians (like Slobodan Milošević
), shady businessmen (like Karić
family or Željko Mitrović) and criminals (like Željko Ražnatović Arkan) moved into the neighborhood and began expanding their villas and erecting high concrete walls. Most of such construction was illegal, often intruding on the property of Dedinje families that had been there for generations preceding the arrival of the nouveau riche/criminal class. Apart from this, the neighborhood is a site of many embassies, diplomatic residences and some of Belgrade's most expensive restaurants and clubs.
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, the capital of Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac
Savski Venac
Savski Venac is one of 17 urban municipalities which constitute the City of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. Savski Venac is one of the three municipalities that constitute the very center of the city .-Location:Savski Venac is located on the right bank of the Sava river...
. Dedinje is generally considered the wealthiest part of Belgrade, and is the site of numerous villas and mansions owned members of the city's plutocracy
Plutocracy
Plutocracy is rule by the wealthy, or power provided by wealth. The combination of both plutocracy and oligarchy is called plutarchy. The word plutocracy is derived from the Ancient Greek root ploutos, meaning wealth and kratos, meaning to rule or to govern.-Usage:The term plutocracy is generally...
, as well as many diplomatic residences.
Location
Dedinje is located on the eastern slopes of the hill of Topčidersko BrdoTopcidersko Brdo
Topčidersko Brdo is an urban neighborhood and former municipality of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac.- Location :...
, 7-8 kilometers south of downtown Belgrade to which it is connected by the Kneza Miloša street. It borders the neighborhoods of Senjak
Senjak
Senjak is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital city of Serbia. Located in Savski Venac, one of the three municipalities that constitute the very center of the city, it is an affluent and distinguished neighborhood lavished with embassies, diplomatic residences, and mansions...
(west), Prokop
Prokop (Belgrade)
The Prokop railway station or Belgrade [Centre] railway station is the new railway station as the core of the massive reconstruction of the Belgrade railway junction in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia that officially started 1974...
and Mostar
Mostarska Petlja
Mostar interchange or colloquially Mostar is a major interchange and a surrounding urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac....
(north), Stadion
Stadion (Belgrade)
Stadion is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac....
and Diplomatska Kolonija
Diplomatska Kolonija
Diplomatska Kolonija is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac....
(actually, Dedinje's sub-neighborhood; east), Banjica
Banjica
Banjica is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is divided between the Belgrade's municipalities of Savski Venac and Voždovac .- Location :...
, Lisičji Potok
Lisicji Potok
Lisičji Potok is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac.-Location:Lisičji Potok is located in the eastern section of the municipality...
and Topčider
Topcider
Topčider is a forest park and an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is divided between in the municipalities of Čukarica, Rakovica and Savski Venac...
(south). It is well connected to the other parts of Belgrade by several boulevards (of Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević, Vojvoda Putnik) and broad streets (Teodora Drajzera
Theodore Dreiser
Theodore Herman Albert Dreiser was an American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school. His novels often featured main characters who succeeded at their objectives despite a lack of a firm moral code, and literary situations that more closely resemble studies of nature than tales of...
, Neznanog junaka, etc). Main street in the neighborhood itself is the Užička
Užice
Užice is a city and municipality in western Serbia, located at the banks of the Đetinja river. It is the administrative center of the Zlatibor District...
street.
History
Before it was urbanized, the area of modern Dedinje was known for its vineyards and had different names, though all variants of one the same: Dedija, Dedina, Dedino brdo (literally, old man's hill; Serbian deda means old man, grandfather).Dedinje belonged to the municipality of Topčidersko Brdo, which in 1957 merged with the municipality of Zapadni Vračar to create the municipality of Savski Venac. Dedinje (local communities which comprise its area) had a population of 8,704 in 2002.
Dedinje became popular among Belgrade's rich even before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, when it was on the outskirts of the city (thus many military barracks intended to defend the city, which later spawned tens of kilometers further). Many beautiful mansions in green neighborhood have been built, but in 1945 when Communists took over, they declared almost all former residents a state enemies and forced them out of their houses, so the new Communist political and military elite moved in, Tito being among the first. It continued after the collapse of Communism in 1980s, when the nouveau riche
Nouveau riche
The nouveau riche , or new money, comprise those who have acquired considerable wealth within their own generation...
(politicians (like Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
), shady businessmen (like Karić
Bogoljub Karic
Bogoljub Karić ) is a businessman and politician from Serbia.- Early life :Bogoljub Karić was born on January 17, 1954 in Peć, Kosovo, Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia, to Janićije Karić and Danica Kuzmanović. He earned a degree in Geography from Prirodno-matematički fakultet in Priština and his Master's...
family or Željko Mitrović) and criminals (like Željko Ražnatović Arkan) moved into the neighborhood and began expanding their villas and erecting high concrete walls. Most of such construction was illegal, often intruding on the property of Dedinje families that had been there for generations preceding the arrival of the nouveau riche/criminal class. Apart from this, the neighborhood is a site of many embassies, diplomatic residences and some of Belgrade's most expensive restaurants and clubs.
Characteristics
Some of the prominent features of the neighborhood are:- Hajd park, occupying the northern, triangular section of the neighborhood, named after the London's park of the same name (Hyde ParkHyde Park, LondonHyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
) - The House of Flowers and the adjoining "Museum of the 25th MayMuseum of Yugoslav HistoryThe Museum of Yugoslav History is a national history museum in Serbia, located in the Dedinje district of Belgrade.The current museum was founded in 1996 as a successor to two previous institutions, the Tito Memorial Centre and the Museum of the Revolution of Yugoslav Nations and Ethnic...
" with the tombTombA tomb is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes...
of the former YugoslavSocialist Federal Republic of YugoslaviaThe Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
leader Josip Broz TitoJosip Broz TitoMarshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
. - The vast secret military complex of Karaš (in Teodora Drajzera street), built and dug into the hill from 1965 to 1980, with numerous barracks and kilometers of underground passages, brought to public for the still unsolved murder of two young soldiers on a watch in 2004.
- A hospital complex which includes the hospitals of Železnička bolnica and one of the major Belgrade's hospital Dragiša Mišović, whose neonatal nursery ward was notoriously bombed by NATO in 1999Legitimacy of NATO bombing of YugoslaviaThe legitimacy of the NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has been subject to question by many bodies and individuals from the time of the action continuing to this day. The key basis governing the legality of any act of war is international law...
, even with the ongoing deliveries. - Ultra-modern building of RTV PinkRTV PinkRTV Pink or Radio-Television Pink is a popular, privately-owned, national TV network in Serbia. Pink is the leading commercial station in the Serbian television broadcast market. TV Pink has gained a strong reputation for its entertainment programming...
. - Beli DvorBeli DvorBeli Dvor is a mansion located in Belgrade, Serbia. The mansion is part of the Royal Compound, a real estate of royal residences and parklands located in Dedinje, an exclusive area of Belgrade....
("White Court"), a court of the former Serbian and Yugoslav royal dynasty Karađorđević and the present residence of Aleksandar KarađorđevićAlexander, Crown Prince of YugoslaviaAlexander II Karadjordjevic, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia , is the former crown prince of the former Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the head of the House of Karadjordjevic. Alexander is the only child of former King Peter II of Yugoslavia and Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark...
and his family. - The headquarters of The GuardSerbian General StaffThe Serbian General Staff, also known as the General Staff of the Military of Serbia , is Serbia's highest unit of military organization and authority of the military...
, elite unit of Serbian Army. - several old or rare non-native trees protected by the state. They include:
- the cedarCedar woodCedar wood comes from several different trees that grow in different parts of the world, and may have different uses.* California incense-cedar, from Calocedrus decurrens, is the primary type of wood used for making pencils...
tree in the Tolstojeva street, believed to be planted personally by the major Serbian botanist, Josif PančićJosif PancicJosif Pančić OSS was a Serbian botanist. He was a famous lecturer at the Great School in Belgrade and the first president of the Serbian Royal Academy. Pančić is credited for discovering the new species of coniferthe Serbian Spruce.-Biography:...
, in 1880. - the tulip tree, between the Pukovnika Bacića and Maglajska streets, native to ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and North AmericaNorth AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, with tulip-like flowers. - yellow-flowered sophoraSophoraSophora is a genus of about 45 species of small trees and shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family, Fabaceae. The species are native to southeast Europe, southern Asia, Australasia, various islands in the Pacific Ocean, western South America, the western United States, the Southern US...
tree, native to China and KoreaKoreaKorea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
.