Banate of Belgrade


The Banate of Belgrade was a frontier province of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary with a role in the anti-Ottoman defensive system.

Background

Prior to 1430, Belgrade had been the capital of the Serbian Despotate. After Serbian despot Stefan Lazarević died in 1427, his successor Đurađ Branković was forced to transfer Belgrade to the Kingdom of Hungary and to move his capital to Smederevo.

History

A frontier province was organized out of the transferred areas of Belgrade, which became a banate. In 1456, the Ottoman army tried to conquer Belgrade, but failed. After the annexation of the Serbian Despotate by the Ottomans in 1459, the Ottoman Empire became a direct neighbor of the Banate of Belgrade. Some of the territories of the former Serbian Despotate were also temporarily incorporated into the Banate of Belgrade, but were subsequently conquered by the Ottomans.
Finally, in 1521, the Ottoman army conquered Belgrade, which also marked the end of the Banate of Belgrade. The region was subsequently incorporated into the Ottoman Sanjak of Smederevo.