The City of Belgrade and its Jewish Heritage

When Jewish travelers think of going on kosher tours to Europe, they might think of countries like Germany, France, and the like. But there are also gems to be found in places like Serbia, particularly in the city of Belgrade.



Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia, a landlocked country situated at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. The urban area of Belgrade has a population of 1.23 million, while over 1.68 million people live within its administrative limits.

One of the most important prehistoric European cultures, the Vinča, evolved within the Belgrade area in the 6th millennium BC. During antiquity, Thraco-Dacians inhabited the region. After 279 BC, Celts conquered the city, naming it Singidūn. It was conquered by the Romans during the reign of Augustus, and was awarded city rights in the mid-2nd century.

It was settled by the Slavs in the 520s, and changed hands several times between the Byzantine Empire, Frankish Empire, Bulgarian Empire and Kingdom of Hungary before it became the capital of Serbian king Stephen Dragutin (1282–1316). In 1521, Belgrade was conquered by the Ottoman Empire and became the seat of the Sanjak of Smederevo. 

It frequently passed from Ottoman to Habsburg rule, which saw the destruction of most of the city during the Austro-Ottoman wars. Belgrade was again named the capital of Serbia in 1841. Northern Belgrade remained the southernmost Habsburg post until 1918, when the city was reunited. As a strategic location, the city has been in 115 wars and was razed 44 times.

Belgrade was the capital of Yugoslavia from its creation in 1918. Belgrade has a special administrative status within Serbia and it is one of its five statistical regions. Its metropolitan territory is divided into 17 municipalities, each with its own local council. The city of Belgrade covers 3.6% of Serbia's territory, and around 24% of the country's population lives within its administrative limits.

The Belgrade Jews

The first written records of Jewish presence in Belgrade date back to the 16th century when the city was under Ottoman rule. At that time Belgrade boasted a strong Jewish Ladino-speaking Sephardic community that mostly settled in the central Belgrade neighborhood called Dorćol. Many of the city's Ashkenazi Jews, were from Central Europe and nearby Austria-Hungary. They mostly lived near the Sava river, in the area where the current active synagogue Sukkat Shalom stands.

The Jewish community in Belgrade flourished most notably in the 17th century when Belgrade had a yeshiva, community and cultural centers, Jewish charitable organizations, societies and shops. A beautiful early-20th century Sephardic synagogue, then one of the most prominent buildings in the city, stood in today's Cara Uroša Street, together with a mikve.

Before World War II, some 12,000 Jews lived in Belgrade, 80% of whom were Spanish- or Ladino-speaking Sephardim, and 20% Yiddish-speaking Ashkenazim. Most of the Jewish population of Serbia was exterminated during the German occupation. Only 1,115 of Belgrade's twelve thousand Jews survived.

There were three concentration camps for Jews, Serbs and Gypsies in the city at the time. Most Jewish men perished at the Autokomanda site near the city center, apart from those killed at the Banjica camp. The camp at Sajmište was on Independent State of Croatia territory and it mostly saw to the killing of women and children.

Wartime bombing destroyed most of the Jewish monuments as well as much of the city. According to some reports, the current synagogue was used by the occupying forces as a brothel. The building was re-consecrated after the war.

Since 1944 there has only been a very small Jewish community in Belgrade and Serbia as a whole. Many people emigrated to Israel after the war. But despite the size, Belgrade currently has a very active community center that houses the Federation of Jewish Communities of Serbia and the Jewish Historical Museum.

The city also has several commemorative monuments to Jewish suffering in past wars, the newest of which was unveiled at Autokomanda, near the site of the mass killing of Jews during World War II. There are Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jewish cemeteries in Belgrade, but only the Sephardic one is in regular use today.

The Sukkat Shalom synagogue, built in 1925 in neoclassical style – formerly the Ashkenazi Synagogue – is currently the only functioning shul of the city. It regularly serves over shabbes and holidays to the approximately 1200-strong kehilla. Its pre-war address was Kosmajska Street but today is located at Marsala Birjuzova 19. It is served by a Serbian-born resident chief rabbi, who is also a shochet.