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Petrovaradin Fortress photo by Vanilla

Top 10 Facts about Petrovaradin Fortress

Petrovaradin Fortress is a fortress in the town of Petrovaradin, itself part of the City of Novi Sad, Serbia. It is nicknamed, ‘Gibraltar of the Danube’. It is located on the right bank of the Danube river.

In the year 1991, the Petrovaradin Fortress was added to the Spatial Cultural-Historical Units of Great Importance list of the Republic of Serbia. Its construction started in 1692 and was completed in 1780.

It is open all days of the week from Sunday to Saturday. The opening hours are 12.00 am and it closes at 11.59 pm.

1. Tourist Destination

Petrovaradin Fortress is one of the tourist destinations in Serbia. Many people around the world visit to come and tour the walls as well as its buildings.

Walk up the sweeping steps and under the portico gateway, covered in moss, with the impressive whitewashed clock tower standing above. This is a must-visit place whenever you are in Serbia.

2. Easily Accessible

Petrovaradin Fortress is easily accessible one of its interesting facts. Tourists don’t have to struggle due to a lack of means of transport or bad infrastructure.

 It is located on the Banks of Danube just down from the Varadinski Bridge. Off Preradoviceva, there is a car parking on the 100 road that leads into Novi Sad from the south.

3. Part of Spatial Cultural-Historical Units of Great Importance

Petrovaradin Fortress photo by Vanilla

It is interesting to know that the Fortress is part of Spatial Cultural-Historical Units of Great Importance. They are the monuments in Serbia that have the second level of State protection.

Petrovaradin Fortress was added in 1991. It is part of the Cultural Property of Great Importance together with Subotica City Center added in 1991, Cemeteries Out of Use added in 1991, The Historic Core of Sombor- ‘Venac’ added in 1991 and Godovik Complex added in 1983 among others.

4. Has Many Tunnels

 The fortress has many tunnels. Initially, the tunnels were used as defensive galleries, they hosted the reinforcing armies and the tunnels also provided one of the best positions during the defence.

 They were later turned into prisons and warehouses after the Hungarian Revolution and many famous people were imprisoned like Vasa Pelagic, Jasa Tomic, Nobel Prize winner Ivo Andric and Vladimir Jovanovic among other. They have been of importance and positive impact on Serbia.

5. The Petrovaradin Fortress Hides Underground

It is surprising to know that the Fortress hides underground in more than 16 km of tunnels. Since it is found underground it consists of thick darkness and little oxygen supply.

Walking through the fortress gives one an extreme fear since the place is enclosed, but it gives a good impression of what it was like to be held in one of the dungeons. I recommend this to all curiosity tourism to visit the fortress and have a unique experience.

Most of the entrances to the fortress are locked hence easy to get lost in the maze. It is highly recommendable to enter the tunnels with a guide to help you find the right routes.

6. The Reversed Clock is a Landmark of Petrovaradin Fortress

The clock tower is one of the landmarks of the Petrovaradin Fortress. The minutes and hour hands on the clock are reversed hence known as the ‘reversed clock’. It is more than 300 years old and one of the extraordinary clock.

The small hand of the clock shows the minutes while the big hand of the clock shows hours unlike other clocks, where the small hand shows hours and the big hand shows minutes. The clock was created in that manner so that the fishermen on the Danube River can see the time from a long distance.

When the clock is not working which is rare, it shows the correct time four times a day. This is extraordinary right? In addition, it was given the name ‘druck clock’ because the clock runs late when is cold and speeds up during nice and warm weather.

7. Exit Festivals are Held at the Fortress

Fortes is home to several major cultural events, the Exit Festival being one of them. It is interesting to know that the Exit festival is always held at the fortress since its inception in 2001.

Exit Festival is an annual summer music festival. Since 2011, when it started being held in the fortress it has grown from the biggest festival in South-Eastern Europe to one of the biggest festivals in Europe.

8. The Fortress was Built over a Period of Almost 88 Years

Petrovaradin Fortress photo by Vanilla

It took a long time for the fortress to be built. It is estimated it took around 88 years to be completed. It took all those years of construction due to interruption during the reign of the Habsburg Monarchy.

Difficult conditions of construction caused the death of many workers. It is approximately said around 40 to 70 people died in a day during periods of the most intensive work.

On the completion of the fortress it was considered the strongest fortress in the Habsburg Monarchy and the part of the Europe where it was constructed was nicknamed Gibraltar on the Danube.

9. There are Numerous Legends Associated with Petrovaradin Fortress

Several legends are associated with Petrovaradin Fortress and the most known and famous is the one with a secret tunnel under the riverbed that connects the Fortress with the left bank of the Danube and served as a passage for the last Austro-Hungarian soldier and his fiancée in 1913.

The second legend is the one builders of the Fortress put live cats into the foundations of the new fortification at the start of the 17^th century to ensure the long stay of the Fortress stemming from the belief that cats have nine lives and many other legends.

10. Petrovaradin Fortress History

Petrovaradin Fortress photo by Vanilla

Palaeolithic Settlement at the upper fortress remain was found dating back from 19,000 -15,000 BC showing that since then there has been a continuous settlement on the site. In 2005, Ramparts found suggested there was a Fortified settlement existed at Petrovaradin.

On the arrival of Roman, the first largest fortifications were created, they built the Cusum which was a part of the fortified border along the Danube. A turning point in history came in 1235AD when King Bela IV brought a group of the Order of Cistercians from France. They built the monastery Belakut on the Roman fortress of Cusum between 1247 -1252.

The strengthening of the fortress was made due to Ottoman Invasion. However, it fell after a two-week siege in 1526. Renovated and reinforced in 1753 and 1776, Petrovaradin Fortress now contains a maze of underground passageways.