Šabac Fortress

Šabac, Serbia, Serbia

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Šabac Fortress in Šabac, Serbia, originated as a medieval stronghold called Zaslon on a hill near the Sava River, with its main structure rebuilt in 1471 by Ottoman commander Isa-beg Isaković as a quadrangular river fortress named Bigir Delen to control navigation and defend against invaders. It changed hands repeatedly during conflicts involving Hungarians under King Matthias Corvinus—who besieged it for 33 days in 1476—Ottomans recapturing it in 1521 under Suleiman the Magnificent, and later Austrians modernizing it in the 18th century with stone, brick, and bastions adapted for artillery. The compact fortress features thick walls, ten towers—some square, others polygonal—moats linked to the Sava, and remnants of inner and outer towns, symbolizing centuries of Turkish, Serbian, and Austro-Hungarian struggles while offering panoramic river views as a modern cultural site.