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DOI: 10.34298/9788677431488273

UDC: 908:94(497.11)“18/19“

pp. 273–290

language: serbian

Novak Nedić

TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENT OF KARANOVAC/KRALJEVO IN RESTORED SERBIA UNTIL 1914

Summary

With the Serbian Revolution (the First Serbian Uprising, Hadži Prodan’s rebellion, and Second Serbian Uprising), Karanovac, formerly a very small Turkish town at the very mouth of the Ibar river in the West Morava, became the military and administrative centre of the Serbian liberators. In mid-July 1815, Karanovac was finally freed from the Turkish rule and Miloš Obrenović gradually took over power. This marked the beginning of a new Serbian epoch in the development of Karanovac. The first stage lasted until Serbia became autonomous (1830–1833), i.e. until it obtained the status of the Principality and Prince Miloš Obrenović was granted hereditary rights. In this period of limited Serbian freedom and administration, with the presence of Turks with their property, in Karanovac, which was destroyed twice, a new urban core began to emerge around the new church built of solid material by Prince Miloš for Orthodox citizens. The post office and the customs office were opened. Refugees from the Sjenica-Pešter plateau, Stari Vlah, Kosovo and other places come to Karanovac, and the population grew rapidly. The elementary school was still not built. The second stage of Karanovac’s development unfolded in the Principality of Serbia and lasted until Serbia gained independence in 1878. During this period, Karanovac was developing according to a new urban concept described as “a circular square with perpendicularly intersected streets”. The city’s core expanded with the construction of the Spiritual Centre and the administrative building. New Serbian refugees were arriving from Serbian regions under the Ottoman Empire, i.e. Old Serbia. Trade, crafts and the number of landowners expanded rapidly. A beautiful two-storey building was built for the needs of schools in the çarşı centre. Despite the persistent demands of more prominent residents, Karanovac did not get a high school. However, as influential families became stronger and their family organisations grew into family cooperatives that operated and traded in the north, they became aware that there was no progress without secondary and higher education. They sent their children to grammar schools in Serbia (Kragujevac, Čačak, etc.), and abroad, to the north, to attend higher education. The educated elite of Karanovac and Serbia was thus created. They had the desire to engage in the development of new, more rational jobs and modern production in the fields of agriculture, forestry, industry, etc., i.e. the economic development of Serbia. In this process, they encountered two highly limiting factors – the utmost underdevelopment of the road network and the inevitability of the Turkish-Serbian War (Javor War). After Serbia became independent in 1878 and with the organisation of the socio-economic system of Serbia headed by the King in 1882, a new successful development stage began for Karanovac. Another reason for the accelerated development was the fact that King Milan became the godfather of the city and Karanovac got a new name – Kraljevo. The Karanovac citizens thus got rid of the burden of their name that reminded them of the Turks, while at the same time they were part of the trend of restoration of the Serbian royal medieval state (Žiča’s importance was restored and it became the bishopric seat). Three high schools were later built in Kraljevo – an agricultural school, a forestry school and a gymnasium. Higher education was still obtained abroad. Educated Serbs from abroad also came to help Serbia’s development, with the desire that all Serbs lived in the same country. The Serbian road and railway network was being developed, as well as Kraljevo and its surroundings (Čačak, Kragujevac, Raška, Kruševac). The development of the mechanical industry in Kraljevo also began, but unsuccessfully. The transfer of agricultural techniques (mechanisation) was carried out, and new varieties and species were introduced. Agricultural products such as flour, meat, meat products, jam, prunes, etc. were being intensively produced, and export was on the rise. As transport developed, the export of agricultural products and livestock also grew. A new technique of motor propulsion based on water and steam energy, and later electricity, arrived in Serbia. Kraljevo was one of the pioneers in electricity production and electrification (1903), and the development of spa tourism (1899). However, three inevitable wars in the early 20th century – the two Balkan Wars and the First World War, in which Serbia participated as a leader, interrupted the vigorous development of Serbia, including Kraljevo. The new era of the city took place only after the First World War, i.e. after 1920.

Keywords: Karanovac, Old Kraljevo, education, schools, technique and technology, industry, important families and persons.