Belgrade “Stary Dvor”

Stary Dvor, the “Old Palace” was the residence of the Obranovich dynasty in Belgrade. Today it is the seat of the city government. The first building was built on this site under Habsburg rule at the end of the Turkish war on the orders of the Austrian emperor in the early 1700s. It was originally built as a military hospital in Baroque style. Behind the main building was a large park with a military cemetery at the end. After northern Serbia was again occupied by the Turks in 1739, maintenance of the building ceased and the structure of the building deteriorated. It was bought by Stoian Simic in the 1830s. The area was later taken over by Serbian rulers and several new palace buildings were built on it. The palaces inhabited the Obrenovich dynasty and then the Karadjordjevich dynasty. Between 1903 and 1914, the Karadjordjevich inhabited the Old Palace, which was renovated and rebuilt several times in the late 1800s. Although severely damaged in 1941, it was restored in its old form in a classicist style, as can be seen today.

Badges decorated with images of the occupied territories were also made for the forces occupying Serbia. A picture of the Vracar military hospital in Belgrade and a view of Mitrovica were already included in the posts. The beautiful little almond-shaped badge in the current post depicts the Gate Entrance of Stary Dvor. This gate stood at the end of the promenade leading to the main façade entrance of the palace. It was damaged in 1941 and was not restored, so it is no longer visible in today’s picture.