Skadarlija - History

History

The history of Skadarlija began in the 1830s with the settlement of Gypsies in the abandoned trenches in front of the ramparts. The 1854 town plan of Belgrade reveals that the Gypsy hovels had been replaced by brick buildings into which artisans, caterers, petty clerks and others moved. The whole locality was referred to as the Gypsy Quarter until 1872, when the street was named after the town of Skadar), which was the capital of the Serbian medieval state (today Shkodër in Albania). Skadarska ulica, Serbian for "Skadar street", is still the official name.

Skadarlija began to acquire its bohemian character in the last few decades of the 19th century, and particularly after 1901,when the well-known Dardaneli inn was demolished and its guests, prominent writers and actors, moved to the Skadarlija inns or kafanas. The best-known of these were Tri šešira ("Three Hats"), Dva jelena ("Two Deer"), Zlatni bokal ("The Golden Chalice"), Bandist, East, Guild, Vuk Karadžić and The two Sergeants. The first three of these still survive today, accompanied by some new restaurants like Ima dana ("There will be days"), Skadarlija (demolished in 2006), Dva bela goluba ("Two White Doves").

The end section of Skadarlija is known as the Skadarlija atrium. It is mostly occupied by the brewery that belonged to one of the most distinguished Belgrade families before World War II, the Czech-originating Bajloni family. It produced "Aleksandar" beer, made from thermal waters that spring out in the brewery's backyard. The well is located 80 to 300 meters (250 to 1000 feet) under the surface. After 1945, the brewery became part of the "BIP" brewery, but was later closed. The spring water was bottled for drinking until the early 2000s. Under the brewery is a complex of lagums (subterranean galleries or catacombes), which were used as a storage rooms for the beer barrels. As of 2008, the entire inner complex is abandoned and slated for demolition.

The house of Đura Jakšić, a well-known writer and painter who lived and died in Skadarlija, has been turned into a meeting place for the poets participating in the Skadarlija Evenings event. Its renovation and restoration began in 1968 in accordance with the designs made by a group of prominent artists: architect Uglješa Bogunović (1922), writer and painter Zuko Džumhur (1921–89), painter Mario Maskareli (1918–96), sculptor Milica Ribnikar-Bogunović (1931), among others. They managed to preserve its existing values and introduce modern facilities without interfering with its historical features. In the late 1960s, Skadarlija regained fame as the center of youth and bohemian artists of Belgade. Plans for further adaptations were made in 1977, but remained on paper until 2008.