Singidunum
Singidunum is an ancient Roman frontier city located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where modern-day Belgrade, Serbia, now stands. Established around the first century AD, it began as a military camp on a site that was previously inhabited by Neolithic and Celtic populations. Historically significant, Singidunum was the site of a notable battle around 115 BC, where the Scordisci defeated the Germanic Cimbri. Over time, it evolved into a Roman municipium and later achieved the status of a Roman colony. The city experienced invasions by Gothic and Hun forces in the fourth and fifth centuries before being occupied by Slavs around 600 AD. Today, visitors can explore the remnants of the Roman castrum, including foundations and walls beneath the Kalemegdan fortress. The National Museum in Belgrade houses many artifacts from Singidunum, including archaeological finds that span from prehistoric times to the Roman era, highlighting its rich historical legacy.
Subject Terms
Singidunum
(Belgrade, Beograd)
A Roman frontier city at the northwestern extremity of Upper Moesia (now the capital of Yugoslavia), at the confluence of the river Savus (Save) with the Danube. Singidunum was the scene of a battle in which the German Cimbri were defeated by the Scordisci (c 115 BC).
The Roman camp, located on the site of Neolithic and Celtic settlements, dates from the first century AD; a legion was stationed there from c 9. A squadron of the Danubian fleet, too, was transferred to the local river harbor from Viminacium (Kostolac). Singidunum became a Roman municipium, probably in the time of Caracalla (211–17), and was elevated to the rank of a Roman colony under Gordian III (c 238/9). It suffered from Gothic and Hun invasions in the fourth and fifth centuries respectively, and was occupied by the Slavs shortly before 600. Foundations and walls of the legionary camp are to be seen below the medieval and modern fortress of Kalemagdan, on a high limestone rock overlooking the junction of the two rivers. The topography of the city that lay below is unclear, but a Roman temple, cisterns and cemetery have been excavated, and extensive discoveries from prehistoric times onward are preserved in the National Museum, including a fine bronze head of Constantine the Great (306–37).