Bač Fortress

Located on the outskirts of a small town in northern Serbia, Bač Fortress is the most important medieval monument in the province of Vojvodina. There are records of a fort at the site dating back to at least the 9th century. The fortress originally stood on a historical island on the Mostonga river—back in those days, it was only approachable by drawbridge. The fortress that stands in Bač today was built by the Hungarian king Charles I in the 14th century. The castle complex originally had eight towers, along with residences, a chapel, well, barn, cistern and storage buildings.

Bač Fortress changed hands several times, and has been possessed at various points in time by the Kingdom of Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, the Habsburg Monarchy, and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In 1704, the fortress was badly damaged and largely abandoned. In 1948, Bač Fortress was declared a cultural monument, and a plan was developed to preserve and restore the historic building.

During the restoration process, work has focused on preserving archaeological remains and helping visitors appreciate the wider cultural landscape of Bač. The project was awarded the 2018 Europa Nostra Award, the European Union’s prize for cultural heritage.

Historically, the town of Bač has been a major crossroad point. Historians say that the region used to be one of the most developed parts of the Kingdom of Hungary. Artifacts found in the region suggest that it has been occupied by humans for nearly 8,000 years. Today, Bač is a unique mosaic of European cultures, containing buildings from the 12th to the 19th centuries with influences ranging from Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Byzantine, and Islamic art.