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Visegrad is located in the eastern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the confluence of the river Rzav in the Drina river. In the Middle Ages Visegrad was a part of the Serbian medieval state (from 1166 until the end of the 14th century). After that he was part of the Kingdom of Bosnia, and again in the composition of the Serbian state. In 1454, Visegrad fell under the Ottoman rule.
In 1454, Visegrad fell under the Ottoman rule and was part of it until 1878 when, it became a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire along with the whole of Bosnia. During this period, Visegrad was a constant target of Serbian rebels. In 1807, at the time of the first Serbian uprising, the Serbian insurgents burned down the whole city.
Since 1918 to 1991, Visegrad is part of Yugoslavia, and since 1991, it is part of Bosnia and Herzegovina again.
In the period of the Ottoman authorities (1571-1577), a bridge was built on the Drina River. The initiator of the construction of this bridge was the Turkish Grand Vizier Mehmed Pasha Sokolovic, who was born in this area. As a great vizier he was influential in the empire and his idea of building a bridge was supported.
Monument of Mehmed Pasha Sokolovic in Visegrad
The monument is located not far from the bridge
The Turks often kidnapped in Serb villages Serbian boys aged 12-13 years, and recruited them into the army of Janissaries. Mehmed Pasha Sokolovic was one of those boys. When he became famous and influential, he decided to build this bridge. According to the legend, the bridge is located at the place where Mehmed Pasha Sokolovic saw his mother for the last time.
The Grand Vezier never saw his work finished. A year after the construction of the bridge, an assassination was carried out against him, from whose consequences he died.
The bridge was seriously damaged and after that it was rebuilt. It was last renewed in 2015, and the reconstruction was financed by the Turkish Agency for Reconstruction and Development (TIKA). The bridge is exclusively pedestrian and is currently a tourist attraction.
Yugoslav writer Ivo Andric, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in his novel "The Bridge on the Drina", wrote about the history of this bridge.
That novel additionally it popularized. Sometimes this bridge was a symbol of Visegrad, now it is one of the symbols of Serbian history and Serbian literature.
All photos are mine,
Goran.
