Capital and largest city of Montenegro
Podgorica (, ; lit. 'under the hill') is the capital and largest city of Montenegro. The city is just north of Lake Skadar and close to coastal destinations on the Adriatic Sea. Historically, it was Podgorica's position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and at the meeting-point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley that encouraged settlement. The surrounding landscape is predominantly mountainous terrain.
After World War II, Podgorica was first designated as the capital of Montenegro in 1946. At that time, it was renamed Titograd in honor of Josip Broz Tito, the leader of Yugoslavia. It served as the capital of the Socialist Republic of Montenegro within the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia until Montenegro's declaration of independence in 2006, after which it was reaffirmed as the capital of an independent Montenegro. The city's original name, Podgorica, was restored in 1992 following the dissolution of Yugoslavia.
The economy of Podgorica is based on a mix of industries, including manufacturing, trade, and services. The city has seen a rise in the IT sector, with numerous startups and tech companies emerging. Podgorica serves as a central hub for Montenegro's transportation network, with an extensive road and rail system and the nearby Podgorica Airport. Tourism is also a growing sector, with the city being a gateway to Montenegro's natural and cultural attractions.
Podgorica is home to the University of Montenegro, the largest and most significant educational institution in the country. The city's cultural institutions include the Montenegrin National Theatre, the Natural History Museum of Montenegro, and several galleries and libraries. About one-third of the city's area is composed of parks, gardens, and natural landscapes, including the nearby Gorica Hill.
Prominent landmarks in Podgorica include the Millennium Bridge, the Clock Tower, and the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ. The city also features historical sites such as the ancient Roman settlement of Doclea and the old Ottoman town of Stara Varoš.
Etymology.
Podgorica is written in Cyrillic as Подгорица, ; , ; "Podgorica" literally means "under the hill". "Gorica" (Cyrillic: Горица), a diminutive of the word Gora (Cyrillic: Гора) which is another word for Mountain or Hill, means "little/small hill", is the name of one of the cypress-covered hillocks that overlooks the city center. Some three kilometres () north-west of Podgorica lie the ruins of the Roman-era town of Doclea, from which the Roman Emperor Diocletian's mother hailed. In later centuries, Romans corrected the name to , guessing that an "i" had been lost in vulgar speech. is the later South Slavic version of the same word. At its foundation (some time before the 11th century), the town was called Birziminium. In the Middle Ages, it was known as Ribnica (Cyrillic: Рибница, ). The name Podgorica was used from 1326. From 1946 to 1992, the city was named Titograd (Cyrillic: Титоград, ) in honour of Josip Broz Tito, the President of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1953 to 1980. In 1992 the city changed its name to "Podgorica", which it remains today.
History.
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Historical affiliations
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Early history.
Podgorica is at the crossroads of several historically important routes, near the rivers Zeta, Morača, Cijevna, Ribnica, Sitnica and Mareza in the valley of Lake Skadar and near the Adriatic Sea, in fertile lowlands with favourable climate. The earliest human settlements were in prehistory: the oldest physical remains are from the late Stone Age.
In the Iron Age, the area between the Zeta and Bjelopavlići valleys was populated by two Illyrian tribes, the Labeates and the Docleatae. The population of the town of Doclea was 8,000–10,000, in which all core urban issues were resolved. The high population density (in an area of about radius) was made possible by the geographical position, favorable climate, and economic conditions and by the defensive positions that were of great importance at that time.
The name Podgorica was first mentioned in 1326 in a court document of the Kotor archives. The city was economically strong: trade routes between the Republic of Ragusa and Serbia, well developed at that time, were maintained via the road that led to Podgorica through Trebinje and Nikšić. As a busy crossroads, Podgorica was a vibrant regional center of trade and communication. This boosted its development, economic power, military strength, and strategic importance.
In 1448 Stefan Crnojević allied himself with the Republic of Venice, and after defeating the despot Đurađ Branković in 1452, he handed over Podgorica to the Venetian Republic, which already held the Shkodër region. However, Venetian rule of Podgorica did not last long, because Mehmed II soon conquered the fortified town of Medun in 1455, and two years later, most of Zeta.
Ottoman Empire.
The Ottoman Empire captured Podgorica in 1474. Podgorica became a kaza of the Sanjak of Scutari (which was historically led by Albanian Pashas). In 1479, The Ottomans built a large fortress in Podgorica, and the existing settlement, with its highly developed merchant connections, became the main Ottoman defensive and attacking bastion in the region. At the beginning of 1474 the Ottoman sultan intended to rebuild Podgorica and Baleč and settle them with 5,000 Muslim families (most of them of Albanian or Slavic origin), in order to stop cooperation between the Principality of Zeta and Albania Veneta.
Podgorica fell again, but this time to the Ottomans in 1484, and the character of the town changed extensively. The Ottomans fortified the city, building towers, gates, and defensive ramparts that give Podgorica the appearance of an Ottoman military city.
Most of today's Montenegro and Podgorica fell under the rule of the Albanian Bushati Family of Shkodra between 1760 and 1831, which ruled independently from the Imperial authority of the Ottoman Sultan.
In 1864, Podgorica became a "kaza" of the Scutari Vilayet called Böğürtlen ("blackberry", also known as Burguriçe).
On 7 October 1874, in a violent reaction over the murder of a local named Juso Mučin Krnić, Ottoman forces killed at least 15 people in Podgorica. The massacre was widely reported outside of Montenegro and ultimately contributed to the buildup to the Montenegrin-Ottoman War.
The end of the Montenegrin-Ottoman War in 1878 resulted in the Congress of Berlin recognizing vast territories, including that of Podgorica, as part of the newly recognized Principality of Montenegro. At that time there were about 1,500 houses in Podgorica, with more than 8,000 people living there – of Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Muslim faiths flourishing together.
The Petrović and Karađorđević monarchies.
After the Berlin Congress in 1878, Podgorica was annexed to the Principality of Montenegro, marking the end of four centuries of Ottoman rule, and the beginning of a new era for Podgorica and Montenegro. The first forms of capital concentration were seen in 1902 when roads were built to all neighboring towns, and tobacco became Podgorica's first significant commercial product. In 1904, a savings bank named Zetska formed the first significant financial institution; this would soon grow into Podgorička Bank.
World War I marked the end of dynamic development for Podgorica, which by then was the largest city in the newly proclaimed Kingdom of Montenegro. On 10 August 1914, nine military personnel and 13 civilians were killed in Podgorica from an aerial bombardment by Austro-Hungarian Aviation Troops. The city was bombed three more times in 1915. Along with the rest of the Kingdom, Podgorica was occupied by Austria-Hungary from 1916 to 1918.
After the liberation by the Allies in 1918, the controversial Podgorica Assembly marked the end of Montenegrin statehood, as Montenegro was merged with the Kingdom of Serbia and incorporated into the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. The population of urban Podgorica during this interwar period was approximately 14,000.
During the interwar period (1918–1941), Podgorica had public bathrooms as most residents did not have their own. However, the "Imperial" hotel built in 1925 had two bathrooms, which was unprecedented at the time. It was one of at least six hotels built in the city during the interwar period.
World War II.
After the Yugoslav coup d'état on 27 March 1941, demonstrations supporting the coup took place in Podgorica. As a result of the coup, Yugoslavia turned against its previous alliance with the Axis powers and was subsequently invaded. Podgorica was bombed over 80 times throughout the course of the war. The city was first bombed by the Luftwaffe on 6 April 1941. On 5 May 1944, Podgorica was bombed by the USAAF in an attack against Axis forces, although the bombardment that day killed approximately 400 civilians. The city was liberated on 19 December 1944. According to the "Museum of Genocide Victims", a total of 1,691 people were killed in Podgorica over the course of the war.
Socialist Yugoslavia.
On 12 July 1946, Josip Broz Tito made one of his early visits to Podgorica from the "Radovče" hotel, where he spoke to a crowd. It was the first of fifteen total visits made by Tito to the city after World War II.
On 25 July 1948, the vice president of the People's Parliament of Montenegro, Andrija Mugoša, along with secretary Gavron Cemović, signed a law changing the name of Podgorica into "Titovgrad". The law was "retroactively" activated such that the name change applied to any records starting from 13 July 1946, when it became the capital of Montenegro within the newly formed Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. However, in a contradiction, the "Službeni list" or legal code of Yugoslavia recorded the name "Titograd" without the letter "v". Ultimately, "Titograd" was used over "Titovgrad".
In addition to the new name, Titograd saw the establishment of new factories. The Radoje Dakić factory, built-in 1946 for the production of heavy machinery, became one of the largest employers in Titograd. In 1964, Radoje Dakić guaranteed hired workers an apartment in the city. In the late 1960s, the cities of Titograd, Zadar, and Mostar competed to be selected as the location of Yugoslavia's expanding aluminum industry. In a highly politicized selection process, Titograd was ultimately chosen and the Kombinat was constructed in 1969. In 1974, the public Veljko Vlahović University was founded in Titograd. On 15 April 1979, the city suffered damage by a 6.9 magnitude earthquake.
Titograd was the site of massive protests during Yugoslavia's anti-bureaucratic revolution. On 10 January 1989, over 10,000 people protested in the city. By the turn of the decade, Titograd was recognized as the city with the most greenery in Yugoslavia, along with Banja Luka.
Contemporary history.
As Yugoslavia began to break up, Titograd was renamed to Podgorica after a referendum on 2 April 1992. On 25 May 1992, Podgorica was the site of a Serbian Radical Party rally of approximately 10,000 supporters, during which a Montenegrin Bosniak man named Adem Šabotić attempted to assassinate Vojislav Šešelj via hand bomb after his supporters chanted references to killing Muslims. Šešelj, his bodyguards, and a few bystanders were injured after the bomb detonated but no one was killed.
Otherwise, the Yugoslav wars largely bypassed Podgorica, but the entire country was greatly affected with severe economic stagnation and hyperinflation lasting throughout the 1990s due to international sanctions. In 1999, Podgorica was subject to airstrikes during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia.
On 13 July 2005, the newly constructed Millennium Bridge opened for traffic. Following the results of the independence referendum in May 2006, Podgorica saw significant development as the capital of an independent state, including the reconstruction and renaming of the former Ivan Milutinović Square to Independence Square.
On 13 October 2008, at least 10,000 people protested against Kosovo's declaration of independence. On 19 December 2008, the Moscow Bridge opened for pedestrians.
On 7 August 2013, the 60-year old Hotel "Crna Gora" was demolished to make way for the new Hilton in its place, which opened in 2016. Construction of the Cathedral of Christ's Resurrection finished after 20 years on 7 October 2013.
In October 2015, protests took place in Podgorica ahead of Montenegro's accession into NATO. After a demonstration of at least 5,000 to 8,000 people, the police used tear gas to disperse demonstrators from the parliament. Protests in the city continued through the 2016 Montenegrin parliamentary election. On 22 February 2018, a Yugoslav Army veteran killed himself at the US embassy in Podgorica.
Administration.
The city administration consists of a mayor, city assembly, and a number of secretariats and administrative bodies which together act as a city local government. The city assembly has 61 members, elected directly for four-year terms. The mayor used to be directly elected for a five-year term, but since the new law was introduced in Montenegrin