ABSTRACT
On 28 July 1914, shortly after declaring war on Serbia, Austria-Hungary began the bombardment of the Balkan kingdom’s capital city of Belgrade. The capital’s geographic position at the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers, which formed Serbia’s border with Austria-Hungary, made it particularly vulnerable to Austro-Hungarian artillery, fired from the left bank of the Sava and from monitors on the river itself.1 Daily, the Habsburg artillery battered not only military objects, but also public buildings, hospitals, private homes, and businesses. The incessant bombardment left civilians without water and electricity.2 Swiss criminologist R.A. Reiss estimated that dozens of state and hundreds of private buildings were struck by Austro-Hungarian artillery, including the National Museum and Belgrade University, at which some claimed the first projectiles were fired.3 When, between 2 and 15 December, Habsburg troops first occupied Belgrade they inflicted pillage and destruction. Then, forced to retreat, they resumed the bombardment which continued until Belgrade fell on 10 October 1915.4 An American Red Cross doctor serving in Belgrade described it as ‘the most besieged town of the world’.5
