| Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, Topčider Топчидерска црква Светих апостола Петра и Павла | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Serbian Orthodox Church |
| Year consecrated | 1834 |
| Location | |
| Location |  Belgrade,Serbia |
| Architecture | |
| Architects | Janja Mihajlović Nikola Đorđević Hadži Nikola Živković |
| Completed | 1834 |
| Materials | stone |
| Official name: Topčiderska crkva | |
| Type | Cultural monument of Exceptional Importance |
| Designated | 2 December 1946 |
| Reference no. | SK 6 |
Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, known as theTopčider Church (Serbian Cyrillic:Топчидерска црква) is theSerbian Orthodox Church, located inTopčider park, in the municipality ofSavski Venac inBelgrade, the capital ofSerbia. Built between 1832 and 1834, it was an endowment ofPrinceMiloš Obrenović, who was also its founder. It is located next to theResidence of Prince Miloš.[1] The church was declared acultural monument and protected by the state in 1949.[2]
During theFirst Serbian Uprising, Serbian leaderKarađorđe realized the importance of Topčider valley for the military and economic blockade ofBelgrade Fortress, held by Ottomans at the time. During one of the sieges, Miloš Obrenović was charged with keeping the road toValjevo andKragujevac closed. However, he reached an agreement with the Ottomans and allowed their army to pass. Infuriated Karađorđe captured Miloš and took him to the old, abandoned cemetery in Topčider, to kill him. After pleadings ofvojvodaMladen Milovanović, Karađorđe spared Miloš's life. Historians believe that this was actually the only time that Karađorđe drew hisflintlock at someone, without killing him.[2]
In memory of this "miracle", when he became ruler, Prince Miloš decided to build a church and akonak for theSerbian Metropolitan of Belgrade.[2] However, Prince Miloš organized assassinations of both Karađorđe (in 1817) and Mladenović (in 1823), so it could be the church was built because of remorse (seePokajnica Monastery).
Construction began on 28 July 1832 and was conducted by Janja Mihajlović,Nikola Đorđević andHadži Nikola Živković. As the workers were paid poorly by the prince, and with delays, the construction dragged until summer 1834, with short interruptions. The prince's penny-pinching also resulted in the selection of the materials for the church. Thebell tower and konak are partially built from the old headstones. On one of them, on the back side of the tower, the horse pliers are carved pointing to the profession of the deceased (farrier).[2]
Prince Miloš donated three bells to the church. During theoccupation byAustria-Hungary inWorld War I, two of them were removed and transported toVienna. With other bells gathered from other Orthodox churches in occupied countries,Austro-Hungarian Army melted them and used them for the arms production. The third bell, a smallest one, survived until today.[2]
The church has an unusualiconostasis. The first one, work of several painters, was done from 1834 to 1837. In 1874 it was relocated to the parish church in the village ofBarič. Present iconostasis is a work ofStevan Todorović, a renowned artist and painter, and his collaborator Nikola Marković. Todorović's originality is noticeable in certain departures from the usual choice of motifs and layout of theicons. Instead ofSaint Archdeacon Stephen on the south altar doors, he painted youngTobias in company of angels, as a representation and symbol of the burdened mankind. Above, Todorović painted the SaintStefan Dečanski, whileJohn the Baptist was replaced withSaint Sava who, in turn, doesn't resemble at all the best known Sava's representation, in theMileševa monastery. As a curiosity, none of the saints is painted with ahalo. Carvings were done by sculptor Dimitrije Petrović.[2]
The church and the adjoining konak were placed under the state protection in 1949.[2]
The church is under reconstruction, which is expected to be completed by 2015, two hundred years since the start of theSecond Serbian Uprising.[3]
44°46′52″N20°26′38″E / 44.7812°N 20.4439°E /44.7812; 20.4439
