Šajkaška Шајкашка | |
|---|---|
 Map of Šajkaška | |
| Country |  Serbia |
| Largest city | Žabalj Titel |
| Population | |
• Total | 67,355 |
Šajkaška (Шајкашка) is a historical region in northernSerbia. It is the southeastern part ofBačka, located in the Autonomous Province ofVojvodina. The territory of Šajkaška is divided among four municipalities:Titel,Žabalj,Novi Sad, andSrbobran. The historical center of Šajkaška isTitel.
The nameŠajkaška means "the land of Šajkaši".Šajkaši were a specific river marine infantry of theHabsburg army, which moved in narrow, long boats, known as "šajka". These military units had operated on theDanube,Tisa,Sava andMoriš rivers. InHungarian, the region is known asSajkásvidék and inGerman asSchajkaschka.
After 1400, the majority of the people in Šajkaška wereSerbs who had settled the area before or after theOttomans conquered the Balkan lands to the south . Moving further north, they had become established atCsepel Island, where they founded Srpski Kovin (Ráckeve). After 1526 and theBattle of Mohacs, they moved to the northern Danube and to the city ofKomarno which, for a long time, was the administrative headquarters of the Šajkaš forces.
After theTreaty of Karlowitz in 1699, the region was part of theHabsburg monarchy. Most of Šajkaška was included into the HabsburgMilitary Frontier (itsDanube andTisa sections), while one part of the region was included into theBodrog County. When these parts of the Military Frontier were abolished (in 1750), Šajkaška was included into theTheiss District, which was part of theBatsch-Bodrog County within theHabsburg Kingdom of Hungary. In 1763, Šajkaška was excluded from the Theiss District and was again placed under military administration. The Šajkaš Battalion, as part of theMilitary Frontier, was founded in this area. In the beginning of the Habsburg administration, the population of the region was composed entirely ofSerbs, which were brave and skillful warriors. Serb Šajkaši have participated in many battles against theOttoman Empire.
By 1739 and thePeace of Belgrade, the border between Austria and Turkey was moved to the Sava and Danube rivers, and at that time, the idea was proposed to move the Šajkaši down from the north. That was done from 1763 to 1764.
From 1848 to 1849, the region was part of the autonomousSerbian Vojvodina, but was again included into the Military Frontier in 1849. In 1852, the Šajkaš battalion was transformed into theTitel infantry battalion. This military unit was abolished in 1873, and the region was again incorporated into theBács-Bodrog County. Administratively, the territory of Šajkaška was organized into the municipality ofTitel and the separate municipality ofŽabalj was also later established. In 1910, ethnicSerbs formed the absolute majority in both municipalities. Besides Serbs who formed the majority in most settlements, the region was also populated byHungarians who formed the majority in the village ofBudisava and a sizable minority in a few other settlements,Germans who formed a sizable minority in several settlements andRusyns who formed a sizable minority inĐurđevo.
In 1918, as part of theBanat, Bačka and Baranja region, Šajkaška became part of theKingdom of Serbia and then part of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later renamed toYugoslavia). From 1918 to 1922 Šajkaška was part of theNovi Sad County, from 1922 to 1929 part of theBelgrade Oblast, and from 1929 to 1941 part of theDanube Banovina. From 1941 to 1944, the region was occupied by theAxis Powers, and was attached to theBács-Bodrog County ofHorthy'sHungary. In the 1942 raid, the Hungarian occupational authorities killed numerous ethnicSerbs,Jews andRomani in Šajkaška. In 1944, theSovietRed Army andYugoslav Partisans expelled the Axis forces from the region, and Šajkaška became part of theAutonomous Province of Vojvodina within the newSocialist Yugoslavia. From 1945, the AP of Vojvodina was part of theSocialist Republic of Serbia within Yugoslavia. Nowadays, Šajkaška is mainly an agricultural region, with a well-developed food industry.
In 2002, the population of Šajkaška numbered 67,355 people, including:[citation needed]
The Titel municipality:
The Žabalj municipality:
TheNovi Sad municipality:
TheSrbobran municipality:
Note: Titel and Žabalj are towns and administrative centres of municipalities. Other places are villages.
There is a Serb OrthodoxKovilj monastery in the area. It is situated near the village ofKovilj. The monastery was reconstructed from 1705 to 1707. According to a legend, the monastery was founded by the first Serb archbishopSaint Sava in the 13th century.
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