Austrijski Trg

It was here, in the surrounding area, that Sarajevo’s first major edifices were raised at the end of the 15th century. There was the Emperor’s Mosque and the Ottoman Governor’s court (saraj), from which the city took its name.

The square, initially called Vojni Trg, formed at the beginning of the 20th century, when an Austro-Hungarian military complex was built along its eastern and western sides.

It later merged with the adjacent Filipović Trg (At Mejdan), and was renamed Trg Franje Josipa I in 1910.

On January 10, 1919, the present-day square was called Rankovićev Trg, after Gen. Živan Ranković, who commanded the Royal Serbian Army unit that entered Sarajevo via Bistrik on November 6, 1918, marking the end of BiH’s Austro-Hungarian era.

After WWII it was renamed Trg 6. Aprila, in honor of the day when Sarajevo was liberated from fascist occupation.

Since 1993 the square has borne the name, Austrijski Trg, to celebrate Austrian-BiH friendship.