Middle Ages , built by Serbian king
Stefan Milutin Novo Brdo is an archaeological site. Novo Brdo was mentioned with its present name in historical documents as early as 1326. It served as the most important
mining community in the Balkans during the 15th century. Previously it was known as
Novus Mons or
Novamonte in Latin and as
Nyeuberghe in
Saxon texts. The famous scribe
Vladislav the Grammarian was born here. The arrival of
Saxon miners resulted in the emergence of mining towns in the Balkans in the 13th and 14th century, among them Novo Brdo. Despite much of Novo Brdo's early history being a mystery, the development of the town was heavily influenced by Saxon migrants, with mining operations first starting under the reign of the Serbian King
Stefan Milutin. After 50 years, the Novo Brdo mine became the most prosperous in Medieval Serbia and housed a state mint that produced the most silver in the country.
Ragusan documents attest to the presence of a significant number of
Albanians living in Novo Brdo throughout the 14th and early 15th centuries, including members of the Catholic Albanian clergy with names such as
Gjergjash and
Gjinko,
Gjini, son of
Gjergji, the presbyter (1382); the reverend
Gjergj Gega,
Nikollë Tanushi,
Gjergj Andrea Pellini and
Nikolla Progonovic. In the book of debtors belonging to Ragusan merchant Mihail Lukarevic, who resided in Novo Brdo during the 1430s, 150 Albanian household heads were mentioned as living in Novo Brdo with their families. They worked as miners, artisans and specialists in the mines of Novo Brdo. The anthroponomy of these figures is characteristically Albanian; distinctive Albanian names such as Gjon, Gjin, Tanush, Progon, Lek, Gjergj and Bibë are mentioned. Some families had a mixed Slav-Albanian anthroponomy - that is to say, a Slavic first name and an Albanian last name, or last names with Albanian patronyms and Slavic suffixes such as Gjonoviç, Gjinoviq, Progonoviq, Bushatoviq, Dodishiq, Kondiq, Lekiq and other such names. Many Albanian Catholic priests were registered as residing in Novo Brdo, as well as in towns like
Janjevo,
Trepça,
Prizren and others. These Catholic Albanian priests served as the primary Catholic priests for the town of Novo Brdo. It is estimated that during the 15th century, Novo Brdo had a population of 4 to 5 thousand people within the fortified city. Beyond the city walls, a network of satellite settlements housed a further 8 to 10 thousand people. Such a large settlement was unusual in Europe where 90 to 95% of all medieval European cities had populations of less than 2 thousand. Despite a Serbian population within the city, merchants from the Republic of Ragusa managed international precious metal trade within Novo Brdo. '' of Bayezid II minted in Novar 886 AH (1481 AD) Novo Brdo was the last Serbian town to remain standing during the first Ottoman invasion. In 1439 the capital of
Smederevo fell and Serbia resisted until finally Novo Brdo fell in 1441. Novo Brdo was by treaty restored to the Serbs in 1443. The fortress (named in Turkish
Nobırda) came under
siege for forty days by the
Ottomans, before capitulating and becoming occupied by the Ottomans on 1 June 1455. This event is described by
Konstantin Mihailović from
Ostrovica near Novo Brdo, who was taken by the Ottomans along with some 300 other boys to be trained as
Janissaries. All of the higher ranking Serbian officials were executed after the castle fell, with the younger men and boys being taken captive to serve in the Ottoman Army, and some 700 young Serbian women and girls being taken to be wives to Ottoman commanders. When the city fell to the Ottomans, it had an estimated population of about 40,000 people. An
Albanian village named
Arbanas is mentioned in the village of Zebinca, south of Novo Brdo in 1545–1574. The village displayed inhabitants with Albanian-Slavic-Chrisitan names. During the
Great Turkish War, Albanian insurgents participated in a battle fought between the Austrian military unit commanded by Kutschenbach against the Ottomans in Novo Brdo on March 17, 1690, a battle won by the Austrians. Albanians were encouraged to begin the fight against the Ottomans and to intensify their attempts to strengthen their relations with the Albanian insurgents in Kosovo. Part of the agreement which pertained to the creation of the
Association of Serbian municipalities was deemed unconstitutional by Kosovo's Constitutional Court and since then the agreement has been blocked. ==Economy==