White Bastion - Bijela Tabija

White Bastion - Bijela Tabija

About the time of erection of the Bijela Tabija to the the present day, different opinions have been expressed. According to one, the facility was built around 1550, (opinion was based on data provided by travel writer Katarino Zeno), and was demolished during the construction of Vratink settlement, and a new fortress was built, which is today recognized by a polygonal form.   

White Bastion - Bijela Tabija

 According to another opinion, on the site of the Bijela Tabija, in the Middle Ages there was a fortress, which was not larger than usual type of defense medieval fortresses, that protects the open village in its vicinity. 

The successful reconstruction of the appearance of a medieval fortress on the site of the Bijela Tabija was done by Alija Bejtic, based on the data which were provided by a source from the XVII century.

White Bastion - Bijela Tabija

It was a fortress of a rectangular basis (length of approximately 75 m north-south, up approximately 50 m east-west) with four towers at the corners, square bases, and fifth over the entrance. This appearance dates back the city, at the end of XIV or the beginning of the XV century.

One interesting fact is important in this kind of architecture and the concept. According to this source, Bosnia has had unique medieval fortification architecture. Like this imagined rectangular fortress with four towers at the corners has similarities with the central European fortresses, with the strong influence of Gothic Hungarian architecture.

White Bastion - Bijela Tabija

On the thick stone walls are apertures for cannon tubes. By Establishment of a permanent Ottoman reign in this region, in the middle of the XV century, nothing important will change the appearance of a fortress. Inside the fortress was established timarlija crew, for their needs mosque was built inside the fortress. 

On the Austrian map from 1882, inside are drawn the basis of a mosque, in the form of eight-angle, with the entrance, which was parallel with the entrance to the fortress (north side). The mosque is mentioned in Evlija Čelebija writings in 1660. With the mosque, inside the fortress there was a house of imam, two muezzins and military players, then the wheat magazine and a several houses of crew members.

Evlija Čelebi explains the name, White Fortess, becauses of the white paintings that had been done on the façade of the fortess.