Metropolitanate of Belgrade

The Metropolitanate of Belgrade (Serbian: Београдска митрополија, romanized: Beogradska mitropolija) was an Eastern Orthodox ecclesiastical province (metropolitanate) which existed between 1831 and 1920, with jurisdiction over the territory of Principality and Kingdom of Serbia. It was formed in 1831, when the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople granted church autonomy to its eparchies in the Principality of Serbia.[1] Territorial enlargement and full canonical autocephaly were gained in 1879.[2] The Metropolitanate of Belgrade existed until 1920, when it was merged with Patriarchate of Karlovci and other Serbian ecclesiastical provinces to form the united Serbian Orthodox Church. The seat of the Metropolitanate was in Belgrade, Serbia.

The Metropolitanate and all of its eparchies suffered significant loses during World War I (1914–1918), particularly after 1915, during the occupation of Serbia by the Central Powers.[3]