The Serbian Downtown or the New Serbian Town, along the right Sava bank, which included the school, St. John the Precursor's Church and about hundred poor houses, was established by the Austrians during the big baroque reconstruction of Belgrade, to accomodate the Serbs expelled from their homes within the rampart-trench. When the Turks conquered the city again, in 1739, they called this settlement Sava-mahala, and transformed the chuch into the mosk of Mehmed-Pasha.
During the First Serbian Uprising in 1804, the rebels set fire to the Turkish part of Sava-Mahala, while the village of Savamala, inhabited mostly by Serbs, spreads over the area of the present streets: Gavrila Principa, Kraljice Natalije, Brankova and Zeleni Venac.
After 1815 Princ Milosh Obrenovich got this district as his spahiluk from Marshali Ali-Pasha. He started an urban reconstruction of this settlement wishing to make it a western-stile quarter. This is why he first moved the inhabitants of the Savamala village to the Palilula village. The architect from Vienna, Franz Janke, made the urban concept for this quarter. The monumental buildings of the Assembly, Castle and Large Army Headquarters were built. Only a part of them is preserved. The first proper, wide streets were made, primarily Savamalska Street.
The Hammam (Turkish bath) of Prince Milosh in Admirala Geprata Street no. 12, is the only building remaining from the Castle Complex. The Hammam is sutuated in the first arranged city park, designed in the English-park style, and had been spread over two hectars according to the plan.
The House of Yugoslav Railways Society is situated in Nemanjina Street no. 6. The Railway Museum is in this building. The Railway Station is located on the Sava Place. It was completed within the period 1882-1885, designed by Architect Dragutin Milutinovich. The first passanger train, on the Belgrade-Nis line, formally started from the Station which was about to be completed, on August 23rd,1884.
The Temple of the Ascenesion of the Lord – The Ascension Church is situated in Gepratova Street no. 19. The church was built in 1863 using the plans made by Pavle Stanisich and Jovan K. Ristich according to the Ravanica Monastery concept. One of the five bells in the bell tower is the bell which rang for the first time after the Kosovo Battle, from the Saborna Crkva (the Cathedral), in 1830 when Serbia was given the Hatisherif on its autonomy.