Zrenjanin is a significant industrial and cultural center. Previously, the city was the seat of the Torontal County. In the former Yugoslavia, it was known as the largest food factory in the Balkans, its food industry being the main supplier of the entire market of the former state.

The oldest written records of Bečkerek date back to the 14th century. It is also recorded that the settlement of Bečkerek already existed at that time, as evidenced of the Buda Chapter dated 10. July 1326. Bečkerek was a medium sized village in the 14th century. Throughout history the town has changed its name, it was called Bečkerek, Veliki Bečkerek or Gros Beckerek.

The economic rise of Veliki Bečkerek began in the mid18th century. The first elementary school was opened in 1722, and the first brewery was founded in 1745. Veliki Bečkerek became a market town and received a Magistrate’s office on June 6, 1769 by a charter of Maria Thersa. The same year the first hospital began operating while the first pharmacy was founder in 1784. The Latin Slavonic school was founded in 1795, and the first high school in 1839 when the theatre building was also built. Five years later, in 1844 the first bank began operating. The first printing house was founded in 1847. The first local newspaper in Veliki Bečkerek was printed in 1851. and the Serbian Reading Room was founded in 1864.

Today, Zrenjanin is the center of a municipality with 22 settlements. It is the administrative centre of the Central Banat Administrative District. The official languages in use in Zrenjanin are Serbian, Hungarian, Slovak and Romanian. It is located on the banks of the Bega river and is surrounded by four artificial lakes that were previously part of the river. It covers an area of 1.326 km2 and has a population of 67129.

The central square is home to the former County Court which today represents the City Hall. This representative building from 1820 is the work of Josip Fisher. The building’s lobby features stained glass windows that personify Power, Justice and Wisdom.

The City Garden or the enclosed space within the wing of the City Hall was created by the gardeners from Budapest who formed it following the advice of the builders of the reconstructed Building Partoš and Lehner. The garden was initially a place for officials and their guests to relax and was inaccessible to the public.

Most of the buildings in the old city centre were built by wealthy merchants of the 20th century, such as the magnificent Bukovac Palace, the house of merchant Stevan Bukovac from 1905, the Moorish style Šeherezade, the first department store, today known as Bence’s House. The centre is dominated by the multi story “Water Tower” building built in 1964.

Beneath the city of Zrenjanin are underground corridors called lagumi or as they are sometimes called catacombs. Walking through the streets of the city, citizens do not even think that at greater depths beneath their feet there are dug corridors, which go in various directions, and were most often used for escape during the siege of the city. According to the information that has been obtained, the underground corridors were built in various eras.

The Natural values of the Special Nature Reserve “Carska bara” are highly valued due to the existence of around 500 plants species, 239 species (of which all eight European heron species nest in this area), 20 fish species, as well as 30 mammal species rare for this area (otter, water vole, forest brown vole, wild cat, etc) and of particular importance are the fish ponds located between the two entities of the protected natural asset.

The Natural values of the Special Nature Reserve “Carska bara” are highly valued due to the existence of around 500 plants species, 239 species (of which all eight European heron species nest in this area), 20 fish species, as well as 30 mammal species rare for this area (otter, water vole, forest brown vole, wild cat, etc) and of particular importance are the fish ponds located between the two entities of the protected natural asset.

Further information about the city can be found on the www.zrenjanin.rs website.