Pobednik, Bronze statue in Belgrade Fortress, Serbia

Pobednik is a nude bronze male figure with a greenish-brown patina, cast in 1913 by Ivan Meštrović and set in 1928 on a Doric column designed by Petar Bajalović. The figure holds a sword pointing down in his right hand and a falcon with spread wings in his raised left hand. The column stands on a tall cubic base in the Upper Town of Belgrade Fortress, facing the confluence of the Sava and Danube.

The monument was built in 1928 to commemorate Serbian victories in the Balkan Wars and World War I against Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian forces. It came after years of planning that reflected how important these military successes were to the nation.

The figure wears a šajkača, the Serbian national cap of the old Šumadija-Torlak region, and holds a falcon in the left hand and a lowered sword in the right. The name Pobednik, 'The Victor', comes from the monument's dedication to the breakthrough of the Salonika Front, unveiled on 7 October 1928.

The statue stands on the Upper Town plateau of the Belgrade Fortress, reached on foot from Kalemegdan Park; the Savska promenade and the Great Staircase lead up to it. The figure faces the Sava-Danube confluence and the Fruška Gora ridge beyond. In October 2019 it was taken off the column for restoration and put back on 14 February 2020.

The statue was cast in 1913 but stayed in a Senjak plumbing-pipe warehouse for four years before installation. In 1927 a campaign led by jurist Petar Odavić attacked the planned Terazije site on moral and artistic grounds, so the monument went to the fortress instead. It was taken off its column for repairs in October 2019 and returned on 14 February 2020.