The elegant spans of the 150m-high Tara Bridge were completed just as WWII was starting. At the time it was the largest concrete arched vehicular bridge in Europe. Its 365m length is carried on five sweeping arches, the largest of which is 116m wide.
In May 1942, with large numbers of Italian and German troops stationed in Žabljak, the Partisan command gave the order to blow up the bridge. The honour went to one of its engineers, Lazar Jauković, who planted the bomb that destroyed his beautiful creation. Jauković was captured by the Italians and Četniks (Serb royalists) and executed on the remains of his bridge. When it was rebuilt in 1946, Jauković’s bravery was acknowledged by a plaque that still stands by the bridge today.
