It changed hands repeatedly, passing between Turks, Bulgarians, Hungarians, Serbs, and Austrians, until 1867, when it was turned over to the Serbian Knez, Mihailo Obrenović III.

[3] Golubac, in the Braničevo District of north-eastern Serbia and on the modern-day border with Romania, marks the entrance to the Đerdap national park.

[9] Exist others names as Hungarian: Galambóc vára, Bulgarian: Гълъбец, Romanian: Cetatea Golubăț and Turkish: Güvercinlik Kalesi.

The area remained in Serbian hands from then until the Ottoman conquest in the 15th century, with control of the region changing many times between Hungarians, Bulgarians and Serbs before then.

None can be confirmed by the historiography, but the discovery of the aforementioned Orthodox chapel might tentatively point to the Serbian origin of the fortress.

According to Serbian chroniclers, Knez (title) (Count) Lazar of Serbia evicted the last Rastislalić feudal lord, Radič Branković, in 1379, and then presented outlying villages to monasteries in Wallachia.

The first extended Serbian possession of Golubac began in 1403 when Sigismund, King of Hungary, ceded it as a personal fiefdom to Despot (court title) Stefan Lazarević,[11] jointly with Belgrade, after he became a highest rank member of the Hungarian chivalry Order of the Dragon.

A contract was written stating that Sigismund would accept Đurađ Branković, on the condition that Golubac, Belgrade, and Mačva were returned to Hungary when Stefan died.

[13][14] After Stefan's death in 1427, Sigismund hurried to have the clauses of the Tata contract fulfilled, and Belgrade and Mačva were handed over without a problem.

Despite gaining Golubac, Sultan Murad II was not pleased with the increased Hungarian influence elsewhere in Serbia, so he sent his army to attack.

[13] In response, Đurađ personally travelled to Golubac, promising forgiveness to Jeremija and urging him to return the fortress by any means possible.

[12] Around April 1428, Sigismund amassed an army of 25,000 infantry, 6,000 Wallachian archers led by Prince Dan II,[15] 200 Italian artillery, and a number of Polish cavalry on the far side of the Danube, then attacked Golubac and the Turks.

[13] Once part of the Hungarian army had withdrawn to the far side of the river, however, the Turkish commander Sinan Bey attacked their rear,[13] capturing and killing those who remained,[12] among them the Polish knight Zawisza Czarny.

[3] During this and other fights resulting from Stefan's death, southern and eastern Serbia, including the Monastery of Daljša near Golubac, suffered heavily.

After years of fighting, which resulted in the Hungarian army expelling the Ottomans from Serbia, the Peace of Szeged restored the Despotate late in the summer of 1444.

During the fall of 1481, while Golubac was held by the Ottoman Empire, Timișoaran Comes Pál Kinizsi undertook an expedition against the Turks in the Temes area.

Between 1964 and 1972, a hydroelectric dam was built in the Iron Gate gorge, significantly elevating the river's water level.

Most of the plants were removed and certain parts, like the fountain in the moat raised in honour of knight Zawisza Czarny, were repaired.

Two key reasons are the major road that passes through it, and its proximity to Lepenski Vir, making the two locales a touristic whole.

[6][22] The towers were all built as squares, a sign of the fortress' age, showing that battles were still fought with cold steel.

Once firearms came into use, the Turks fortified the western towers with cannon ports and polygonal or cylindrical reinforcements up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) thick.

The upper part did not have buildings, but there remains a pathway to the stairs up to gate IV, which is 2 m (6 ft 7 in) off the ground, right next to tower 3.

It used to be on dry land, but with the formation of the artificial Lake Đerdap in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the water level rose so today it protrudes into the Danube.

[6][7] It was the last military outpost on that stretch of the Danube river, which caused it to frequently be part of the final line of defense between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, especially during the periods when Serbia was Ottoman-held.

[14] The importance of the fortress is further indicated by the attention it received from Sigismund and Murad II, rather than just fighting between locals and commanders of nearby cities.

Plans include the joining of the attractions in the vicinity, like Đerdap national park and prehistoric site Lepenski Vir, in one tourist arrangement.

[9][11] As number of visitors grew significantly since the full re-opening of the fortress, various works are planned in the surrounding area to the west, in the direction of the modern town of Golubac.

They include new restaurants, pension-type facilities, new roads, bicycle and pedestrian paths and arrangement of the touristic settlement Dedinski Raj ("Golubac's Dedinje"), between the town and the fortress.

[25] Based on the accessibility and difficulty, the complex is divided in four zones: green (the lowest section; open for all visitors), blue (only for adults; towers 3 and 4), red (only for adults with assigned special escort), and black (only for adults with assigned special escort, and applying specific safety procedures - physical fitness, special attire and footwear, absence of acrophobia and ophidiophobia, allowed access for only two visitors at the time; Hat Tower).

[23] Idea of constructing a bridge over the Danube close to the fortress was presented in April 2023, when 15 presidents of Romanian municipalities visited Golubac.