Tesla visited Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, only once – in 1892, for just 31 hours. In such a short time, he visited The National Museum Of Serbia, Great School, Kalemegdan Fortress, met the Serbian king, was awarded the Order of St. Sava and had a formal dinner which was organized in his honor.

On that occasion he was greeted by the famous Serbian poet, doctor Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj by reading a welcoming poem to Tesla, who was a great admirer of the poet and even translated his poems into English. Tesla was deeply moved by this act. Later that year, in New York, Tesla dedicated one of his transformers to Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj as a way to show his respect.