belagerte

Belagerte is a German term that can function as a verb form of belagern or as an adjective meaning besieged. The verb belagern means to besiege a fortification, town, or position by surrounding it with troops with the aim of forcing surrender. In historical narration one encounters sentences such as “Er belagerte die Stadt” (he besieged the city) or the passive “Die Stadt wurde belagert” (the city was besieged). The form belagerte is the simple past tense (Präteritum) for third-person singular and other subjects.

As an adjective, belagerte declines and is used in phrases like “die belagerte Stadt” (the besieged city) or “das belagerte Fort” (the besieged fortress). The corresponding past participle is belagert, which appears in perfect constructions such as “Die Stadt hat die Burg belagert” (the city has besieged the fortress) or more commonly in the passive: “Die Stadt wurde belagert.” Etymology: belagern is formed from be- plus Lager, reflecting the practice of encircling a target with an army encampment.

In contemporary usage, belagern is mainly found in historical or military contexts; in everyday language, terms like einkesseln or umzingeln may be preferred depending on nuance.