Geography of Skopje
Skopje, the capital of the Republic of Macedonia. It lies on the Vardar River, in the northern part of the republic near its border with Serbia and Montenegro. Skopje is an important trade and transportation center with varied industries, including food processing, metallurgy, and chemical manufacturing. The city has a university, several museums, and numerous mosques.
Skopje dates from at least the third century A.D., when it was a Roman colony. After being destroyed by an earthquake in 518, it was rebuilt and flourished as part of the Byzantine Empire. Skopje was captured by the Slavs by 695, but in the next 700 years it changed hands many times. Late in the 14th century the Ottoman Turks conquered the city. They held it until 1913, when it was granted to Serbia by the Treaty of Bucharest. After World War I, Skopje became part of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (Yugoslavia). It became capital of an independent country when Macedonia seceded from Yugoslavia in 1991.
Population: 563,301.