Macedonia Square (
Macedonian: Плоштад Македонија, ''Ploštad Makedonija'') is the main square of
Skopje
Skopje ( , , ; mk, Скопје ; sq, Shkup) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre.
The territory of Skopje has been inhabited since at least 4000 BC; r ...
, the capital of
North Macedonia
North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...
. The square is the biggest in North Macedonia with total 18.500 m
2. It is located in the central part of the city, and it crosses the
Vardar River
The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...
. The Christmas festivals are always held there and it commonly serves as the site of cultural, political and other events. The independence from
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
was declared here by the first
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
of Macedonia,
Kiro Gligorov. The square is part of the
Skopje 2014
Skopje 2014 ( mk, Скопје 2014) was a project financed by the Macedonian government of the then-ruling nationalist party VMRO-DPMNE, with the official purpose of giving the capital Skopje a more classical appeal. The project, officially anno ...
project.
History
In 2007, the
Macedonian government
Politics in North Macedonia occur within the framework of a parliamentary system, parliamentary representative democracy, representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of the Republic of Macedonia, Prime Minister is the head of ...
announced plans to reconstruct the Army House, which together with the Old Theatre (also being reconstructed on the other side of Macedonia Square, across the Vardar River) that was severely destroyed in the
1963 Skopje earthquake
The 1963 Skopje earthquake ( mk, Скопски земјотрес од 1963 година, Skopski zemjotres od 1963 godina) was a 6.1 moment magnitude earthquake which occurred in Skopje, SR Macedonia (present-day North Macedonia), then part of ...
.
In December 2008, a flagpole with the
Macedonian flag was erected on Macedonia Square, near the
Stone Bridge, as it was done on 68 other important locations throughout the country.
On 2 May 2010, two monuments of
Goce Delčev
Georgi Nikolov Delchev ( Bulgarian/Macedonian: Георги/Ѓорѓи Николов Делчев; 4 February 1872 – 4 May 1903), known as Gotse Delchev or Goce Delčev (''Гоце Делчев'', originally spelled in older Bulgari ...
and
Dame Gruev
Damyan Yovanov Gruev (,The first names can also be transliterated as ''Damjan Jovanov'', after Bulgarian Дамян Йованов Груев and Macedonian Дамјан Јованов Груев. The last name is also sometimes rendered as ''G ...
were erected near the Stone Bridge. The
Centar Municipality built a high monument of a Warrior on a Horse and fountain which was unveiled on 8 September 2011, on the 20-year anniversary of Macedonia's independence referendum from
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
.
[Dnevnik newspaper]
The three main streets that merge onto the square are Maksim Gorki, Dimitar Vlahov and Street Macedonia. Dimitar Vlahov Street was converted into a pedestrian street in 2011. Maksim Gorki, while not a pedestrian zone, is lined with Japanese Cherry trees, whose blossoms in spring mark a week-long series of Asian cultural events. Finally, Macedonia Street, the main pedestrian street, connects Macedonia Square to the Old Railway Station (destroyed by the 1963 earthquake), which houses the City of Skopje Museum. Along Macedonia Street is the
Mother Teresa
Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was bo ...
Memorial House, which features an exhibit of artefacts from
Mother Teresa
Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was bo ...
's life.
Mother Teresa
Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was bo ...
's original family home was located near Macedonia Square, and a plaque marking the location can be found today. A feudal tower from the Middle Ages next to the Mother Teresa House still stands today, surprisingly withstanding the devastating 1963 earthquake. The most popular tourist walk starts from the Old Railway Station down Macedonia Street, past the
Mother Teresa
Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was bo ...
Memorial House and Feudal Tower, past Mother Teresa's birth house location, down Macedonia Square, across the Stone Bridge, past the Holocaust Museum, Museum of Macedonian Independence, towards the Turkish Bazaar and ending at the Kale Fortress. The reconstructed Old Theater and the new Archaeological Museum add additional cultural landmarks along the main tourist vertical.
In May 2010,
Marriott Hotels
Marriott Hotels & Resorts is Marriott International's brand of full-service hotels and resorts based in Bethesda, Maryland. As of June 30, 2020, there were 582 hotels and resorts with 205,053 rooms operating under the brand, in addition to 160 ...
announced the construction of the first Marriott Hotel in the Balkans in Skopje on Macedonia Square.
Link to the Hotel Project
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Gallery
File:Risticpalace-night.JPG, Ristiḱ Palace
File:Guerrero a caballo, Skopie, Macedonia, 2014-04-17, DD 106.JPG, Warrior on a Horse statue by night
File:Aleksandar Makedonski vo Skopje 011.jpg, Warrior on a Horse by day
File:Dame Gruev monument in Skopje.JPG, Dame Gruev
Damyan Yovanov Gruev (,The first names can also be transliterated as ''Damjan Jovanov'', after Bulgarian Дамян Йованов Груев and Macedonian Дамјан Јованов Груев. The last name is also sometimes rendered as ''G ...
statue
File:Goce Delčev, spomenik u Skoplju.JPG, Goce Delčev
Georgi Nikolov Delchev ( Bulgarian/Macedonian: Георги/Ѓорѓи Николов Делчев; 4 February 1872 – 4 May 1903), known as Gotse Delchev or Goce Delčev (''Гоце Делчев'', originally spelled in older Bulgari ...
statue
File:Gemidzii - Skopje.jpg, Boatmen of Thessaloníki monument
File:Monument of Iustinianus I (Skopje).jpg, Justinian I
Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565.
His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...
statue
File:Samuil 1. Monuments in Skopje.JPG, Samuil
Samuel (also Samuil; bg, Самуил, ; mk, Самоил/Самуил, ; Old Church Slavonic: Самоилъ; died October 6, 1014) was the Tsar (''Emperor'') of the First Bulgarian Empire from 997 to 6 October 1014. From 977 to 997, he was ...
statue
File:Cento Monument in Skopje.JPG, Metodija Andonov-Čento
Metodija Andonov-Čento ( mk, Методија Андонов-Ченто; bg, Методи Андонов-Ченто) (17 August 1902 – 24 July 1957) was a Macedonian statesman, the first president of the Anti-Fascist Assembly of the National ...
statue
File:Димитрија Чуповски.jpg, Dimitrija Čupovski statue
File:Letnikovec-zima.JPG, The Pavilion
Historical sights
File:Skopje1594.jpg, Skopje in 1594
File:Skopje stari spomenici.jpg, Other statues found in the same place before the 1941: on the left, King Peter I of Serbia
Peter I ( sr-Cyr, Петар I Карађорђевић, Petar I Кarađorđević; – 16 August 1921) was the last king of Serbia, reigning from 15 June 1903 to 1 December 1918. On 1 December 1918, he became the first king of the Serbs, ...
(the inscription is: King Peter I, The Liberator)
File:PlostadMakedonija-Skopje.JPG, The square, in the late 2000s
References
External links
Live Webcam
{{Use dmy dates, date=April 2020
Squares in Skopje
National squares