Brezovica (; sr-Cyrl, Брезовица) is a settlement in the

Štrpce Štrpce (Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Serbian Cyrillic: Штрпце) or Shtërpcë ( sq-definite, Shtërpca) is a List of cities in Kosovo, town and Municipalities of Kosovo, municipality located in the District of Ferizaj, Ferizaj District in Kosov ...

municipality in

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

, known for its Brezovica ski resort. According to the 2011 Census, Brezovica's total population is 68. Brezovica is one of the most visited winter tourist destinations in Kosovo. The ski resort area is ideally situated on the north and northwest-facing slopes of the Šar Mountains National Park. The ridge line spans 39,000 hectares of high alpine mountain terrain and forests, with a highly diverse and abundant flora and fauna. Located within 90 minutes of two international airports, the Brezovica resort area represents one of the last remaining under-developed ski resort areas in Southeast Europe.

Geography

It is situated in the northeastern part of the Šar Mountains, and in the drainage basin of the Lepenac river. The Brezovica ski resort is situated between 900 m and 2,500 m above sea level, about 14 km south of the village. There is a combination of mild valley climate in the lower parts and

Alpine climate Alpine climate is the typical climate for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions of alpine cli ...

in the higher regions.

History

Medieval Serbia The medieval period in the history of Serbia began in the 6th century with the Slavic migrations to Southeastern Europe, and lasted until the Ottoman Serbia, Ottoman conquest of Serbian lands in the second half of the 15th century. The period i ...

, the ''

župa A župa, or zhupa, is a historical type of administrative division in Southeast Europe and Central Europe, that originated in medieval South Slavs, South Slavic culture, commonly translated as "county" or "parish". It was mentioned for the first t ...

'' (province) of Sirinić (first mentioned in a charter of the 13th century, the second time in 1331, in a

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

of Emperor Stephen Dušan) existed, covering the whole of modern Štrpce municipality, having the cities of Gradište (in Brezovica) and Zidinac (in Gotovuša). Several remains of Byzantine forts exist in the region.Rastko website
rastko.rs; accessed 4 December 2015. At the top of the Čajlije hill, above the mouth of the Piljevac creek of the Lepenac river, there exists the remains of the Gradište fort, which has two layers, the first from the 6th century, and the second from the 13th century.SANU, National Center for Digitization
Cultural Monuments in Serbia: Ostaci tvrđave Gradište-Čajlije
/ref> The fort is in ruins, of which a donjon tower, and outlines of other buildings, can be identified. The entrance to the city, at the north, was protected by a tower. From that tower, a rampart continued, with another tower, from where a defensive wall stretched to the foot of the hill, towards the Lepenac. On 28 June 1944, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Bulgarian soldiers executed 46 locals (of whom 12 were children) at Rakanovac, in Brezovica, after the death of one of their soldiers.SANU, National Center for Digitization
Cultural Monuments in Serbia: Rakanovac
spomenicikulture.mi.sanu.ac.rs; accessed 4 December 2015.

Demographics

References

External links

viewkosova.com
Brezovica
Official site of the Brezovica Ski Center

Brezovica.biz

{{Kosovo topics Serbian enclaves in Kosovo Ski areas and resorts in Kosovo Šar Mountains Villages in Štrpce