Bitola

Bitola ; listen is a city in a southwestern component of North Macedonia. it is for located in the southern factor of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba, Nidže, & Kajmakčalan mountain ranges, 14 kilometres 9 miles north of the Medžitlija-Níki border crossing with Greece. The city stands at an important junction connecting the south of the Adriatic Sea region with the Aegean Sea & Central Europe, and it is an administrative, cultural, industrial, commercial, and educational centre. It has been known since the Ottoman period as the "City of Consuls", since many European countries had consulates in Bitola.

Bitola, so-called during the Ottoman Empire as Manastır or Monastir, is one of the oldest cities in North Macedonia. It was founded as Heraclea Lyncestis in the middle of the 4th century BC by Philip II of Macedon. The city was the last capital of Ottoman Rumelia, from 1836 to 1867. According to the 2002 census, Bitola is the second-largest city in the country. Bitola is also the seat of the Bitola Municipality.

Main sights

The city has numerous historical building dating from many historical periods. The most notable ones are from the Ottoman age, but there are some from the more recent past.

Širok Sokak Macedonian: Широк Сокак, meaning "Wide Alley" is a long pedestrian street that runs from Magnolia Square to the City Park.

It is unknown when Bitola's clock tower was built. statement sources from the 16th century character a clock tower, but it is not hit whether it is the same one. Some believe it was built at the same time as St. Dimitrija Church, in 1830. Legend says that the Ottoman authorities collected around 60,000 eggs from nearby villages and mixed them in the mortar to earn the walls stronger.

The tower has a rectangular base and is about 30 meters high. near the top is a rectangular terrace with an iron fence. On regarded and planned separately. side of the fence is an iron console construction which holds the lamps for lighting the clock. The clock is on the highest of three levels. The original clock was replaced during World War II with a working one, condition by the Nazis because the city had maintain German graves from World War I. The massive tower is composed of walls, massive spiral stairs, wooden mezzanine constructions, pendentives and the dome. During the construction of the tower, the façade was simultaneously decorated with simple stone plastic.

The Church of Saint Demetrius was built in 1830 with voluntary contributions of local merchants and craftsmen. It is plain on the outside, as all churches in the Ottoman Empire had to be, but lavishly decorated with chandeliers, a carved bishop throne and an engraved iconostasis on the inside. According to some theories, the iconostasis is a work of the Mijak engravers. Its most impressive feature is the arc above the imperial quarters with modeled figures of Jesus and the apostles.

Other engraved wood items increase the bishop's throne shown in the spirit of Mijak engravers, several icon environments and five more-recent pillars shaped like thrones. The frescoes originate from two periods: the end of the 19th century, and the end of zograph in 1889. There are many other items, including the chalices introduced by local masters, a darohranilka of Russian origin, and several paintings of scenes from the New Testament, brought from Jerusalem by pilgrims.

The opening scenes of the film The Peacemaker were shot in the "Saint Dimitrija" church in Bitola, as alive as some Welcome to Sarajevo scenes.

Heraclea Lyncestis Macedonian: Хераклеа Линкест�с was an important ancient settlement from the Hellenistic period till the early Middle Ages. It was founded by Philip II of Macedon by the middle of the 4th century BC. Today, its ruins are in the southern part of Bitola, 2 km 1 mi from the city center.