1.
Skopje
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Skopje is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia. It is the political, cultural, economic, and academic center. It was known in the Roman period under the name Scupi, the territory of Skopje has been inhabited since at least 4000 BC, remains of Neolithic settlements have been found within the old Kale Fortress that overlooks the modern city centre. On the eve of the 1st century AD, the settlement was seized by the Romans, when the Roman Empire was divided into eastern and western halves in 395 AD, Scupi came under Byzantine rule from Constantinople. During much of the medieval period, the town was contested between the Byzantines and the Bulgarian Empire, whose capital it was between 972 and 992. From 1282, the town was part of the Serbian Empire, in 1392, the city was conquered by the Ottoman Turks who called the town Üsküp. The town stayed under Turkish control for over 500 years, serving as the capital of pashasanjak of Üsküb, at that time the city was famous for its oriental architecture. In 1912, it was annexed by the Kingdom of Serbia during the Balkan Wars and after the First World War the city part of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats. In the Second World War the city was conquered by the Bulgarian Army, in 1944, it became the capital city of Democratic Macedonia, which was a federal state, part of Democratic Federal Yugoslavia. The city developed rapidly after World War II, but this trend was interrupted in 1963 when it was hit by a disastrous earthquake, in 1991, it became the capital city of an independent Macedonia. Skopje is located on the course of the Vardar River. It is a center for metal-processing, chemical, timber, textile, leather, industrial development of the city has been accompanied by development of the trade, logistics, and banking sectors, as well as an emphasis on the fields of transportation, culture and sport. Skopje is located in the north of the Republic of Macedonia, in the center of the Balkan peninsula, the city is built in the Skopje valley, oriented on a west-east axis, along the course of the Vardar river, which flows into the Aegean Sea in Greece. The valley is approximately 20 kilometres wide and it is limited by several mountain ranges to the North and South and these ranges limit the urban expansion of Skopje, which spreads along the Vardar and the Serava, a small river which comes from the North. In its administrative boundaries, the City of Skopje stretches for more than 33 kilometres, Skopje is approximately 245m above sea level and covers 571.46 km2. The urbanised area only covers 337 km2, with a density of 65 inhabitants per hectare, Skopje, in its administrative limits, encompasses many villages and other settlements, including Dračevo, Gorno Nerezi and Bardovci. According to the 2002 census, the City of Skopje comprised 506,926 inhabitants, the City of Skopje reaches the Kosovo border to the North-East. Clockwise, it is bordered by the Macedonian municipalities of Čučer-Sandevo, Lipkovo, Aračinovo, Ilinden, Studeničani, Sopište, Želino
2.
Republic of Macedonia
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Macedonia, officially the Republic of Macedonia, is a country in the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the states of the former Yugoslavia. A landlocked country, the Republic of Macedonia has borders with Kosovo to the northwest, Serbia to the north, Bulgaria to the east, Greece to the south, the countrys geography is defined primarily by mountains, valleys, and rivers. The capital and largest city, Skopje, is home to roughly a quarter of the nations 2.06 million inhabitants, the majority of the residents are ethnic Macedonians, a South Slavic people. Albanians form a significant minority at around 25 percent, followed by Turks, Romani, Serbs, Macedonias history dates back to antiquity, beginning with the kingdom of Paeonia, a Thracian polity. In the late sixth century BCE the area was incorporated into the Persian Achaemenid Empire, the Romans conquered the region in the second century BCE and made it part of the much larger province of Macedonia. Macedonia remained part of the Byzantine Empire, and was raided and settled by Slavic peoples beginning in the sixth century CE. Following centuries of contention between the Bulgarian and Byzantine empires, it came under Ottoman dominion from the 14th century. Between the late 19th and early 20th century, a distinct Macedonian identity emerged, although following the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913, Macedonia remained a constituent socialist republic within Yugoslavia until its peaceful secession in 1991. Macedonia is a member of the UN and of the Council of Europe, since 2005 it has also been a candidate for joining the European Union and has applied for NATO membership. Although one of the poorest countries in Europe, Macedonia has made significant progress in developing an open, the countrys name derives from the Greek Μακεδονία, a kingdom named after the ancient Macedonians. The name is believed to have meant either highlanders or the tall ones. However, Robert S. P. Beekes supports that both terms are of Pre-Greek substrate origin and cannot be explained in terms of Indo-European morphology, the Republic of Macedonia roughly corresponds to the ancient kingdom of Paeonia, which was located immediately north of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia. In the late 6th century BC, the Achaemenid Persians under Darius the Great conquered the Paeonians, following the loss in the Second Persian invasion of Greece in 479 BC, the Persians eventually withdrew from their European territories, including from what is today the Republic of Macedonia. In 356 BC Philip II of Macedon absorbed the regions of Upper Macedonia, the Romans established the Province of Macedonia in 146 BC. Roman expansion brought the Scupi area under Roman rule in the time of Domitian, and it fell within the Province of Moesia. Whilst Greek remained the dominant language in the part of the Roman empire. Slavic peoples settled in the Balkan region including Macedonia by the late 6th century AD, during the 580s, Byzantine literature attests to the Slavs raiding Byzantine territories in the region of Macedonia, later aided by Bulgars. Historical records document that in c.680 a group of Bulgars, Slavs and Byzantines led by a Bulgar called Kuber settled in the region of the Keramisian plain, presians reign apparently coincides with the extension of Bulgarian control over the Slavic tribes in and around Macedonia
3.
Macedonian language
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It is the official language of the Republic of Macedonia and a recognized minority language in parts of Albania, Romania and Serbia. Standard Macedonian was implemented as the language of the Socialist Republic of Macedonia in 1945 and has since developed a modern literature. Most of the codification was formalized during the same period, Macedonian dialects form a continuum with Bulgarian dialects, they in turn form a broader continuum with Serbo-Croatian through the transitional Torlakian dialects. The name of the Macedonian language is a matter of controversy in Greece. Macedonians closest relative is Bulgarian, with which it has a degree of mutual intelligibility. The next closest relative is Serbo-Croatian, all South Slavic languages, including Macedonian, form a dialect continuum. Its other principal members are Romanian, Greek and Albanian, all of which belong to different genetic branches of the Indo-European family and they are also the only Slavic languages with any definite articles. Bulgarian and Macedonian are the only Indo-European languages that use of the narrative mood. Prior to the codification of the language, Macedonian dialects were described by linguists as being either dialects of Bulgarian or Serbian. Similarly, Torlakian was also regarded as Bulgarian. On the other hand, many Macedonian intellectuals maintained that their language was neither a dialect of Serbian nor of Bulgarian, but the core of its standard was not formed out of dialects or variants that had ever been covered by the Bulgarian standard. Consequently, its autonomy could not have resulted from a conscious distancing of a variant of a pluricentric language, like the other South Slavic standards, the Macedonian standard was based on dialects which had never before been covered by a standard. Modern questions of classification are largely shaped by political and social factors, likewise, this view does not take into account the fact that a Macedonian koiné language was already in existence. The codifiers ultimately chose the dialects, but did so because they were most widespread. The population of the Republic of Macedonia was 2,022,547 in 2002, outside of the Republic, there are Macedonians living in other parts of the geographical area of Macedonia. There are ethnic Macedonian minorities in neighbouring Albania, in Bulgaria, in Greece, according to the official Albanian census of 1989,4,697 ethnic Macedonians reside in Albania. A large number of Macedonians live outside the traditional Balkan Macedonian region, with Australia, Canada, according to a 1964 estimate, approximately 580,000 Macedonians live outside of the Macedonian Republic, nearly 30% of the total population. The Macedonian language has the status of official language only in the Republic of Macedonia, and is a minority and official language in parts of Albania, Romania
4.
Transliteration of Macedonian
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The Romanization of Macedonian is the transliteration of text in the Macedonian language from the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet into the Latin alphabet. Romanization can be used for various purposes, such as rendering of proper names in foreign contexts, official use of Romanization by Macedonian authorities is found, for instance, on road signage and in passports. Several different codified standards of transliteration currently exist and there is variability in practice. For a number of Cyrillic letters, transliteration into matching Latin letters is straightforward, Cyrillic ц is mostly rendered as c, in accordance with the conventions for many other Slavic languages. The letter х is typically rendered as h, matching the pronunciation in Macedonian, for the Macedonian/Serbian letter ј, the preferred transliteration is its visual Latin counterpart j. For other Cyrillic letters, the choice is between a single Latin letter with a diacritic, and a digraph of two Latin letters and this goes mainly for the letters denoting palatalised consonants, and for those denoting fricatives and affricates in the alveolar and palatal range. This system is using digraphs instead diacritics, making it easier for use in environments where diacritics may pose a technical problem, common usage has gj, kj for ѓ, ќ, either dj or dzh for џ, and sometimes ts for ц. Such a diacritic-free system, with digraphs zh, gj, dz, lj, nj, kj, ch, sh, dj has reportedly been adopted since 2008 for use in documents such as passports, ID cards. The system adopted for digraph transliteration is ICAO Doc 9303, the Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences and the State Statistical Office of the Republic of Macedonia use similar digraph system. The digraph system is widely used in Macedonia and it is expected to be fully adopted. It uses letters with diacritics ž, č, š for Cyrillic ж, ч, ш respectively, the palatalised consonants of Cyrillic љ, њ are rendered with digraphs lj, nj, and the voiced affricates of Cyrillic ѕ, џ with dz, dž respectively. A variant of system, also defined in ISO9, allows for digraphs rather than diacritics in more cases, using zh, ch. According to this system, ѓ, ќ are transliterated as plain g and k before front vowels, otherwise, this system is identical to that of ISO9. Su alcuni aspetti ideologici dei sistemi di traslitterazione degli alfabeti cirillici nei Balcani
5.
Old Bazaar, Skopje
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The Old Bazaar is a bazaar located in Skopje, situated on the eastern bank of the Vardar River, stretching from the Stone Bridge to the Bit-Pazar and from the Skopje Fortress to the Serava river. The Old Bazaar falls primarily within the borders of Čair Municipality, as one of the oldest and largest marketplaces in the Balkans, it has been Skopjes centre for trade and commerce since at least the 12th century. The earliest known sources that describe the existence of a merchant quarter on the territory date back to the 12th century. During Ottoman rule of Skopje, the Old Bazaar developed rapidly to become citys main centre of commerce, the Ottoman history of the bazaar is evidenced by roughly thirty mosques, numerous caravanserais and hans, among other buildings and monuments. The bazaar was heavily damaged by earthquakes that occurred in 1555 and 1963, as well as during the First, beside its importance as a market place the Old Bazaar is known for its cultural and historical values. In recent years there have been a raising interest to make the Bazaar a touristic attraction, on 13 October 2008, the Macedonian Parliament adopted a law recognising the Old Bazaar as cultural heritage of particular importance for the country to be permanently protected. These actions are seen with an eye by the local community. In 518, Scupi was heavily damaged by a devastating earthquake, nevertheless, the local population settled up on a hilly area, where, later, the emperor Justinian ordered the construction of the Kale Fortress. At the time, there was a gate named Watertower Gate and it is said that the monastery, at the time, was one of the most reputable and decorated monasteries in most of the Balkans. With the coming to power of the Komnenni dynasty in the beginning of the XII century, the development was followed by construction of walls and defense towers around Dolengrad, monasteries and churches. Strong development contributed to the city to take the position of an important trading center which was visited by merchants from other places like Dubrovnik. In 1282, the Serbian King Stefan Uros II Milutin conquered Skopje and this period is characterized by the construction of numerous churches, monasteries and palaces in and around the city. During his stay in Skopje in 1299 and 1300, the Byzantine envoy Theodore Metochites noted that apart Gorengrad, there was Dolengrad, King Stefan Dusan In 1345 Skopje was declared the capital of Serbian Kingdom by Stefan Dusan. The following year he was crowned king in Skopje, during the reign of Tsar Dusan was built and Kursumli An which served as a military barracks. In addition it is possible that todays Sultan Murat mosque is located in the place where Dushans royal palace was. After the death of Stefan Dusan, the city was under Serbian rule until 1392 when Vuk Brankovic surrendered to the Ottomans, the conquest by the Ottoman Turks rapidly began to change the ethnic composition of the Skopje. The wealth with which handled the local churches, monasteries, the city transformed into a military stronghold and the construction of several buildings of religious character changed the architecture of the city. A number of typical Ottoman buildings were built immediately after the conquest and those objects were built primarily to serve Muslim population
6.
Vardar
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The Vardar or Axios is the longest and major river in the Republic of Macedonia and also a major river of Greece. It is 388 km long, and drains an area of around 25,000 km2, the maximum depth of the river is 4 m. The river rises at Vrutok, a few north of Gostivar in the Republic of Macedonia. The Vardar basin comprises two-thirds of the territory of the Republic of Macedonia, the valley features fertile lands in the Polog region, around Gevgelija and in the Thessaloniki regional unit. The river is surrounded by mountains elsewhere, the superhighways Greek National Road 1 in Greece and M1 and E75 run within the valley along the rivers entire length to near Skopje. The river was famous during the Ottoman Empire and modern-day Turkey and was the inspiration for many folk songs. It has also depicted on the coat of arms of Skopje. The Vardaris or Vardarec is a powerful prevailing northerly wind which blows across the river valley in Greek Macedonia as well as in the Republic of Macedonia. At first it descends along the canal of the Vardar valley, somewhat similar to the mistral wind of France, it occurs when atmospheric pressure over eastern Europe is higher than over the Aegean Sea, as is often the case in winter. The etymology of the word is unclear, however most probably, the origin of the name Vardar derives Bardários from Thracian, from Proto-Indo-European *wordo-wori- black water. The name Bardários was sometimes used by the Ancient Greeks in the 3rd Century BCE, the same name was widely used in the Byzantine era. The word may ultimately be derived from the PIE root *werǵ- and its Greek name, Axios, is mentioned by Homer as the home of the Paeonians allies of Troy. The name Affi is mentioned by Pjetër Bogdani in his work Cuneus Prophetarum as a name of Vardar. Great Morava Pčinja River Proceedings of the 1st Axios Catchment Consortium Meeting by the European Commission - DG Research, PIM Ivan Milutinović, Belgrade, Serbia, Morava - Vardar Navigation Route Morava - Vardar Navigation Route map Hydropower and navigation system Morava
7.
Neolithic
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It ended when metal tools became widespread. The Neolithic is a progression of behavioral and cultural characteristics and changes, including the use of wild and domestic crops, the beginning of the Neolithic culture is considered to be in the Levant about 10, 200–8800 BC. It developed directly from the Epipaleolithic Natufian culture in the region, whose people pioneered the use of wild cereals, which then evolved into true farming. The Natufian period was between 12,000 and 10,200 BC, and the so-called proto-Neolithic is now included in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic between 10,200 and 8800 BC. By 10, 200–8800 BC, farming communities arose in the Levant and spread to Asia Minor, North Africa, Mesopotamia is the site of the earliest developments of the Neolithic Revolution from around 10,000 BC. Early Neolithic farming was limited to a range of plants, both wild and domesticated, which included einkorn wheat, millet and spelt, and the keeping of dogs, sheep. By about 6900–6400 BC, it included domesticated cattle and pigs, the establishment of permanently or seasonally inhabited settlements, not all of these cultural elements characteristic of the Neolithic appeared everywhere in the same order, the earliest farming societies in the Near East did not use pottery. Early Japanese societies and other East Asian cultures used pottery before developing agriculture, unlike the Paleolithic, when more than one human species existed, only one human species reached the Neolithic. The term Neolithic derives from the Greek νέος néos, new and λίθος líthos, stone, the term was invented by Sir John Lubbock in 1865 as a refinement of the three-age system. In the Middle East, cultures identified as Neolithic began appearing in the 10th millennium BC, early development occurred in the Levant and from there spread eastwards and westwards. Neolithic cultures are attested in southeastern Anatolia and northern Mesopotamia by around 8000 BC. The total excavated area is more than 1,200 square yards, the Neolithic 1 period began roughly 10,000 years ago in the Levant. A temple area in southeastern Turkey at Göbekli Tepe dated around 9500 BC may be regarded as the beginning of the period. This site was developed by nomadic tribes, evidenced by the lack of permanent housing in the vicinity. At least seven stone circles, covering 25 acres, contain limestone pillars carved with animals, insects, Stone tools were used by perhaps as many as hundreds of people to create the pillars, which might have supported roofs. Other early PPNA sites dating to around 9500–9000 BC have been found in Jericho, Israel, Gilgal in the Jordan Valley, the start of Neolithic 1 overlaps the Tahunian and Heavy Neolithic periods to some degree. The major advance of Neolithic 1 was true farming, in the proto-Neolithic Natufian cultures, wild cereals were harvested, and perhaps early seed selection and re-seeding occurred. The grain was ground into flour, emmer wheat was domesticated, and animals were herded and domesticated
8.
Bronze Age
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The Bronze Age is a historical period characterized by the use of bronze, proto-writing, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the principal period of the three-age Stone-Bronze-Iron system, as proposed in modern times by Christian Jürgensen Thomsen. An ancient civilization is defined to be in the Bronze Age either by smelting its own copper and alloying with tin, arsenic, or other metals, or by trading for bronze from production areas elsewhere. Copper-tin ores are rare, as reflected in the fact there were no tin bronzes in Western Asia before trading in bronze began in the third millennium BC. Worldwide, the Bronze Age generally followed the Neolithic period, with the Chalcolithic serving as a transition, although the Iron Age generally followed the Bronze Age, in some areas, the Iron Age intruded directly on the Neolithic. Bronze Age cultures differed in their development of the first writing, according to archaeological evidence, cultures in Mesopotamia and Egypt developed the earliest viable writing systems. The overall period is characterized by use of bronze, though the place and time of the introduction. Human-made tin bronze technology requires set production techniques, tin must be mined and smelted separately, then added to molten copper to make bronze alloy. The Bronze Age was a time of use of metals. The dating of the foil has been disputed, the Bronze Age in the ancient Near East began with the rise of Sumer in the 4th millennium BC. Societies in the region laid the foundations for astronomy and mathematics, the usual tripartite division into an Early, Middle and Late Bronze Age is not used. Instead, a division based on art-historical and historical characteristics is more common. The cities of the Ancient Near East housed several tens of thousands of people, ur in the Middle Bronze Age and Babylon in the Late Bronze Age similarly had large populations. The earliest mention of Babylonia appears on a tablet from the reign of Sargon of Akkad in the 23rd century BC, the Amorite dynasty established the city-state of Babylon in the 19th century BC. Over 100 years later, it took over the other city-states. Babylonia adopted the written Semitic Akkadian language for official use, by that time, the Sumerian language was no longer spoken, but was still in religious use. Elam was an ancient civilization located to the east of Mesopotamia, in the Old Elamite period, Elam consisted of kingdoms on the Iranian plateau, centered in Anshan, and from the mid-2nd millennium BC, it was centered in Susa in the Khuzestan lowlands. Its culture played a role in the Gutian Empire and especially during the Achaemenid dynasty that succeeded it
9.
Limestone
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Limestone is a sedimentary rock, composed mainly of skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, forams and molluscs. Its major materials are the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate, about 10% of sedimentary rocks are limestones. The solubility of limestone in water and weak acid solutions leads to karst landscapes, most cave systems are through limestone bedrock. The first geologist to distinguish limestone from dolomite was Belsazar Hacquet in 1778, like most other sedimentary rocks, most limestone is composed of grains. Most grains in limestone are skeletal fragments of organisms such as coral or foraminifera. Other carbonate grains comprising limestones are ooids, peloids, intraclasts and these organisms secrete shells made of aragonite or calcite, and leave these shells behind when they die. Limestone often contains variable amounts of silica in the form of chert or siliceous skeletal fragment, some limestones do not consist of grains at all, and are formed completely by the chemical precipitation of calcite or aragonite, i. e. travertine. Secondary calcite may be deposited by supersaturated meteoric waters and this produces speleothems, such as stalagmites and stalactites. Another form taken by calcite is oolitic limestone, which can be recognized by its granular appearance, the primary source of the calcite in limestone is most commonly marine organisms. Some of these organisms can construct mounds of rock known as reefs, below about 3,000 meters, water pressure and temperature conditions cause the dissolution of calcite to increase nonlinearly, so limestone typically does not form in deeper waters. Limestones may also form in lacustrine and evaporite depositional environments, calcite can be dissolved or precipitated by groundwater, depending on several factors, including the water temperature, pH, and dissolved ion concentrations. Calcite exhibits a characteristic called retrograde solubility, in which it becomes less soluble in water as the temperature increases. Impurities will cause limestones to exhibit different colors, especially with weathered surfaces, Limestone may be crystalline, clastic, granular, or massive, depending on the method of formation. Crystals of calcite, quartz, dolomite or barite may line small cavities in the rock, when conditions are right for precipitation, calcite forms mineral coatings that cement the existing rock grains together, or it can fill fractures. Travertine is a banded, compact variety of limestone formed along streams, particularly there are waterfalls. Calcium carbonate is deposited where evaporation of the leaves a solution supersaturated with the chemical constituents of calcite. Tufa, a porous or cellular variety of travertine, is found near waterfalls, coquina is a poorly consolidated limestone composed of pieces of coral or shells. During regional metamorphism that occurs during the building process, limestone recrystallizes into marble
10.
Travertine
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Travertine is a form of limestone deposited by mineral springs, especially hot springs. Travertine often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored and it is formed by a process of rapid precipitation of calcium carbonate, often at the mouth of a hot spring or in a limestone cave. In the latter, it can form stalactites, stalagmites, and it is frequently used in Italy and elsewhere as a building material. Travertine is a sedimentary rock, formed by the precipitation of carbonate minerals from solution in ground and surface waters. Similar deposits formed from water are known as tufa. The word travertine is derived from the Italian travertino, itself a derivation of the Latin tiburtinus ‘of Tibur’ and its namesake is also the origin of Tivoli, a district near Rome. Modern travertine is formed from geothermally heated supersaturated alkaline waters, with raised pCO2, on emergence, waters degas CO2 due to the lower atmospheric pCO2, resulting in an increase in pH. Since carbonate solubility decreases with increased pH, precipitation is induced, precipitation may be enhanced by factors leading to a reduction in pCO2, for example increased air-water interactions at waterfalls may be important, as may photosynthesis. Precipitation may also be enhanced by evaporation in some springs, both calcite and aragonite are found in hot spring travertines, aragonite is preferentially precipitated when temperatures are hot, while calcite dominates when temperatures are cooler. When pure and fine, travertine is white, but often it is brown to yellow due to impurities, travertine may precipitate out directly onto rock and other inert materials as in Pamukkale or Yellowstone for example. The latter has a historic value, because it was one of the quarries that Gian Lorenzo Bernini selected material from to build the famous Colonnade of St. Peters Square in Rome in 1656-1667. Michaelangelo also chose travertine as the material for the ribs of the dome of St Peters Basilica. Travertine derives its name from the town, known as Tibur in ancient Roman times. The ancient name for the stone was lapis tiburtinus, meaning tibur stone, detailed studies of the Tivoli and Guidonia travertine deposits revealed diurnal and annual rhythmic banding and laminae, which have potential use in geochronology. Cascades of natural lakes formed behind travertine dams can be seen in Pamukkale, Turkey, in Central Europes last post-glacial palaeoclimatic optimum, huge deposits of tufa formed from karst springs. On a smaller scale, these karst processes are still working, travertine has been an important building material since the Middle Ages. Travertine has formed sixteen huge, natural dams in a valley in Croatia known as Plitvice Lakes National Park, clinging to moss and rocks in the water, the travertine has built up over several millennia to form waterfalls up to 70 m in height. In the U. S. the most well-known place for travertine formation is Yellowstone National Park, Oklahoma has two parks dedicated to this natural wonder
11.
Roman Empire
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Civil wars and executions continued, culminating in the victory of Octavian, Caesars adopted son, over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and the annexation of Egypt. Octavians power was then unassailable and in 27 BC the Roman Senate formally granted him overarching power, the imperial period of Rome lasted approximately 1,500 years compared to the 500 years of the Republican era. The first two centuries of the empires existence were a period of unprecedented political stability and prosperity known as the Pax Romana, following Octavians victory, the size of the empire was dramatically increased. After the assassination of Caligula in 41, the senate briefly considered restoring the republic, under Claudius, the empire invaded Britannia, its first major expansion since Augustus. Vespasian emerged triumphant in 69, establishing the Flavian dynasty, before being succeeded by his son Titus and his short reign was followed by the long reign of his brother Domitian, who was eventually assassinated. The senate then appointed the first of the Five Good Emperors, the empire reached its greatest extent under Trajan, the second in this line. A period of increasing trouble and decline began with the reign of Commodus, Commodus assassination in 192 triggered the Year of the Five Emperors, of which Septimius Severus emerged victorious. The assassination of Alexander Severus in 235 led to the Crisis of the Third Century in which 26 men were declared emperor by the Roman Senate over a time span. It was not until the reign of Diocletian that the empire was fully stabilized with the introduction of the Tetrarchy, which saw four emperors rule the empire at once. This arrangement was unsuccessful, leading to a civil war that was finally ended by Constantine I. Constantine subsequently shifted the capital to Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople in his honour and it remained the capital of the east until its demise. Constantine also adopted Christianity which later became the state religion of the empire. However, Augustulus was never recognized by his Eastern colleague, and separate rule in the Western part of the empire ceased to exist upon the death of Julius Nepos. The Eastern Roman Empire endured for another millennium, eventually falling to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the Roman Empire was among the most powerful economic, cultural, political and military forces in the world of its time. It was one of the largest empires in world history, at its height under Trajan, it covered 5 million square kilometres. It held sway over an estimated 70 million people, at that time 21% of the entire population. Throughout the European medieval period, attempts were made to establish successors to the Roman Empire, including the Empire of Romania, a Crusader state. Rome had begun expanding shortly after the founding of the republic in the 6th century BC, then, it was an empire long before it had an emperor
12.
Scupi
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Scupi is an archaeological site located between Zajčev Rid and the Vardar River, several kilometers from the center of Skopje, in the Republic of Macedonia. A Roman military camp was founded here in the second century BC on the site of an older Dardanian settlement and it became later Colonia Flavia Aelia Scupi and many veteran legionnaires were settled there. A Roman town was founded in the time of Domitian and Scupi became the center for romanizing Dardania. It was abandoned in AD518 after a completely destroyed the city. The name probably derives from the Greek ἐπίσκοπος, i. e. episcopus, referring to its position on a high place, in the most ancient times, it was located on Zaychev Rid, now a hill on the West of present-day Skopje. Being located on a hill, it could have used as a place from which the whole of the area was observed. According to some opinions, in the beginning it was merely a observation post, however, the Slavic forms, which show a common plural curiously present a plural form. The last part of the word, -je, is a suffix that conveys the meaning of indefinite plural, which states there are many of the object considered. It may mean that it was a settlement, which was formed of. Scupi became the capital of Dardania, which extended from Naissus to Bylazora, the Dardanians had remained independent after the Roman conquest of Macedonia, because they had supported the Romans, hoping to enlarge their territory in this way. It is not clear when the Romans finally annexed Dardania and it seems most likely that the Dardani actually lost independence in 28 BC, Scupi was included in Moesia Superior after the province was formed in AD6. From 272 AD, it was a colony inside the Roman province of Dardania after Dardania was established. Scupi was ravaged several times by barbarians, in AD269 by the Goths, in 5th century by the Huns, life in Scupi stopped after the earthquake and it is assumed that the people from Scupi moved to live on Kale, a hill in the center of Skopje. The moving of the city is connected with the founding of Justiniana Prima. Justiniana Prima was a city founded by Justinian I, who reigned over the Eastern Roman Empire in 527-565. He therefore built a wall of small compass about this place in the form of a square, placing a tower at each corner, and caused it to be called, as it actually is, Tetrapyrgia. And close by this place he built a notable city which he named Justiniana Prima. In that place also he constructed an aqueduct and so caused the city to be supplied with ever-running water
13.
Justinian I
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Justinian I, traditionally known as Justinian the Great and also Saint Justinian the Great in the Eastern Orthodox Church, was a Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the empires greatness, because of his restoration activities, Justinian has sometimes been called the last Roman in modern historiography. This ambition was expressed by the recovery of the territories of the defunct western Roman Empire. His general, Belisarius, swiftly conquered the Vandal kingdom in North Africa, the prefect Liberius reclaimed the south of the Iberian peninsula, establishing the province of Spania. These campaigns re-established Roman control over the western Mediterranean, increasing the Empires annual revenue by over a million solidi, during his reign Justinian also subdued the Tzani, a people on the east coast of the Black Sea that had never been under Roman rule before. A still more resonant aspect of his legacy was the rewriting of Roman law, the Corpus Juris Civilis. His reign also marked a blossoming of Byzantine culture, and his building program yielded such masterpieces as the church of Hagia Sophia, a devastating outbreak of bubonic plague in the early 540s marked the end of an age of splendour. Justinian was born in Tauresium around 482, a native speaker of Latin, he came from a peasant family believed to have been of Illyro-Roman or Thraco-Roman origins. The cognomen Iustinianus, which he later, is indicative of adoption by his uncle Justin. During his reign, he founded Justiniana Prima not far from his birthplace and his mother was Vigilantia, the sister of Justin. Justin, who was in the guard before he became emperor, adopted Justinian, brought him to Constantinople. As a result, Justinian was well educated in jurisprudence, theology, Justinian served for some time with the Excubitors but the details of his early career are unknown. Chronicler John Malalas, who lived during the reign of Justinian, tells of his appearance that he was short, fair skinned, curly haired, round faced, another contemporary chronicler, Procopius, compares Justinians appearance to that of tyrannical Emperor Domitian, although this is probably slander. When Emperor Anastasius died in 518, Justin was proclaimed the new emperor, during Justins reign, Justinian was the emperors close confidant. As Justin became senile near the end of his reign, Justinian became the de facto ruler, Justinian was appointed consul in 521 and later commander of the army of the east. Upon Justins death on 1 August 527, Justinian became the sole sovereign, as a ruler, Justinian showed great energy. He was known as the emperor who never sleeps on account of his work habits, nevertheless, he seems to have been amiable and easy to approach. Around 525, he married his mistress, Theodora, in Constantinople and she was by profession a courtesan and some twenty years his junior
14.
Emperor
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An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the equivalent, may indicate an emperors wife, mother. Emperors are generally recognized to be of an honour and rank than kings. The Emperor of Japan is the currently reigning monarch whose title is translated into English as Emperor. Both kings and emperors are monarchs, but emperor and empress are considered the higher monarchical titles. In as much as there is a definition of emperor, it is that an emperor has no relations implying the superiority of any other ruler. Thus a king might be obliged to pay tribute to another ruler, or be restrained in his actions in some unequal fashion, although initially ruling much of Central Europe and northern Italy, by the 19th century the Emperor exercised little power beyond the German speaking states. In Eastern Europe the rulers of the Russian Empire also used translatio imperii to wield authority as successors to the Eastern Roman Empire. Their title of Emperor was officially recognised by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1514, in practice the Russian Emperors are often known by their Russian-language title Tsar, which may also used to refer to rulers equivalent to a king. Historians have liberally used emperor and empire anachronistically and out of its Roman and European context to any large state from the past or the present. Such pre-Roman titles as Great King or King of Kings, used by the Kings of Persia, however such empires did not need to be headed by an emperor. Empire became identified instead with vast territorial holdings rather than the title of its ruler by the mid-18th century, outside the European context, emperor was the translation given to holders of titles who were accorded the same precedence as European emperors in diplomatic terms. In reciprocity, these rulers might accredit equal titles in their languages to their European peers. Through centuries of international convention, this has become the dominant rule to identifying an emperor in the modern era, also the name of the position split in several branches of Western tradition, see below. Later new symbols of worldly and/or spiritual power, like the orb, rules for indicating successors also varied, there was a tendency towards male inheritance of the supreme office, but as well election by noblemen, as ruling empresses are known. Ruling monarchs could additionally steer the succession by adoption, as occurred in the two first centuries of Imperial Rome. Of course, intrigue, murder and military force could also mingle in for appointing successors, probably the epoch best known for this part of the imperial tradition is Romes third century rule. When Republican Rome turned into a de facto monarchy in the half of the 1st century BC
15.
Byzantine Empire
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It survived the fragmentation and fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD and continued to exist for an additional thousand years until it fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. During most of its existence, the empire was the most powerful economic, cultural, several signal events from the 4th to 6th centuries mark the period of transition during which the Roman Empires Greek East and Latin West divided. Constantine I reorganised the empire, made Constantinople the new capital, under Theodosius I, Christianity became the Empires official state religion and other religious practices were proscribed. Finally, under the reign of Heraclius, the Empires military, the borders of the Empire evolved significantly over its existence, as it went through several cycles of decline and recovery. During the reign of Maurice, the Empires eastern frontier was expanded, in a matter of years the Empire lost its richest provinces, Egypt and Syria, to the Arabs. This battle opened the way for the Turks to settle in Anatolia, the Empire recovered again during the Komnenian restoration, such that by the 12th century Constantinople was the largest and wealthiest European city. Despite the eventual recovery of Constantinople in 1261, the Byzantine Empire remained only one of several small states in the area for the final two centuries of its existence. Its remaining territories were annexed by the Ottomans over the 15th century. The Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 finally ended the Byzantine Empire, the term comes from Byzantium, the name of the city of Constantinople before it became Constantines capital. This older name of the city would rarely be used from this point onward except in historical or poetic contexts. The publication in 1648 of the Byzantine du Louvre, and in 1680 of Du Canges Historia Byzantina further popularised the use of Byzantine among French authors, however, it was not until the mid-19th century that the term came into general use in the Western world. The Byzantine Empire was known to its inhabitants as the Roman Empire, the Empire of the Romans, Romania, the Roman Republic, Graikia, and also as Rhōmais. The inhabitants called themselves Romaioi and Graikoi, and even as late as the 19th century Greeks typically referred to modern Greek as Romaika and Graikika. The authority of the Byzantine emperor as the legitimate Roman emperor was challenged by the coronation of Charlemagne as Imperator Augustus by Pope Leo III in the year 800. No such distinction existed in the Islamic and Slavic worlds, where the Empire was more seen as the continuation of the Roman Empire. In the Islamic world, the Roman Empire was known primarily as Rûm, the Roman army succeeded in conquering many territories covering the entire Mediterranean region and coastal regions in southwestern Europe and north Africa. These territories were home to different cultural groups, both urban populations and rural populations. The West also suffered heavily from the instability of the 3rd century AD
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Bulgarian Empire
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The two Bulgarian Empires are not treated as separate entities, but rather as one state restored after a period of Byzantine rule over its territory. Under Ivan Asen II in the first half of the 13th century the country gradually recovered much of its power, though this did not last long due to internal problems. The Empire became tributary to the Golden Horde, a state of the Mongol Empire in the 13-14th century. After the death of Emperor Ivan Alexander in 1371 Bulgaria was split into three countries and in the following decades fell under the domination of the Ottomans, first Bulgarian Empire Second Bulgarian Empire Kingdom of Bulgaria History of Bulgaria Zlatarski, Vasil N. Medieval History of the Bulgarian State, sofia, Science and Arts Publishers, 2nd Edition, Zahari Stoyanov Publishers, 4th Edition,2006. Електронна издание – История на България, Делев, Петър, Валери Кацунов, Пламен Митев, Евгения Калинова, Искра Баева, Боян Добрев. Министерство на външните работи на България, Труд, Сирма, ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press
17.
Peter Delyan
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Petar II Delyan was the leader of an uprising against Byzantine rule in the Theme of Bulgaria during the summer of 1040. He was proclaimed Tsar of Bulgaria, as Samuels grandson in Belgrade and his original name may have been simply Delyan, in which case he assumed the name Petar II upon his accession, commemorating the sainted Emperor Petar I, who had died in 970. The year of his birth is uncertain, but probably not long after 1000 and those who believe he actually was Radomirs son, think that he was born from Radomirs marriage with Marguerite, sister of King Stephen I of Hungary. It is known that he ordered the execution of the Serbian prince of Duklja, Jovan Vladimir. Peter Delyan was a leader of an uprising broke out in the summer of 1040 in the Theme of Bulgaria against the Byzantine Empire. Delyan was proclaimed emperor of Bulgaria there and took the name Petar II after being raised atop a shield by leaders of the resistance and he had been proclaimed legitimate as the grandson of Samuel. He perhaps enjoyed some support from the Kingdom of Hungary, Peter II Delyan took Niš and Skopje, first co-opting and then eliminating another potential leader in the person of one Tihomir, who had led a rebellion in the region of Dyrrhachium. After this Petar II marched on Thessalonica, where the Byzantine Emperor Michael IV was staying, defeated, he fled, leaving his treasury to a certain Michael Ivač. The latter, who was probably a son of Ivač, a general under Samuel of Bulgaria, Thessalonica remained in Byzantine hands, but Macedonia, Dyrrachium, and parts of northern Greece were taken by Petar IIs forces. This inspired further Slavic revolts against Byzantine rule in Epirus and Albania, Petar II Delyans successes ended, however, with the interference of his cousin Alusian. Alusian, whose father Ivan Vladislav had murdered Peters father Gavril Radomir in 1015, joined Petar IIs ranks as an apparent deserter from the Byzantine court, Alusian was welcomed by Peter II, who gave him an army with which to attack Thessalonica. The siege, however, was raised by the Byzantines, Alusian barely escaped and returned to Ostrovo. In 1041, one night during dinner, while Delyan was drunk, Alusian cut off his nose, since Alusian was of the blood of Samuel of Bulgaria, he was quickly proclaimed emperor in Petar IIs place by his troops, but he conspired to defect to the Byzantines. Meanwhile, though blind, Petar II Delyan resumed command of the Bulgarian forces, in an obscure battle of Ostrovo, the Byzantines defeated the Bulgarian troops and Petar II Delyan was captured and taken to Constantinople, where he was perhaps executed. According to some legends he was exiled to a monastery in Iskar Gorge, in the Balkan Mountains. Norse sagas refer to the participation of the future Norwegian King Harald Hardråda and this tradition may be supported by a laconic reference in the so-called Bulgarian Apocryphal Chronicle. In either case, Peter II Delyan might have perished in 1041, Delyan Point on Smith Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Peter Delyan. Bulgarians History of Bulgaria South Slavs Йордан Андреев, Милчо Лалков, Българските ханове и царе, Въстанието на Петра Делян в1040 г
18.
Middle Ages
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In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or Medieval Period lasted from the 5th to the 15th century. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and merged into the Renaissance, the Middle Ages is the middle period of the three traditional divisions of Western history, classical antiquity, the medieval period, and the modern period. The medieval period is subdivided into the Early, High. Population decline, counterurbanisation, invasion, and movement of peoples, the large-scale movements of the Migration Period, including various Germanic peoples, formed new kingdoms in what remained of the Western Roman Empire. In the seventh century, North Africa and the Middle East—once part of the Byzantine Empire—came under the rule of the Umayyad Caliphate, although there were substantial changes in society and political structures, the break with classical antiquity was not complete. The still-sizeable Byzantine Empire survived in the east and remained a major power, the empires law code, the Corpus Juris Civilis or Code of Justinian, was rediscovered in Northern Italy in 1070 and became widely admired later in the Middle Ages. In the West, most kingdoms incorporated the few extant Roman institutions, monasteries were founded as campaigns to Christianise pagan Europe continued. The Franks, under the Carolingian dynasty, briefly established the Carolingian Empire during the later 8th, the Crusades, first preached in 1095, were military attempts by Western European Christians to regain control of the Holy Land from Muslims. Kings became the heads of centralised nation states, reducing crime and violence, intellectual life was marked by scholasticism, a philosophy that emphasised joining faith to reason, and by the founding of universities. Controversy, heresy, and the Western Schism within the Catholic Church paralleled the conflict, civil strife. Cultural and technological developments transformed European society, concluding the Late Middle Ages, the Middle Ages is one of the three major periods in the most enduring scheme for analysing European history, classical civilisation, or Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the Modern Period. Medieval writers divided history into periods such as the Six Ages or the Four Empires, when referring to their own times, they spoke of them as being modern. In the 1330s, the humanist and poet Petrarch referred to pre-Christian times as antiqua, leonardo Bruni was the first historian to use tripartite periodisation in his History of the Florentine People. Bruni and later argued that Italy had recovered since Petrarchs time. The Middle Ages first appears in Latin in 1469 as media tempestas or middle season, in early usage, there were many variants, including medium aevum, or middle age, first recorded in 1604, and media saecula, or middle ages, first recorded in 1625. The alternative term medieval derives from medium aevum, tripartite periodisation became standard after the German 17th-century historian Christoph Cellarius divided history into three periods, Ancient, Medieval, and Modern. The most commonly given starting point for the Middle Ages is 476, for Europe as a whole,1500 is often considered to be the end of the Middle Ages, but there is no universally agreed upon end date. English historians often use the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485 to mark the end of the period
19.
Emperor of the Serbs
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Between 1345 and 1371, the Serbian monarch was titled emperor, the full title being Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks in Serbian and basileus and autokrator of Serbia and Romania in Greek. The Serbian Empire was ruled by two monarchs, Stefan Dušan and Stefan Uroš V. Two other claimants of the ruled in Thessaly, Central Greece. Following his conquest of Serres, which crowned his conquest of Macedonia, in November or December 1345 Stefan Dušan proclaimed himself emperor, laying claim on the Byzantine imperial inheritance. On 16 April 1346 hewas crowned emperor at Skopje in an assembly attended by the elevated Serbian Patriarch, and also the Bulgarian Patriarch and his imperial title was recognised by Bulgaria and various other neighbors and trading partners but not by the Byzantine Empire. Mount Athos addressed him as Emperor, though rather as Emperor of Serbs than Emperor of Serbs, in Serbian charters, ethnic terms are used – Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks. In Greek, the title was basileus and autokratōr of Serbia, notably, when the Byzantines came around to recognizing Dušans imperial title, it was only for Serbia proper, much as they had done with the Bulgarian Tsar Simeon 400 years earlier. After his coronation, the title of king was dropped, when Stefan Dušan died in 1355, his son Stefan Uroš V succeeded him. Uroš Vs uncle Simeon Uroš in Thessaly claimed the title in rivalry, with the extinction of the main line of the Nemanjić dynasty with the death of heirless Stefan Uroš V in 1371, the imperial title became obsolete. The fall of the Serbian Empire saw the state fragmenting into provinces ruled by magnates, holding various titles, in 1527, a renegade Hungarian-Serbian commander, Jovan Nenad, styled himself Emperor. Stefan Dušan Emperor of Serbs and Greeks, in 1349. in 1349, Emperor of Serbs and Greeks and the Western Provinces, in 1349. Emperor of Serbs, Greeks and Bulgarians, Emperor of Serbs, Greeks, Bulgarians and Albanians. Emperor of the Serbs, by the Athonite community, Emperor and Autocrat of Serbia and Romania, from a chrysobull to Iveron Monastery. Emperor of all Serb and Greek lands, the Maritime Region, Arbania, Emperor of Greece and King of All Serb Lands and the Maritime, between 1347–56. Emperor of Serbia and the Maritime Region, between 1347–56, Emperor of Rascia and Romania, Despot of Arta and Count of Vlachia in 1348, after the Serb conquest of Epirus and Thessaly. Stefan Uroš V Emperor of Serbs and Greeks, in 1357. in 1358. in 1357,1360, twice in 1357,1362,1365, and between 1356–67. Dušans Code List of Serbian monarchs Fine, John Van Antwerp, the Late Medieval Balkans, A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest. Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press, — La Serbie, pouvoir et administration sociale
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Serbian Empire
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The Serbian Empire is a historiographical term for the empire in the Balkan peninsula that emerged from the medieval Serbian Kingdom. It was established in 1346 by King Stefan Dušan, known as the Mighty and he also promoted the Serbian Church to an Orthodox patriarchate. His son and successor, Uroš the Weak, lost most of the territory, the Serbian Empire effectively ended with the death of Stefan V in 1371 and the break-up of the Serbian state. Some successors of Stefan V claimed the title of Emperor in parts of Serbia until 1402, Stefan Dušan became King of Serbia by deposing father, Stefan Dečanski. By 1345, Dušan the Mighty had expanded his state to cover half of the Balkans, therefore, in 1345, in Serres, Dušan proclaimed himself Tsar. On 16 April 1346, in Skopje, he had himself crowned Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks, the ceremony was performed by the newly elevated Serbian Patriarch Joanikije II, the Bulgarian Patriarch Simeon, and Nicholas, the Archbishop of Ohrid. Tsar Dušan doubled the size of his kingdom, seizing territories to the south, southeast. Serbia held parts of modern Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moravian Serbia, Kosovo, Zeta, modern Macedonia, modern Albania and he did not fight a single field battle, instead winning his empire by besieging cities. Dušan undertook a campaign against the Byzantine Empire, which was attempting to avert a deteriorating situation after the destruction caused by the Fourth Crusade, Dušan swiftly seized Thessaly, Albania, Epirus, and most of Macedonia. Dušan thus ruled over the almost the entire Balkan peninsula, with only southern Greece, Salonica and he gave sanctuary to the former regent of the Byzantine Empire, John VI Kantakouzenos, in revolt against the government, and agreed to an alliance. In 1349 and 1354, Dušan enacted a set of known as Dušans Code. The Code was based on Roman-Byzantine law and the first Serbian constitution and it was a Civil and Canon law system, based on the Ecumenical Councils, for the functioning of the state and the Serbian Orthodox Church. In 1355, Dušan begin military preparations, assembling an army of 80,000 men, Dušan marched towards Constantinople, capturing Adrianople in a fierce battle. The Serbian army was proceeding to Constantinople, located 40 miles to the east and his expedition ended as well, and the army retreated carrying the dead body of the man who had elevated Serbia to the rank of a great power. Dušan was succeeded by his son, Stefan Uroš V, called the Weak, the combination of sudden conquest, backwards administration, and failure to consolidate its holdings led to the fragmentation of the empire. The period was marked by the rise of a new threat, the Ottoman Turkish sultanate gradually spread from Asia to Europe and conquered first Byzantine Thrace, and then the other Balkan states. Too incompetent to sustain the empire created by his father. The Serbian Empire of Stefan V fragmented into a conglomeration of principalities, Stefan Uroš V died childless on 4 December 1371, after much of the Serbian nobility had been killed by the Ottoman Turks during the Battle of Maritsa
21.
Slav Epic
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The Slav Epic is a cycle of 20 large canvases painted by Czech Art Nouveau painter Alfons Mucha between 1910 and 1928. The cycle depicts the mythology and history of Czechs and other Slavic peoples, in 1928, after finishing his monumental work, Mucha bestowed the cycle upon the city of Prague on condition that the city build a special pavilion for it. Prior to 2012, the work was a part of the permanent exhibition at the chateau in the town of Moravský Krumlov in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. In 2012, all 20 works were moved and are displayed together on the floor of the Veletržní Palace in an exhibition organized by the National Gallery in Prague. Alphons Mucha spent many working on The Slav Epic cycle. He had dreamed of completing such a series, a celebration of Slavic history, since the turn of the 20th century, however, in 1909, he managed to obtain grants by an American philanthropist and keen admirer of the Slavic culture, Charles Richard Crane. He began by visiting the places he intended to depict in the cycle, Russia, Poland, additionally, he consulted historians regarding details of historical events in order to ensure an accurate depiction. In 1910, he rented part of the castle in Zbiroh, Mucha continued working on the cycle for 18 years, gradually submitting paintings to the city of Prague as he completed them. In 1919, the first part of the series comprising eleven canvases was displayed in the Pragues Clementinum, in 1921, five of the paintings were shown in New York and Chicago to great public acclaim. In 1928, the cycle was displayed for the first time in the Trade Fair Palace in Prague. Alfons Mucha died in July,1939, shortly before his death he was interrogated by the Gestapo, as he was an important exponent of public life in Czechoslovakia. During World War II, the Slav Epic was wrapped and hidden away to prevent seizure by the Nazis, following the Czechoslovak coup détat of 1948 and subsequent communist takeover of the country, Mucha was considered a decadent and bourgeois artist, estranged from the ideals of socialist realism. The building of a pavilion for the exposition of the Slav Epic cycle became irrelevant and unimportant for the new communist regime. After the war, the paintings were moved to the chateau at Moravský Krumlov by a group of patriots. The city of Prague has waged a legal battle over the work which intensified in early 2010. Much consideration has been given to relocating the Slav Epic from Moravský Krumlov, the hope was that Prague, a city frequented by many thousands of tourists, would attract increased attention to the series of paintings. However, there is no space for the work in Pragues galleries. Nevertheless, in early 2010, the city of Prague requested the return of the Slav Epic for restoration work, however, the Mucha Foundation, run by the artists grandson John Mucha and his mother Geraldine, blocked the move as it would simply be a provisional measure
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Alphonse Mucha
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Alfons Maria Mucha, known as Alphonse Mucha, was a Czech Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist, known best for his distinct style. He produced many paintings, illustrations, advertisements, postcards, Alphonse Maria Mucha was born in the town of Ivančice, Moravia. In 1871, Mucha became a chorister at the Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul, Brno and it is there that he had his first revelation, in front of the richness of Baroque art. During the four years of studying there, he formed a friendship with Leoš Janáček who would become the greatest Czech composer of his generation and he worked at decorative painting jobs in Moravia, mostly painting theatrical scenery. In 1879, he relocated to Vienna to work for a major Viennese theatrical design company, when a fire destroyed his employers business during 1881 he returned to Moravia, to do freelance decorative and portrait painting. Count Karl Khuen of Mikulov hired Mucha to decorate Hrušovany Emmahof Castle with murals and was impressed enough that he agreed to sponsor Muchas formal training at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts, Mucha moved to Paris in 1887, and continued his studies at Académie Julian and Académie Colarossi. In addition to his studies, he worked at producing magazine, bernhardt was so satisfied with the success of this first poster that she began a six-year contract with Mucha. Muchas works frequently featured beautiful women in flowing, vaguely Neoclassical-looking robes. In contrast with contemporary poster makers he used pale pastel colors, Muchas style was given international exposure by the 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris, of which Mucha said, I think made some contribution toward bringing aesthetic values into arts and crafts. He decorated the Bosnia and Herzegovina Pavilion and collaborated with decorating the Austrian Pavilion and his Art Nouveau style was often imitated. Mucha married Maruška Chytilová on 10 June 1906, in Prague, the couple visited the U. S. from 1906 to 1910, during which time their daughter, Jaroslava, was born in New York City. They also had a son, Jiří, who became a journalist, writer, screenwriter, author of autobiographical novels. In the U. S. Mucha expected to earn money to fund his projects to demonstrate to Czechs that he had not sold out. He was assisted by millionaire Charles R. Crane, who used his fortune to help promote revolutions and, after meeting Thomas Masaryk, Slavic nationalism. When Czechoslovakia won its independence after World War I, Mucha designed the new stamps, banknotes. Mucha considered his publication Le Pater to be his printed masterpiece, printed on 20 December 1899, Le Pater was Muchas occult examination of the themes of The Lords Prayer and only 510 copies were produced. He had wanted to complete a series such as this, a celebration of Slavic history, from 1963 until 2012 the series was on display in the chateau in Moravský Krumlov in the South Moravian Region in the Czech Republic. Since 2012 the series has been on display at the National Gallerys Veletržní Palace in Prague, the rising tide of fascism during the late 1930s resulted in Muchas works and his Slavic nationalism being denounced in the press as reactionary
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