Vranje

Roman era

The Romans conquered the region in the 2nd or 1st centuries BC. Vranje was part of Moesia Superior and Dardania during the Roman rule. The Roman fortresses in the Vranje region was abandoned during the Hun attacks in 539–544 AD, These include the localities of Kale at Vranjska Banja, Gradište in Korbevac and Gradište in Prvonek.

Middle Ages

The modern name stems from the old word for "black" ("vran") in the Serbian language and first appears in the Alexiad by Byzantine princess and scholar Anna Comnena (1083–1153):

"Thereupon Bolcanus grew bold, as no opponent was left, and devastated the surrounding lands and towns; laid the country outside Scopia in ruins and even burnt some of it. As if this was not enough, he even seized Polobus, and proceeding to Branea laid that all waste, carried off a tremendous amount of plunder from it and then returned to his own country."

In 1193, Vranje was seized by the Grand Prince Stefan Nemanja from the Byzantines. However, soon afterward he retreated. Vranje definitely entered Serbian state in 1207 when it was conquered by Stefan the First-Crowned.

During the fall of the Serbian Empire, Vranje was independent under Uglješa Vlatković, ‘’the Lord of Vranje, Preševo and Kumanovo.’’ Uglješa Vlatković became vassal of Stefan Lazarević, after the Battle of Tripolje, so Vranje became part of Serbian Despotate.

Ottoman period

Ottomans conquered Vranje on 14 June 1455. The town held important position during their rule. Many wealthy Muslims lived in Vranje, and they built several mosques, a Turkish bath and the residence of the pashas – Pašin konak. The town was part of the Sanjak of Niš. Vranje was under the Ottoman rule for 422 years and was liberated by the Serbian army in 1877 under the command of general Jovan Belimarković. In the mid-19th century Austrian diplomat Johann Georg von Hahn stated that the population of Vranje kaza was 6/7 Bulgarian and 1/7 Albanian, while the city population consisted of 1000 Christian-Bulgarian families, 600 Albanian-Turkish and 50 Gipsy.

Modern

In the early 20th century, Vranje had around 12,000 inhabitants. As a border town of the Kingdom of Serbia, it was used as the starting point for the Četniks and Komitas who fought against the Ottomans in Kosovo and Macedonia.

In the First Balkan war, the main headquarters of the Serbian army was in the town. King Peter I Karađorđević, Prime Minister Nikola Pašić and the chief of staff General Radomir Putnik stayed in Vranje.

In the First World War, Vranje was conquered by the Kingdom of Bulgaria on 16/17 October 1915. They implemented Bulgarisation against non-Bulgarian population of Vranje and committed war crimes.

After the war, Vranje was part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in one of the 33 oblasts; in 1929, it became part of the Vardar Banovina. During the Second World War, German Nazis entered the town on 9 April 1941 and transferred it to the Bulgarians on 22 April 1941. During Bulgarian rule, 400 Serbs were shot and around 4000 Serb patriots were interned. Vranje was liberated by the Yugoslav People's Army on 7 September 1944.

Vranje became part of the Pčinja District in the new Yugoslavia, and in the 1960s and 1970s it was industrialized. During the 1990s, the economy of Vranje was heavily affected by the Sanctions against Yugoslavia and 1999 NATO bombing.

Geography

Vranje is the economic, political and cultural center of Pčinja District consisting of Vranje and municipalities of Bosilegrad, Bujanovac, Vladičin Han, Preševo, Surdulica, Trgovište. The city is in the southwest of Vranje valley, on the left bank of the South Morava river. The Vranje river and the city are divided by the main road and railway line, which leads to the north Leskovac (70 km), Niš (110 kilometres (68 miles)) and Belgrade (347 kilometres (216 miles)), and, to the south Kumanovo (56 kilometres (35 miles)), Skopje (91 kilometres (57 miles)) and Thessalonica (354 kilometres (220 miles)).

Vranje is at base of the mountains Pljačkovica (1,231 metres (4,039 feet)), Krstilovice (1,154 metres (3,786 feet)) and Pržar (731 metres (2,398 feet)). It is 70 km (43 mi) from the border with Bulgaria, 40 km (25 mi) from the border with the Macedonia.

Municipalities and settlements

The city of Vranje consists of two city municipalities: City municipality of Vranje and Vranjska Banja. Their municipal areas include the following settlements:

Demographics

In 1093, Vranje first appears in the Alexiad by Byzantine princess and scholar Anna Comnena. In 1386, Vranje was capital of Caesar Ugljesa′s country.

Nowadays, the population of Vranje has been permanently refreshed by the newcomers from its surroundings as well by the Serb refugees who emigrated from Kosovo and Metohija during the last two decades. The last wave of emigration was in 1999, following the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia.

Ethnic groups

Ethnic composition of the city:

Culture

Vranje was an important Ottoman trading site. The White Bridge is a symbol of the city and is called "most ljubavi" (lovers' bridge) after the tale of the forbidden love between the Muslim girl Ajša and Christian Stojan that resulted in the father killing the couple. After that, he built the bridge where he had killed her and had the story inscribed in Ottoman Arabic. The 11th-century Markovo Kale fortress is in the north of the city. The city has traditional Balkan and Ottoman architecture.

The well-known theater play Koštana by Bora Stanković is placed in Vranje.

Vranje is famous for its popular, old music, lively and melancholic at the same time. The best known music is from the theater piece with music, Koštana, by Bora Stanković. This original music style has been renewed recently by taking different, specific, and more oriental form, with the contribution of rich brass instruments. It is played particularly by the Vranje Romani people.

Vranje is the seat of Pčinja District and, as such, is a major center for cultural events in the district. Most notable annual events are Borina nedelja, Stari dani, Dani karanfila (in Vranjska Banja), etc.

Vranje lies close to Besna Kobila mountain and Vranjska Banja, locations with high potential that are underdeveloped. Other locations in and around Vranje with some tourist potential include Prohor Pčinjski monastery, Kale-Krševica, Markovo kale, Pržar, birth-house museum of Bora Stankovic.

Largest hotels are Hotel Vranje, near the center and Hotel Pržar overlooking the city and the valley. The city has traditional Serbian cuisine as well as international cuisine restaurants and many cafes and bars.

Culture institutions

Sport

The city has one top-flight association football team, Dinamo Vranje.

Economy

Vranje is in southern Serbia, on Corridor X near the border with Macedonia and Bulgaria. The distance from Thessalonica international harbor is 285 km (177 mi); distance from the international airports of Skopje and Niš are 90 km (56 mi). With the excellent transport connections of Vranje, anyone can easily access the markets of southeastern Europe (CEFTA) and the European Union, with all the tax reliefs that Serbia have with these markets. Vranje has a long tradition of industrial production, trade, and tourism and is rich in natural resources, such as forests and geothermal resources.

Until the second half of the 20th century Vranje was a craftsman town. The crafts included weaving, water-milling, and carriages craft. With the beginning of industrialization in the 1960s, many of these crafts disappeared. In those years, many factories were opened, such as the Tobacco Industry of Vranje (Дуванска индустрија Врање), Simpo, ahoe factory Koštana, cotton plant Yumco, industry of technical goods Alfa Plam, SZP Zavarivač Vranje. In 1961 there were 1525 employees; in 1971, 4374 employees; and in 1998, 32,758 employees, of which 28,347 were in business and 4,411 outside of it.

After the overthrow of Slobodan Milošević in 2000, the number of employees began to drop, due to the closure of many factories like Yumco and Koštana. Employees in 2010 numbered 18,958 and there were 7,559 unemployed people. The city of Vranje has 59,278 available workers. In Vranje the most common industries are timber industry, clothing, footwear and furniture, food and beverages, agricultural, textile industry, chemical industry, construction industry, machinery and equipment, and business services. There are more than 2,500 small- and medium-size companies. To potential investors there are industrial sites, with plan documents and furnished infrastructure. Among the companies with business locations in the city are British American Tobacco, Simpo, Sanch, Kenda Farben, Danny style, OMV and Hellenic Petroleum.

In 2010 the City Council passed the "Strategy of sustainable development of the city of Vranje from 2010 to 2019," for the achievement of objectives through a transparent and responsible business partnership with industry and the public.

Famous or notable citizens

Twin towns – sister cities

The city of Vranje is twinned with:

Literature