The Kale Fortress has dominated Skopje since 200 BC. Today only the walls of the mighty complex remain, destroyed by a violent earthquake in 1963, but it remains one of the icons of the city.Archaeological discoveries confirm that the space occupied by the Kale Fortress was inhabited even in the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age periods. It is believed that the fortress dates back to the time of Emperor Justinian I (around 535). Towards the end of the 10th century the Kale was the centre of the medieval town and was conquered in the time of Tsar Samuil. At the end of the 11th century it was also conquered by the Normans. During the Ottoman occupation a part of the walls was demolished and according to Piccolomini in 1689 the fortress was partly destroyed and poorly defended. Today, of this imposing fortress, 121 metres of the long perimeter walls, three towers and a rich heritage of archaeological finds, among which a bronze coin of Alexander III, remain.
