Skopje . During much of the early 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 and acted as its capital city from 1346 to 1371 . In 1944 , it became the capital city of Democratic Macedonia ( later Socialist Republic of Macedonia ) , which was a federal state , part of Democratic Federal Yugoslavia ( later Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ) . In 1991 , it became the capital city of an independent Macedonia .
Skopje was a main city from 972 and 992.