History of Nis

It was besieged by the Huns in 441, devastated again in 448, and again in 480, when the partly rebuilt town was demolished by the Barbarians. Byzantine Emperor Justinian I restored the town but it was destroyed by the Avars once again. The Slavs, in their campaign against Byzantium, conquered Niš and settled here in 540. About 987, the town was taken by the Bulgarian Emperor Simeon I. In the 11th century Byzantium took control over Niš and the surrounding area again. In 1072, the town was raided by the Hungarians (Ugri). During the People's Crusade, on July 3, 1096, Peter the Hermit clashed with Byzantine forces at Niš. Manuel I fortified the town, but his successor, Andronikos I, could not hold it, so Niš was seized by the Hungarian king Béla III. The town was in Greek hands for some time again, then, in 1185, it came under Serbian control, but not for long. In 1196, Isak II defeated Stefan Nemanja and it was not until 1241 that Niš was in Serbian hands again. The fall of the Serbian state, conquered by Sultan Murad I in 1385, decided the fate of Niš as well. After a 25-day long siege the city fell to the Turks. Niš succumbed to Ottomans rule again in 1448. And remained thus for the following 245 years. In the period of Ottomans rule, Niš was one of the seats of Turkish military and civil administration. In 1737, Niš was seized again, but this