Republic Day in 2024

When is Republic Day in North Macedonia?

Republic Day is a public holiday in North Macedonia on August 2nd. It marks two important events in the history of Macedonia that took place on this day - the Ilinden Uprising in 1903 and the establishment of the Republic in 1944

History of Republic Day in North Macedonia

The second of August has been an important date in the Macedonian calendar for centuries as it is a major religious holiday - Ilinden, or St. Elijah's Day, marking the prophet Elijah's ascension into heaven.

Macedonia had come under the control of the Ottoman Empire in the 14th century. On August 2nd 1903, an uprising against the Ottomans was led by the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (VMRO). The Ilinden uprising resulted in the liberation of the town of Krushevo, where the first republic in the Balkans was proclaimed. The republic was short-lived, lasting only 10 days before the Ottomans took back Krushevo.

On August 2nd 1944, during the second world war, the Anti-Fascist Assembly for the National Liberation of Macedonia (ASNOM) proclaimed the People's Republic of Macedonia as part of the People's Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

On Republic Day shops will close but restaurants and bars will remain open. The main formal celebrations take place in Krushevo at the area called Mechkin Kamen (Bear's Rock), where the battle with the Ottoman army took place during the Ilinden uprising.