Vilayet of Kosova

Vilayet of Kosova (Turkish: Kosova Vilayeti; Albanian: Vilajeti i Kosovës;) was a vilayet of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkan Peninsula which included: the current territory of Kosovo, the western part of the Republic of Macedonia,parts of southern Serbia and Sandžak and a portion of north-eastern Montenegro. It was created 1873 as the Vilayet of Prizren but later on in 1877 his administrative territories were extended and it was called Vilayet of Uskup(Kosova).The first capital of vilayet was Prizren,then it was moved to Pristina(1879-1893).From 1893 till 1912 the capital of viayet it was Uskup.Uskup (Skopje) functioned as the capital of the province and the mid way point between Istanbul and its European provinces. The province was originally created from Rumelia, but functioned separately as part of an Ottoman administrative reform law of 1864. Uskup's population of 32,000 made it the largest city in the province, followed by Prizren, also numbering at 30,000.The Vilayet stood as a microcosm of Ottoman society; incorporated within its boundaries were diverse groups of peoples and religions: an Albanian majority was complimented by Serbians, Bosniaks, Muslims and Christians, both Orthodox and Catholic. The province was renowned for its craftsmen and important cities such as İpek (Serbian: Peć/Пећ, Albanian: Peja), where distinct Ottoman architecture and public baths were erected, some of which can still be seen today. The birthplace of the Albanian national identity was first articulated in Prizren, by the League of Prizren members in 1878.
As a result firstly of the Treaty of San Stefano in 1878, then of the modified Treaty of Berlin the same year which split the Ottoman Empire, Kosovo became the first line of defense for the Ottoman Empire, with large garrisons of Ottoman troops being stationed in the province.The province's boundaries shifted as the Ottoman Empire lost territory to neighboring states in the Treaty of Berlin following the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 and parts were also internally transferred to Monastir Province and from Salonica Province. In 1878, the Sanjak of Novi Pazar, a subdivision of the Province of Kosovo, fell under Austro-Hungarian occupation in accord with the Berlin treaty which also allowed Austria-Hungary to occupy Bosnia and Herzegovina. There it would remain until 1908.Prior to the First Balkan War in 1912, the province's shape and location denied Serbia and Montenegro a common land border. After the war, the major part of the vilayet was divided between Montenegro and Serbia with a portion also incorporated into the newly formed Albania. These borders were all ratified at the Treaty of London in 1913 with the Ottoman Empire itself finally recognising the new borders following a peace deal with the Kingdom of Serbia on March 14, 1914.

Subdivisions
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The province was subdivided into the following sanjaks;

* Üsküb (Skopje) including the towns of Skopje, Kumanovo ; Kačanik
Štip; Kratovo; and Kočani.

* Prizren including the towns of Prizren (Pirzerin) and Tetovo (Kalkandelen).

* İpek (Peć) including the towns of Peć (İpek); Ðakovica (Yakova); Gusinje,
Berane, and Trgovište.

* Priştine (Pristina) including the towns of Pristina (Priştine); Kosovska
Mitrovica (Mitroviça); Vučitrn (Velçetrin), Gnjilane (Gjilan), and Preševo

* Yenibazar (Novi Pazar) including the towns of Novi Pazar (Yenibazar), Sjenica
(Seniçe), Kolašin (Kolaşin), Nova Varoš (Yeni Varoş), and Prijepolje (Akova).