Altitude (the so-called absolute height) -height of the point of the earth's surface above sea level This feature helps to accurately determine the position of the object relative to the overall geodetic mark. The highest mountain capitals of the world are located on different continents, in regions of different relief, but the magnitude of the altitude of the city center makes it possible to objectively arrange them according to ranking.
Quito (Ecuador) - 2850 m above sea level
The championship of the Ecuadorian capital is sometimes challengedthe actual (but not constitutional) capital of Bolivia, La Paz, is a city located at an absolute height of 3,640 m. Formally, it is San Francisco de Quito that is the highest official capital in the world.
The center of the Ecuadorian capital is not only the mostalpine, but also one of the most valuable in the architectural and historical sense. Together with the Polish Krakow, it was first declared in 1978 as a cultural heritage site of world importance. The UNESCO Commission assessed the good preservation of buildings that had undergone minor changes since the city was founded in 1556.
Today in Quito on an area of 372 km2 2.67 million people live - this is the secondnumber of the city in the country, the real political, cultural and economic center of Ecuador. It plays a serious role in the life of the whole continent - in the vicinity of Quito is the headquarters of the Union of South American Nations.
Sucre (Bolivia) - 2810 m
Official (constitutional) main cityBolivia is also rightfully included in the highest mountain capitals of the world. Although only the Supreme Court remains the main government body in Sucre, it is one of the most important cities in the country. The sixth in population (about 300 thousand), it is the center of the department of Chukisak.
Founded in 1538 under the name Ciudad de laPlata de la Nueva Toledo (city of silver New Toledo), Sucre has a turbulent historical past and changed its name several times. The current name he received in 1839 in honor of the Bolivian revolutionary leader Antonio José de Sucre, who became the country's first president.
Like all highland cities, Sucre is located in a very picturesque place. Together with well-preserved monuments of architecture, this makes it especially attractive to tourists from all over the world.
Thimphu (Bhutan) - 2648 m
The capital of the kingdom of Bhutan, located betweenIndia and China, is much higher than Kathmandu (Nepal) - the capital of another state, lost among the highest mountains of the planet - the Himalayas. Half of the entire country (384,000 km2) is located above 3000 m, its fifth part is covered with eternal snows and glaciers.
Thimphu has become the capital of the kingdom since 1952,when in the monastery, built in the XIII century, were placed the main legislative and executive bodies of Bhutan. Today it houses the residence of the current official head of state - King Jigme Singge Wangchuk and a religious leader, called Je Khempo. In the capital city of the kingdom there are about 100,000 inhabitants.
Bogota (Colombia) - 2625 m
Bogota is a real metropolis.It is one of the largest cities in the highest mountain capitals of the world and one of the continental leaders of South America in terms of area and population. In 2015, about 8.5 million people lived here, with a constant increase in the number of newcomers.
Город расположен на равнине, которая является part of the huge Altiplano highland plateau, located among the Cordilleras. This area is considered earthquake-prone. Although Bogota is almost at zero latitude, there is no heat at the equator due to the high altitude. In the vicinity of a special natural area, a type of savanna favorable for farming.
Colombian capital founded in 1536famous Spanish conquistador Jimenez de Quesada. She was the center of the liberation movement, experienced many internal conflicts. Today, Bogota is a powerful economic and cultural center of the country and the entire continent, with high potential. The harmonious development of infrastructure is the main task facing all the major capitals of the world. Until recently, the list of urban problems was headed by high crime, but thanks to the decisive actions of the authorities, it lost its urgency.
The city is characteristic of the entire SouthThe Americas are divided into several regions characterized by the socio-economic situation of the population. Inhabitants of wealthy neighborhoods pay additional taxes to support slum dwellers.
Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) - 2355 m
The city, whose name is from the language of one of the nationalities- Amhara - translated as "new flower", plays an important role as the capital of the African Union. The population has a growth rate of about 4% per year and is about 3.5 million people.
Эфиопская столица расположена у подножья горы Entoto, from the mark of 2326 m in the area of the Bol International Airport and up to a height of more than 3000 m in the northern part. The combination of highlands and the equatorial zone makes the climate comfortable compared to the flat areas of Africa.
Founded Addis Ababa in 1886, the emperor MenelikII in the place chosen by his wife Taita. She was attracted by the sources of mineral water, which were at the foot of the mountain. Today, the city turns into the resort capital of Africa, where hotels, shopping and entertainment centers of high level are built.
Asmara (Eritrea) - 2325 m
Two highland countries located on a singlethe highlands — Ethiopia and Eritrea — have for a long time been a single federation. When the Ethiopian authorities in 1961 offered to make Eritrea one of their provinces, the struggle for its independence began.
In 1993, a new state appeared on the African continent, and Asmara was added to the list where the most high-altitude capitals of the world are mentioned. The population of the city is 650,000 inhabitants.
Eritrea was formed on the basis of territorieswhich were the Italian colonies in Africa. The current appearance of the capital of the country was largely formed in the 30s of the 20th century, when Mussolini wanted to make Asmara the stronghold of the future colonial empire. Asmara was called “small Rome”, and the Italian names and traditions are still preserved in the city.
Sana'a (Yemen) - 2250 m
Город с населением около 2 млн человек – один из The oldest cities in the world. According to legend, it was founded by Sim, the son of Noah. The city has preserved true gems of Arabic architecture with a thousand-year history. In 1986, the city was declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations. The preservation of historical monuments is under threat due to the location of Sana in a place of strategic importance for the entire region. The city often became the scene of armed conflicts of different scale.
Attractive for settling these places makesRare version of the desert climate. The high location of the city contributes to the fact that it is more moderate than in many places of the Arabian Peninsula. Excessive cold and tiring heat are rare here.
Mexico City (Mexico) - 2240 m
The Valley of Mexico, surrounded by mountains and volcanoes,reaching a height of 5,000 m, is located on a high plateau that is part of the Trans-Mexican volcanic belt. In place of the present agglomeration there was a huge lake Texcoco. In the central part of the island, in 1325, the Aztecs founded the city of Tenochtitlan, today's Mexico City.
Построенный на месте того, что было озером, the giant metropolis inherited the problems caused by it: the lack of drainage flow for water flowing down from the mountains, and loose soil that does not give a reliable foundation for the buildings. Fighting water and air pollution, preventing soil subsidence, and counteracting seismic activity have always been important areas of activity for the city of Mexico.
In the world there is no human settlement of this magnitude, located at such a height. On the area of 1485 km2 lives about 8.9 million people.If they talk about Greater Mexico City, to which is added the environment connected with Mexico City economically and technologically, then this is the largest agglomeration in the western hemisphere, which has about 21 million inhabitants.
Мехико включен в самые влиятельные столицы мира.The list of the richest cities in the world, where he entered under the eighth number, speaks of its political, economic and cultural significance for all civilization.
Cities with high position
Surprisingly, there are capitals belowworld ocean level: the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku, is 28 meters lower than it. And among those that can be attributed to the highland mountains - Nairobi (Kenya) - 1795 m, Kabul (Afghanistan) - 1790 m, Windhoek (Namibia) - 1721 m, Maseru (Lesotho ) - 1673 m, Kigali (Rwanda) - 1567 m, Guatemala (Guatemala) - 1529 m, Harare (Zimbabwe) - 1483 m, Kathmandu (Nepal) - 1400 m.
