Principality of Kastrioti
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Principality of Kastrioti Principata e Kastriotit 1389 -1444 |
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| Official language | Albanian | ||
| Capital | Kruja | ||
| Form of government | principality | ||
| religion | Catholic | ||
| Head of state |
Prince Gjon Kastrioti I (1389–1417) Vacancy (1417–1443) Skanderbeg (1443–1444) |
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| Founding of the state | 1389 | ||
| resolution |
1444 Allied with League of Lezha |
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The Principality of Kastrioti ( Albanian : Principata e Kastriotit ) was a principality which existed from 1389 to 1444 and was ruled by the noble family of the Kastrioti , which lay on the territory of the present state of Albania . It was founded in 1389 by the Albanian nobleman Gjon Kastrioti I and then led by the Albanian national hero , Prince Skanderbeg .
Emergence
Gjon Kastrioti I originally ruled only in two small villages, which probably already had a coat of arms with the two-headed eagle as a symbol. In a short time Gjon Kastrioti managed to expand his lands so that he became the undisputed ruler of Central Albania. He married Vojsava from the noble family of Branković , who bore him five daughters: Mara, who later became the wife of Stefan Crnojević of Montenegro ; Jela, she later became the wife of Gjin (Gino) Musacchio; Angjelina (Angelina), the future wife of Vladan Arianit Komnenos Thopia; Vlajka was the future wife of Stefan Maramonte Balšić; Mamica, who later became the wife of Karol Musacchio Thopia; and also four sons: Repos, Stanisa (Stanislaus), Kostandin (Constantine) and Gjergj (George Kastrioti, later called Skanderbeg ). In contrast to other princes in the region, Gjon Kastrioti was one of those who fought against the first invasion of the Ottoman Empire , but his resistance was largely ineffective.
Around 1420 Gjon Kastrioti I had extended the territory of his principality far beyond the Mat region from Prizren in the northeast to Lezha in the west.
After the Ottoman sultan had penetrated far into his principality, Skanderbeg undertook to pay tribute to the Ottoman Empire . In order to remain in office as the local ruler of the Principality of Kastrioti, Gjergj Kastrioti (Skanderbeg) and his three brothers had to live as hostages at the court of the Sultan in Constantinople for security and as a pledge for his loyalty . After his conversion to Islam , he attended the war school in Edirne and led many battles for the Ottoman Empire to victory. For his military victories he received the title Arnavutlu Iskender Bey (Albanian: Skënderbeu shqiptar , German: Skanderbeg, meaning: Bey Alexander the Albanians) as a comparison with the military brilliance of Alexander the Great .
The principality under Gjergj Kastrioti
As one of the best officers of the Ottoman Empire, Gjergj Kastrioti led several campaigns in Asia Minor as well as in Europe , for which the Sultan promoted him to general. He himself fought with his troops in some campaigns against Greeks, Serbs and Hungarians; some sources also say that he had secret connections with the Republic of Ragusa , the Republic of Venice , Ladislaus V of Hungary , and Alfonso I of Naples during this period . Sultan Murad II gave him the title of Wali and made him Governor General. On November 28, 1443 Skanderbeg saw his chance when the rebels were led into battle during a battle against the Hungarians by Johann Hunyadi in Niš and as part of the Crusade from Varna . He brought the armies together, including some 300 Albanians who were in the service of the Ottoman army . After a long march into Albania , he captured Kruja and became ruler again through a letter from the Sultan to the governor of Kruja, which included granting him control of the territory in question. After conquering Kruja Castle , Skanderbeg renounced Islam and proclaimed himself the avenger of his family and ruler of the country. He raised the flag with the double-headed eagle as a national emblem, an ancient symbol of different cultures in the Balkans (especially in the Byzantine Empire ), this symbol was later used in the Albanian flag . The former governor, who wanted nothing to do with Skanderbeg's plans, was killed while fleeing to Edirne . Skanderbeg then allied himself with Gjergj Arianiti (born as Gjergj Arianit Komneni) and married his daughter Donika (born Arianiti Muzaka) with him.
League of Lezha
After capturing Kruja, Skanderbeg succeeded in uniting all Albanian princes in the city of Lezhë (see League of Lezha , 1444). The British historian Edward Gibbon reported that the “Albanians are a warlike race who live together and die with their Hereditary Prince” and “in the Assembly of Estates of Epirus, Skanderbeg was elected leader. In the war against the Turks, each of the individual allies had to participate or engage equally and bring in their share of men and corresponding money ”. With the support of Skanderbeg and with the help of the fortresses built on their territory, they organized a mobile defense so that the Ottomans had to withdraw with their troops, because they were not prepared for this new guerrilla tactic of the Albanians.
literature
- Alain Ducellier: Kastrioti . In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages (LexMA). Volume 3, Artemis & Winkler, Munich / Zurich 1986, ISBN 3-7608-8903-4 , Sp. 1442.
- Albanian Academy of Sciences (ed.): Historia e popullit shqiptar në katër vëllime . Botimet Toena, Tirana 2002, ISBN 99927-1-623-1 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ James Emerson Tennent The History of Modern Greece, from Its Conquest by the Romans BC146, to the Present Time . 1845
- ↑ Miranda Vickers: Shqiptarët - Një histori modern . Bota Shqiptare, 2008, ISBN 978-99956-11-68-2 , Skënderbeu farkëton bashkimin shqiptar kundër osmanëve, p. 23 (English, original title: The Albanians - A Modern History . Translated by Xhevdet Shehu).
- ^ Claudio Rendina: La grande enciclopedia di Roma . Ed .: Newton Compton. Rome 2000, ISBN 88-8289-316-2 , pp. 1136 (Italian).
- ^ Fan S. Noli: George Castrioti Scanderbeg . New York, 1947
- ^ Edward Gibbon : History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire . 1788, Volume 6, Scanderbeg section ( books.google.com )
- ^ John V. Fine: The Late Medieval Balkans. A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest . 1994, ISBN 0-472-08260-4 .
- ↑ Titolo pagin. tiscalinet.it
- ^ Minna Skafte Jensen: A Heroic Tale: Marin Barleti's Scanderbeg between orality and literacy . ( Memento of the original from July 19, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 2006
- ↑ LS Stavrianos: The Balkans Since 1453 . 2000, ISBN 1-85065-551-0 .
