Maps of Power

Šufflay 1924

Properties

ID 123751
System Class Bibliography
Bibliography Book
Case Study Beyond East and West: Sacred Landscapes Duklja and Raška

Description

Milan von Šufflay, Städte und Burgen Albaniens hauptsächlich während des Mittelalters (Philosophisch-historische Klasse, Denkschriften 63, 1, Wien/Leipzig 1924).

Relations

Places (18)
Name Class Begin End Description
Apolonija Place The Town of Apollonia was founded in the year 588 B.C. by Greek settlers from Korfu and Korinth. After an earthquake altered the river Vjosë in the 4th century and the repeated invasions of the 4th and 5th century the town got ruined. The extenisve privileges the town received during Roman rule allowed the development of many development and a bishop's see. In the 9th century the Shën Meri Monastery was founded on the territory of the now deserted town. (AA I, 14 (3); AA I, 528 (156-157); JG LT DIPL., 671 - episcopus civitatis Appoloniae, De la Polina, Apud Apolloniam).
Baleco Place The town of Balec is said to be inhabited by the Illyrians and then by the Romans. Being destroyed after the arrival of the Slavs, a new town was build on this site, which became the capital of the region and was incorporated into the kingdom of Duklja (Zeta from the 12th century onwards). Here, the bishopric of Palachium was established before 1067. The bishopric had been alternating its status as a suffragan of Dioclea and of Bar until the 15th century. (Könighaus) The Town of Baleco lies now in ruins north of Shkodra. The town is located on the Maja Balezit near the confluence of the rivers Rrjollit and Gropes. The town is described as very vital in the year 1363, but already in 1402 it only has the status of a Pronoia and has in 1416 counted only 25 houses. (FC CVen. di Scut. 101 - cita de Belezo). Baleco can probably identified with Skanderbegs Reç Fortress.
Bar Place The Town of Bar evolved out of a castle which was rebuilt during the Reign of Justinian. Bar was the center of the increasingly Slavic principality of Zeta and became the part of the Serbian realm in the 12th century. Šufflay described the town as well fortified and home to monuments analogous to those in Ravenna, Ragusa and Zara (AA I, 50 (11); VĆ ŽSN., 32 - civitati namque ... Avarorum.; gradь slav'ny Barь).
Berat Place Berat was probably founded by king Kassander of Macedonia and named after his father Antipatros. Theodosias II renamed the city to Pulcheropolis. The walls of the town were renovated by Justinian and extended with towers. After the Bulgarian conquest in the year 860, the town was named Beligrad/Belograd from which the name Berat derived. Berat was reintegrated into the Byzantine Empire in the year 1018. The lower towns were fortified in the medieval age. After the Fourth Crusade in 1204 Berat became a part of the Despotate of Epirus and it's capital. Michael II gave Berat to Manfred of Hohenstaufen; after his death it formed part of the Regnum Albaniae. In 1280-81 the region and Berat became again part of the Byzantine Empire and lost in 1345 to Stefan IV Dušan. In the year 1417 Berat was conquered by the Ottomans, who then built the citadel, the lower town and a bazar. During his rebellion, Skanderbeg unsuccessfully besieged Berat (AAI, 55 (13-14) - ad episcopatum Belogradensem; GČ KNS, 87 (48-49) - de Belgrado).
Danj Place Dagno was probably the ancient greek fortress of Dainaa. This fortification protected the left bank of the Drin river and had a continued usage throughout the whole medieval age. The fortress was damaged in 1452 by a lightning strike and later demolished, probably by Skanderbeg (VĆ ŽSN., 31 - Danь grad(ь)).
Drisht Place The fortified settlement of Drisht was first mentioned in the reign of John I Tzimiskes (969-976) but can be traced back to the Roman town of Drivastum; it probably even was an earlier Illyrian fortification. In 1184 the Serbian king Stefan Nemanja of Rashka conquered Drisht, after the fall of the Serbian Empire in the second half of the 14th century the town became independent and minted their own coins. From 1369 to the 14th of April 1396 the Albanian noble family of Balsha ruled Drisht until they had to cede to Venice. During the Venetian rule (1396-1404) an cistern was added to the fortress. In 1476 the Ottomans conquered the fortification and the Christian population fled to other Venetian territories, resulting in Drisht loosing its importance and diminished.
Dyrrhachion Place The town of Dyrrhachion was one of the most important Byzantine strongholds in the Adria from the 6th century to the 12th century. The importance of Dyrrhachion lied in the fact, that it was one of two adriatic heads (the other one was Apollonia) of the Via Egnatia. According to Šufflay, Dyrrhachion is the nucleus of the other fortresses in Northern Albania. The emperors Anastasios, Justin and Justinian issued many building and also the refortification and renovation of the fortifications after the retreat of the Ostrogoths and an earthquake in 518. From the 12th century on until 1501 the town was under changing Byzantine, Norman, Epirotes, Anjou Sicilly, Albanian and Venetian rule. In the year 1394, the Venetians again renewed the fortifications and built a canal to dry the swamps of Balta and transform the peninsula of Dyrrhachion into an island similar to Zara and Trau. The Ottomans conquered the town in 1501. (AA I, 80 (27) - Dalmatia et Dyrrhachio; LjS PP., I, 113 (109) - Duka Drački).
Elbasan, Upper Town Place Elbasan was probably founded during the 1st or 2nd century on the Via Egnatia. It was fortified in the 4th century and pillaged by the Goths during the 5th century. Also some churches were built during the time. After 519, when Scampis was mentioned as a bishopric, the town fades from sources. It was rebuilt in the year 1466 by Sultan Mehmed II., while the siege of Kruja, and called Il-basan.
Kruja Place According to Šufflay, Kruja was the town at the centre of the medieval region of Arbanum. The medieval fortress of Kruja was build on a steep hill between the rivers Mat and Išmi. Archaeological excavations have found a 6th to 8th centuries cemetary. Kruja was first mentioned as bishopric see in 879, but it is unclear if the settlement already was fortified. Files of the time of the rule of King Alphonso V of Aragon and Naples suggest that this was a privilege given by Emperor Manuel I Comnenos given in the year 1165. In 1253 Kruja subortinated itself to the Emperor of Nicaea John III Vatatzes but already in 1258 Kruja was conquered by despote Michael II of Epirus and the town became again Byzantine after an Angevin Intermezzo from 1268-1280. Andronikos II Palaiologos granted several privileges to the town and made it the capital of a Byzantine province. 1342 Krja was conquered by Stefan Uroš IV Dušan. After the disintegration of the Serbian empire the local noble family of Thopia ruled over Kruja. After two years under Venetian rule it was ruled by the Ottomans for a short time, before again being independent until 1415 when Kruja was conquered by the Ottomans. Kruja was also the capital of the Skanderbeg rebellion from 1443 onwards. It was three times unsuccessfully besieged by the Ottomans and only fell in 1478 after the death of Skanderbeg (1468). The fortress is quite well preserved, despite an earthquake in 1617 and a part-destruction after an rebellion in the year 1832. Šufflay suggests that Kroja was, like other towns and cities in Illyria and Dalmatia, mainly inhabited by a Romanesque speaking population well into the 12th century. Only after the decay of the Latin population the region became Albanised. Kruja was part of a defensive system for Dhyrrachion/Durres. (AA, I, 48 (10, 11), 57 (14) - David Croensis; SN ZSp. 788 - oppidi Croarum).
Leš Place The town of Leš was a very important town of the Illyrians, sitting between the Kingdom of Macedonia and the Roman Republic. In the 6th century the Bishop of Leš fled from Leš to Calabria after the town was conquered by Avars. In the 9th century Leš became part of the Thema of Dyrrhachion. Anna Comnena praises the strength of the fortress of the town. In the 13th century, Leš was part of the Principality of Albanon and became part of the Serbian Kingdom in 1340. After the death of Emperor Dušan (1355) the Region became independent and was ruled by the Serbian noble family of the Balšić and in 1387 Leš became the capital of the Dukajin Principality. Also in 1436 Cyriacus of Ancona praises the strong walls of Leš. In 1440 the town was hit by a great fire. Leš was ruled by Venice from 1393 until the Ottoman conquest in 1478. After the Venetians were able to reconquest the town for a short time in 1501 they demolished the defensive buildings before they ceded Leš back to the Ottomans. (AA I, 374 (111) - usque ad flumen Lesii).
Medun Place According to Šufflay's Venetian sources, Medun was a watch tower (una torra) with a small fortification. It housed only the castellan with a few watchmen (DA L. de F., 18, 124; SLJ List. 10, 151 - apud Medunum; castello de Modon).
Oblik Place According to Šufflay, the castle of Oblik was mentioned in several Frankish annals as located at the right bank of the river Bojana beneath the Taraboš mountain. Oblik was the place where the Bulgarian Tsar Samuel sieged and arrested the serbian prince Vladimir (FŠ LPD., 326, VM Lj., 75 - et has iupanias ... Obliquus; AA II, 749 s (230) - de Oblich, Šufflay 1924, 23 - in Obliquo ad custodiendum castellum).
Sapa Place In 1291 it was tried to revive the ruined town of Sava (AA I, 515 (153) - civitas Sava nomine).
Sardoniki Place The ancient Roman fort, Sarda was founded in the late 4th century. In the 5th century it also served as a bishopric, later being abandoned in the 6th century after the invasion of the Avars and Slavs. Sardoniki was resettled and refortified in the 10th century. Sardoniki was resettled and refortified in the 10th century, in 1189 Sardoniki again became a bishopric and was a suffragan bishopric of the archbishop of Tivari. Until 1460 Sarda was ruled by the noble families of the Dukagjini and Zaharia (VĐ ŽSN., 31 - Sar'donikii gradь). The town of Sardoniki was ruined by the building of the dam of Vau i Dejes.
Skadar Place The town of Skadar was founded in the 4th century BCE. Skodra was in hellenistic times part of a Koinon and also the residence of the last Illyrian king. Under Roman rule Skadar became an oppida and an administrative center for the region. In the 3rd or 4th century and also in the 5th century under Justinian the walls of Skadar were rebuilt. During the medieval age the medieval town separated itself somewhat from the ancient town core, which became the town quarter of Ajasma. In 1040 Skadar became part of the Serbian realm. Manuel I Comnenos integrated Skadar in the year 1160 into the Byzantine Empire and made it the capital of the Thema of Dalmatia. 1184 Skadar became again part of the Serbian Kingdom and in 1215 of the Despotate of Epirus. In 1355 Albanian nobles declared their independence, but fell in 1396 under Venetian sovereignty. The Venetians built in 1416 the three walled defensives around the town and renovated the fortifications between 1461 and 1474. In 1479 Skadar was conquered by the Ottoman. (FŠ LPD., 310; VM Lj.,58; VĐ ŽSN., 31 - civitatem Scodarim; Rosafь grad' rekomyi Skьdrь).
Suacium Place Accordung to Šufflay, the ruins of the medieval upper town of Suacium lay near the modern day village of Šaš. The town was plundered by the Tartars in 1242 but recovered until it began to decline from 1388 onwards. The town is mentioned in 1470 as "villa de Suazzo" and Giustiniani states in 1553 that the walls, gates and moat were still visible and somehow usable.
Ulcinj Place The medieval Ulcinj was the relocated successor to the roman Ulcinium, although it is not known when or why the town was relocated further south. Despite the relocation of the town, the old akropolis was still inhabited and part of the towns defensive structures. Other parts of the Walls were the "torre delle Madona" and the bastion S. Domenico. The Venetians renovated the town in 1429 and after an earthquake in 1444. The Walls war still called ancient in 1553 (FŠ LPD., 306; Vm Lj., 54; VĐ ŽSN., 31 - Ecaterum, Dulcignum; grad(ь) Lьcinь).
Valona Place Valona was the southern border of the Byzantine Thema of Durres. In Summer 1081 the Normans invaded the region and conquered Valona together with Kanina and Orikos. After 1204 Vlora became Byzantine again. It shortly was part of the Realm of Manfred of Hohenstaufen as part of his spouse's, Helena, daughter of the Epirote despote Mihail II, dowry. In the year 1272 Vlora was ruled by Charles of Anjou who became King of Albania. 1340 Stefan Uroš IV Dušan conquered and ruled the region. Aftewards Balsha II became the ruler before the Venetians. In 1417 Valon was conquered by the Ottomans as their first harbour in the Adriatic sea. After the natural harbour was hardly usable the town center relocated during Ottoman rule to the current place (AA I, 23, 255 (4, 73); LjS PP I, 62 (57) - Nazarius episcopus Aulonae; ōd trga Vavlokьskga; castellanum castri Aveloni).