Skanderbeg

Skanderbeg

Skanderbeg was born in 1405 in the village of 'Sine', one of the villages ruled by his family. His father was Gjon Kastrioti, the overlord of Albania. His mother was a princess from the Polog region of Macedonia.

Gjon Kastrioti, who ruled the Akçahisar region, accepted Ottoman sovereignty after being defeated by Murad II in 1421. In addition, the sons of the family were given as hostages to the Ottoman court as a sign of allegiance. The first written document about Skanderbeg’s presence in Albanian lands dates back to 1426.

In 1430, Gjon Kastrioti rebelled against the Ottomans again, but was defeated by Ishak Bey, son of Evrenes, and his territories were further reduced. In 1431, Skanderbeg started to join the Ottoman army as a 'sipahi'. Due to his successes, in 1437 he was promoted to the rank of Subaşı and became the administrator of the 'zeamet' of Akçahisar. Skanderbeg, who had a fief of nine villages, became a governor with his later successes. During this period, he had a cavalry unit of 5.000 men under his command. While serving as governor in Albania, he maintained his ties with the Albanian nobility by keeping in touch with the lands his father had formerly ruled. After the death of his father and brother, together with his brother Stanisha, he inherited the lands in the Kastrioti region. During his governorship he also endeavoured to establish good relations with the Italian maritime republics of Ragusa and Venice. He did not participate in the revolts of the Albanian nobility that took place between 1432-36 and remained loyal to the Sultan.

As an Albanian insurgent, Skanderbeg first rose up in 1443, during the Battle of Nis. Seeing that the army he was in was defeated by the Hungarian army, he returned to Akçahisar with the soldiers under his command and took control of this place. Then he attacked the lands owned by Yorgo Brankovic and Stefan Crnojevic in order to seize the lands in the neighbouring region. After establishing a certain dominance in the region, he declared his rejection of Islam and declared his rebellion for the revenge of his family and country. He chose the double-headed eagle as the symbol of the uprising.

On 2 March 1444, Skanderbeg, who gathered all Albanian Princes in the region, managed to establish the League of Lezhë. Thanks to this union, Skanderbeg would both increase his power in the region and have a bigger army at his disposal. Skanderbeg, who built new castles with the power he had, turned the mountainous region into an advantage for himself and gained an advantage against the Ottomans.

On 29 June 1444, the League of Lezhë defeated the Ottomans at the Battle of Torvioll in the Debre region, which further consolidated Skanderbeg's dominance in the region. This victory also enabled Europe, which had faced the Ottoman threat, to recognise Skanderbeg. In the following two years, Ottoman troops defeated the League of Lezhë, first at the Battle of Mokra near Prizren in 1445 and then at the Battle of Otonete in 1446.

The Venetians, on the other hand, supported Scenderbeg during the uprising. The main reason for this was that the territory ruled by Skanderbeg was a buffer zone between Venice and the Ottomans. Scenderbeg's presence kept the Ottomans away from Venetian territory.  However, the growing power of Skanderbeg also disturbed Venice. In the Albanian-Venetian war that broke out in a dispute over the ownership of Danye Castle, Skanderbeg was not defeated and Venice had to make peace with Skanderbeg. According to the treaty signed on 4 October, the fortress remained in Venetian hands, but the area around the Drin River was annexed to Albanian territory. In addition, Venice had to pay Alexander 1400 ducats vegi. In addition, Alexander established close relations with King Alfonso V of Aragon during his struggle with the Venetians.

In 1448, the Kingdom of Naples, which was under the rule of Alfonso V, asked for Skanderbeg's help to suppress the rebellion that broke out in the Kingdom of Naples, whereupon Skanderbeg, who sent an Albanian troop under the command of Demetrios Reres, easily suppressed the rebellion here. After the uprising, Albanian troops settled in Italy. Reres was appointed governor of Calabria by Alfonso.

The main reason behind the success of Skanderbeg is his battle tactics. In 1448, the army under the command of Murad II and Mehmed II besieged Svetigrad (Kocacik) Castle. While the garrison there resisted the attack, Skanderbeg attacked the besieging troops with the troops under his command and disturbed them. As a result of the treaty, the castle remained in Ottoman hands, but the Albanian garrison inside returned safely to Albanian lands.

Two years after Svetigrad, Murad II and his son Mehmed II besieged Akçahisar with the army under his command. Here, as he had done two years before, Skanderbeg disturbed the Ottomans, attacked the supply troops and left the Ottomans without supplies. After trying to besiege the castle for two months, the Ottomans lifted the siege and returned to Edirne.

Although Skanderbeg managed to repel the Ottoman attacks, the famine in his lands prompted him to ask Alfonso V for help. Following this request, the Treaty of Gaeta was signed between the two sides on 26 March 1451. According to the treaty, Alfonso was to stand by Skanderbeg against the Ottoman threat. At the same time, with this treaty, Skanderbeg became a vassal of the Aragonese dynasty.

After the siege of Akçahisar in 1450, peace prevailed in Albanian lands. The most important reason for this peace was the accession of Mehmed II (Fatih) to the Ottoman throne. Mehmed II's interest in Byzantium led to a short-lived peace in Albanian lands. The only problem was the repulsion of an army sent by the Ottomans to Albanian lands in 1452.

In 1455, the Siege of Berat was Mehmed II's first encounter with Skanderbeg as sultan. The siege ended with the decisive defeat of the League of Lezhë. Skanderbeg agreed with the Ottoman garrison leader on surrender and left the region by relaxing the siege. Ishak Bey's cavalry unit, arriving in response to the weakness of the siege, killed all the Albanian besiegers. This failure shook the confidence of some Albanian nobles in the League of Lezhë. The most important of these was Moisi Arianit Golemi. After the defeat at the Battle of Oranik, Golemi rejoined the Albanian ranks and asked for forgiveness from Skanderbeg.

In 1457, Hamza Kastrioti, an Albanian nobleman and a close relative of Skanderbeg, also joined the Ottoman side. In 1457, Hamza Kastrioti was among the large army sent by the Ottomans. Although Skanderbeg retreated and fought, he repulsed the Ottoman troops with a sudden raid on 2 September. After this success, a short period of peace was established. Hamza Kastrioti, who was captured in this struggle, was exiled to Naples.

Skanderbeg also attracted the attention of the Pope after this victory, and was declared commander of the Holy See by Pope Callixtus III. On 27 June 1458, after the death of Alfonso V, his son Ferdinand I came to the throne. Skanderbeg expressed his loyalty to Ferdinand I and assisted Ferdinand in the uprisings. After suppressing the uprisings, Skanderbeg returned to Albania and was rewarded with lands by Ferdinand.

After Skanderbeg returned to Albanian lands, he learnt that three Ottoman armies were approaching him. Although Skanderbeg managed to repel these three armies, he signed a 10-year peace treaty with Mehmed II under pressure from the League of Lezhë.

Since the Ottoman-Venetian War of 1463-1479 had started during this period, the Venetians signed a treaty of friendship with Skanderbeg on 20 August 1463. According to the treaty, Albania would allow the presence of the Venetian fleet in its seas and in return Albania's independence would be guaranteed in the event of a Venetian-Ottoman treaty.

The sudden death of the Pope, who was embarking on a new crusade against the Ottomans, left Skanderbeg alone in Macedonia and in 1465 Balaban Pasha defeated Skanderbeg at the Battle of Vaikal. After this battle, important Albanian nobles were captured and taken to Constantinople. The Ottomans attacked again in the same year and this time Skanderbeg was defeated. In 1466, Mehmed II personally came at the head of the army and besieged Akçahisar. However, after months of siege, Mehmed II realised that it could not be besieged and returned, but left Balaban Pasha to continue the siege. He also had a castle built here to help the siege. Skanderbeg, who was in Italy for financial support during the siege, defeated the Ottoman troops after his return and captured the castle built by the Ottomans. Balaban Pasha lost his life during this battle. After this defeat, Mehmed II embarked on another expedition, but failed to capture Akçahisar.

As a result of the annual Ottoman attacks, Albania suffered enormous losses and its economy collapsed. The mass capture of the nobles led to a loss of confidence in Skanderbeg. Although Skanderbeg Bey called a meeting of the League of Lezhë for the last time, he died on 17 January 1468 after contracting malaria during this period.

After the death of such a great leader as Skanderbeg, Venice co-operated with the League of Lezhë for the protection of other fortresses, but Akçahisar was besieged for the fourth time by Gedik Ahmet Pasha in 1477 and the city was surrendered with the participation of Mehmed II in the siege. In 1479, with the capture of Iskodra, Albania was completely under Ottoman control.

After the death of such a great leader as Skanderbeg, Venice co-operated with the League of Lezhë for the protection of other fortresses, but Akçahisar was besieged for the fourth time by Gedik Ahmet Pasha in 1477 and the city was surrendered with the participation of Mehmed II in the siege. In 1479, with the capture of Iskodra, Albania was completely under Ottoman control.

After this loss, Ferdinand provided protection for Skanderbeg's family and other Albanian nobles, who settled in Italy. In the following years, Skanderbeg's son Con Kastrioti II rebelled, but failed. In 1501, Skanderbeg's grandson, Cerc Kastrioti II, also attempted to rebel, but this rebellion was suppressed by Bayezid II.