History of Albania

Happy Albanian Independence Day – 28 November 1912

The History of Albania emerges from the prehistoric stage from the 4th century BCE, with early records of Illyria in Greco-Roman historiography. The modern territory of Albania has no counterpart in antiquity, comprising parts of the Roman provinces of DalmatiaIllyricum), Macedonia (particularly Epirus Nova), and Moesia Superior. The territory remained under Roman (Byzantine) control until the Slavic migrations of the 7th century, and was integrated into the Bulgarian Empire in the 9th century.

The communist regime collapsed in 1990, and the Republic of Albania was founded in 1991 and the former communist party was routed in elections March 1992, amid economic collapse and social unrest. Further crisis during the 1990s, peaking in the 1997 Lottery Uprising, led to mass emigration of Albanians, mostly to Italy, Greece, Switzerland, Germany and to North America during the 1990s. Albania became a full member of NATO in 2009. The country is applying to join the European Union.

The Illyrians are believed to have evolved directly from the Stone Age. They occupied the western Balkans from modern Slovenia to approximately half of the way through modern Greece. Shkodra, the largest city in northern Albania, was the capital. The Illyrians were sociable and hospitable people, like Albanians today. They were also brave fighters and known for their courage in war. Around 8-6th Century B.C., the neighbouring Greeks began to create colonies along the Albanian borders. Likened to the more advanced Greeks, the Illyrians were greatly influenced and started to evolve politically and economically.

Albania was continually attacked by more foreign armies – Bulgarians, Normans, Serbs and Venetians all wreaked havoc on the Albanians until the conquest by the Ottoman Turks in 1388. In 1443, an Albanian military mastermind, Gjergj Kastrioti (The Great Skanderbeg), united the Albanians and drove out the Turks. After Kastrioti’s death the Turks finally returned in 1468, however the desire for independence was still strong within the Albanians.

Throughout the 19th Century, resisting the Turks, the leaders led their country with the rallying cry, “The religion of Albanians is Albanianism!” The leaders formed the Albanian League in 1878 to unite the country and develop the native language, literature, education and to adopt a new alphabet. In 1908, the Albanians fought again and in 1912 they achieved their full independence in Vlore.