Lezhë Castle

Lezhë Castle
Albanian: Kalaja e Lezhës
Lezhë, in northern Albania
Lezhë Castle in 1995
Lezhë Castle
Coordinates	41.783611°N 19.649722°E / 41.783611; 19.649722
Site information
Owner	Albania
Controlled by	Illyrian tribes Roman Empire Byzantine Empire Principality of Dukagjini Republic of Venice Ottoman Empire Albania
Open to the public	Yes
Site history
Built	Unknown foundation date, castle rebuilt by Venetians in 1440, and Ottomans 1522

The Lezhë Castle (Albanian: Kalaja e Lezhës) is a castle dominating the city of Lezhë, northern Albania. Its highest point is 186 metres (610 ft). Lezhë Castle is at an elevation of 322 metres (1,056 ft). Lezhë Castle began as a Illyrian fortification. It was rebuilt by the Venetians in the 1440s and the Ottomans in 1522. In the late Middle Ages, the castle belonged to the Dukagjini family. The two brothers Tanush Thopia and Progon Dukagjini (sons of Lekë I) through an agreement which preserved their trade rights and estates around the castle placed the city and the castle under Venetian control in 1393 as a means to defend it against Ottoman expansion. The Venetians formally ceded the castle to the Ottomans in 1506.

View on the inside of the castle

See also

• Lezhë
• List of castles in Albania
• Tourism in Albania

Sources

• Malaj, Edmond (2016). "The Noble Dukagjinis during the Middle Ages. Their Territories and some Characteristics". Studime Historike. 1–2: 10.
• Galaty, Michael; Lafe, Ols; Lee, Wayne; Tafilica, Zamir (2013). Light and Shadow: Isolation and Interaction in the Shala Valley of Northern Albania. The Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press. ISBN 978-1931745710.