Albania

Albania was only formed in 1913 by the union of four former Ottoman provinces. King Zog claimed power and was ousted by the Italian dictator, Mussolini, who re-built parts of the Via Egnatia in order to gain access to northern Greece. After World War 2 it was ruled by a Communist dictator, Enver Hoxha, until 1985, and then by Ramiz Alia. After the Berlin Wall fell, a Democratic Party was formed which brought down the Communist regime in 1992. Meanwhile, many young people had fled the country, especially to Italy. In 1996, a financial crash resulted in huge financial losses for many Albanians and an interim government only just managed to contain riots and disorder.

Since then, the country has again started to rebuild itself, with some foreign assistance, especially in the provision of roads and electricity networks. More than a quarter of the four million population emigrated; some later returned from Greece as a result of the 2008 financial crisis. Others send home financial contributions to their families, which funds new home building or small businesses.

In the cities, schools and universities are producing hard-working young people who have a similar lifestyle to their foreign neighbours. But older people have suffered so many misfortunes that they find it difficult to adapt and may wish for the old days of Communism   that ended in 1991. Religion has been revived, with mosques, orthodox and catholic churches co-existing in many cities. Bektashi Dervishes are another important religious influence. When Atatürk expelled the Bektashis from Turkey, they moved their headquarters to Albania and several tekke/teqe (places of retreat) can be found along the Via Egnatia.

National parks have been developed and steps are underway to integrate them with cultural sites. As well as the Via Egnatia, the Via Dinarica runs through the Balkans, crossing Albania in a north-south direction. This is a major German-funded sustainable tourism project and becoming increasingly popular. New tourism firms are developing in order to support visitors wanting adventure and nature but official support is still in its infancy.

History

The Illyrian tribes dominated the current Albania and surrounding areas from 1300BC, with a culture based on silver and copper working, horse-breeding, trade and war. Almost no written record remains of their Indo-European language, apart from occasional grave steles inscribed using Greek characters. However, contemporary Greek and Roman historians mention them.

In 228BC, the Romans took Dyrrachium (Dürres), and 60 years later defeated the last Illyrian king. As a Roman protectorate and colony, the first priority was roads, and two branches of the Via Egnatia were constructed from the coast at Dyrrachium and Apollonia to meet at Scampi (Elbasan) and continue towards Greece. Only a few hours by ship from Italy, Dyrrachium was the scene of battles of the Roman civil war, as Julius Caesar pursued Pompei overseas.

After the foundation of New Rome at Constantinople, the Via Egnatia became the crucial link between the centres, but in 395, the Empire was split between East and West, with part of Albania going to Rome and part to New Rome (Byzantium). Orthodox churches were built and the roads and cities further fortified, as the Byzantines struggled to hold the region against the Slavs from the North.

From the 10th C, the region fragmented, with Bulgarians, Slavs and Normans claiming the important towns, but villagers largely unaffected. Byzantine territory shrunk, and even Constantinople was for a time occupied by Venetians and Crusaders.

The Ottomans, from 1430, started a methodical conquest of the Balkans which continued annually for over 200 years until they reached the Gates of Vienna. An important national hero Skender Beg gathered the clan leaders and Albania’s flag led the resistance to the Ottomans. The Ottoman system of governance allowed much religious independence and the clans were formed into four provinces partly led by religious leaders.

After the Balkan wars of 1913, the four united to form Albania, which was immediately attacked by its neighbours. War ended in the Treaty of London, which saw the recognition of Albania.

A few years later, King Zog seized power, supported by Serbs, but in practice, trade was run by Italians, who repaired the Via Egnatia and rebuilt some city centres. Mussolini annexed the country in 1939 and was succeeded by the Germans from 1943. Driving out the Germans in 1944, the Communist partisans took power. Enver Hoxha first broke from Yugoslavia, then from the Soviet Union and ended up befriended only by China. In 1978, even this alliance ended and Hoxha presided over a mania of construction, with 700,000 defensive bunkers built all over the countryside and trees felled to open the lines of sight.

Many families lost loved ones to persecution, jail or execution, but in spite of forced labour, the economy shortly collapsed.

It’s only since 1997 that Albania has been able to rebuild a decent life for its people.

Websites and maps

The official site of the Via Egnatia Foundation is a good place to start: https://www.viaegnatiafoundation.eu/. This site and the books produced by its founders have information on routes, accommodation and local history and geography for the whole of the Via Egnatia route.

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The Geographer Michele Fasolo has mapped the original Via Egnatia in his books and articles.  Yannis Lolos is the recognised authority on the history of the route.

Other informative website area:

http://www.fuorivia.org/en/fuorivia-egnatia/ is the website of a group who are walking and documenting states of the Via Egnatia.

https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/12/25/via-egnatia/

https://www.livius.org/articles/place/via-egnatia/