Castle

Gjirokastra Castle

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Gjirokastra Castle is located on Zejtare street, on a hill with a height of 335 m. The name "Argjiro" relates to the legend of the princess Argjiro fell from the castle's heights to escape being captured by the conqueror. The castle has a history connected with the city of Gjirokastra and is mentioned for the first time as a city and castle in 1336. However, different historians think that the existence of the stone castle is earlier. The peak of its history this castle would have in the period of the Paschalek of Ioannina, when Ali Pasha Tepelena would realize a series of new constructions or other interventions, giving the Gjirokastra Castle the architectural and construction physiognomy it has today. 

In these years, it was the center of the Albanian Zenevia feudal lords. Later, during the rule of Gjin Bue Shpata, it was included in the Despotate of Epirus. And yet different historians think that the existence of the stone fortress is earlier. The castle had two phases of construction, which are related to the period before and after the Pashalek of Ioannina and the fortresses of Ali Pasha Tepelena. From the medieval Castle, the one before the Ottoman-Albanian conquest of Ali Pasha, only a few traces are preserved as the walls have been worn up to the height by new constructions. Meanwhile, the towers have been partially demolished and re-adapted. "The castle was constructed in antiquity, according to the Turkish writer Elebiu, who visited the city in 1672. only carved stone was used. 200 houses could be found on both sides of the wide roadway that went east-west through the center of the castle. It had two iron gates with three pairs of doors each and a moat 100 paces long and 200 paces wide between the namasjah and the fort. While the other three sides did not need a moat as they are natural streams." After a long siege, the Castle was conquered by the Turks in 1472.

Over the years, it gradually began to play the role of a castle for the residence of the ruler and the city garrison. In 1812, Gjirokastra Castle was conquered by Ali Pasha Tepelena, who started its reconstruction. The reconstruction of the castle, a palace and some annex buildings, was done with such great haste that all the works were completed within a year and a half. The castle contained, in addition to barracks for the placement of a garrison of 5 thousand soldiers, numerous warehouses underground that were well calculated to provide the necessary ammunition and food. Chronicles of the time mention that only for the construction of Ali Pasha's residence, a tower near the southeast corner, 1500 people worked. With the fall of the Paschalek of Ioannina, the Castle would lose its splendor. In the years of World War I and II, it would serve as a shelter for the city's residents to protect themselves from aerial bombardment.

Starting from 1968, the stone stage of the Gjirokastra Castle generously hosts folk instrumentalists, singers and dancers within the framework of the Gjirokastra Nationwide Folklore Festival. At the same time, during these years, the surroundings of the Castle have also served for the organization of concerts, spectacles and various cultural fairs. The stone castle is also one of the most attractive points in the guides of local and foreign tourist groups that visit Gjirokastra, protected by UNESCO.

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Address

Gjirokastër Castle, Rruga e Zejtarëve, Gjirokastër

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