The “Battle of Lumë” took place, the battle of the mountaineers of the River and its surroundings against the invading Serbian army, which after the outbreak of the Balkan War rushed to the Albanian lands for their invasion and annexation by Serbia. The Serbian armies attacked in the middle of October 1912 in several directions: they broke the Turkish army in Kumanovo (October 22-24) and the Albanian resistance in Carralevë e Duhle (October 26), where many Lumjans were also killed, they occupied the Dukagjin Plain, created the “operational area of Kosovo” and a special department to occupy the highlands of Luma, Has, Opojë and Gora. Two columns of the divisions, “Drina” and “Shumadija“, went to the Albanian coast and another went against Lume (November 9), in order to disarm the population, break any resistance and secure the “coastal units” from the eastern side. The Serbian armies met in the stronghold of Lumjan and other provinces of the country. The Lumjans, helped by Isa Boletini and Elez Isufi with the Dibran forces, were completely involved in this battle. Over 2,000 volunteer fighters, also equipped with two cannons, were placed in a semicircle in the defensive line Koritnik-Gjalicë-Qafa e Kolesjanit-Drini i Zi. Although smaller in number than the Serbian forces and with old weapons (many with axes, scythes), the Lumjans and the population of the neighboring provinces struck the enemy at Qafë of Kolesjan, in Sheje of Bicaj, in Zborr of Nangve, in Gostil, to Bota e Kuqe, in the Luma river valley, to Uki i Vjerrë, in Bardhoc to Zhure. During four days of fighting (November 15–18), the Lumjan volunteers inflicted great losses on the enemy in men and material and forced the Serbian forces to retreat, defeated and exhausted, from the territory of Lumjan. Many Lumjan warriors also fell in the fighting with the Serbian invaders: from the area named Qafa e Kolesjanit to the gates of Prizren, over two hundred Lumjans were killed. (In the photo: Tower of Lumë (near the confluence of the Luma river in Drin i Bardhë) where a part of the Serbian group was destroyed.)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 1 , Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2008, page 228-229.
Photo: © https://www.faktor.al/2018/04/02/beteja-heroike-e-lumes-kunder-pushtimit-serb-ne-1912/
Graphic processing: AHCF
