The “First Siege of Krujë” began, an operation undertaken by the Ottoman army with the aim of capturing Krujë, the main political-military center of Albanian resistance, and subsequently conquering the entire Albania in a short period. The First Siege of Krujë started on May 14 and ended on October 26, 1450. According to Marin Barleti, the Ottoman army consisted of about 16,000 soldiers, equipped with 10 large cannons, some of which were cast on-site, and 8 smaller ones. The Albanian army was composed of 8,000 men (6,000 cavalry, 2,000 infantry) under the leadership of Skanderbeg; it operated outside the Krujë fortress, positioned in the highlands behind the city. A garrison of 2,000 men, equipped with 30 small cannons and commanded by Vrana Konti, was left to defend the fortress. The Ottoman efforts to break the city’s resistance failed. Meanwhile, the Ottoman camp was constantly pressured by the Albanian army, attacking from the mountains, thus turning the besiegers into the besieged. After suffering thousands of casualties and facing supply difficulties caused by continuous raids along the roads, the Ottoman army was forced to retreat from Krujë and Albania, pursued by the Albanian forces, which inflicted heavy losses during the retreat. Several chroniclers of the time report that Murad II died out of grief over the defeat he suffered in Albania. (In the photo: View of the Krujë Castle)
Text: Albanian Encyclopedic Dictionary – Vol. 3, Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2009, page 2274.
Photo: © https://sq.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rrethimi_i_par%C3%AB_i_Kruj%C3%ABs
Graphic processing: AHCF
