Albania

Albania Large Cover Image

The country which we know as Albania today has been inhabited for over 100,000 years and has been occupied and influenced by the Romans, Greeks, Turks and Italians. The first inhabitants of the present day Albania were Illyrians tribes, a group of Indo-European people.

In the 2nd century B.C. the Illyrians were conquered by the Romans, and from the end of the 4th century AD, the country became part of the Byzantine Empire. Having been invaded by the Visigoths, Huns, Bulgarians, and Slavs, the Albanians were finally conquered by the Ottoman Turks in the 15th century.

After almost five centuries of Ottoman rule, Albania proclaimed independence on 28 November 1912.
Through most of the Second World War Albania was invaded by Italian and German forces. At the end of the War, Albania became a Communist state and remained isolated until its transition to democracy after 1990.
In December 1990, a vague type of democracy and an open market economy were more or less installed, marking the start of social and economic reforms.

Ancient prehistoric sites, Mediaeval castles, entire towns of uninterrupted charming 15th century Ottoman houses and Cold War bunkers are a few of the examples of the places you can visit to get a clearer idea of Albania’s long, rich and turbulent history.

Activities

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