Skanderbeg - Gjergj Kastrioti, Albanian National Hero.
Skanderbeg , c.1404-1468, Albanian national hero. His original name was Gjergj Kastrioti, but the Ottomans called him Iskender Bey with an inference to Alexander the Great, and this was corrupted into Skenderbe. The son of a prince of Northern Albania, he was educated in the Muslim faith as a hostage at the court of Sultan Murad II . The sultan showered favors on him and gave him the title bey and an army command. In 1443, when the Ottomans indicated they would attack Albania, Skenderbe escaped to his homeland, abjured Islam, and formed a league of princes among the Albanian chieftains. He proclaimed himself prince of Albania. To resist the Ottomans under Sultan Muhammad II , Scanderbeg received aid at various times from Venice, Naples, Hungary, and the pope. He had success in these wars partly because of the rugged Albanian terrain and partly because he employed a mobile defense force using guerrilla methods. He withstood repeated attacks and forced the sultan to conclude a 10-year truce in 1461 and never lost a battle. Skenderbe broke the truce in 1463 when Pope Pius II called for a new crusade. The pope's death (1464) forced abandonment of the crusade; Skenderbe, left without allies, had to retreat to his fortress of Kroia. After his death the league dissolved, resistance collapsed, and Albania fell to the Ottomans. Skenderbe's life is the source of many Albanian tales. He created a nation that captured the imagination of the world.
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George Kastriota Scanderbeg (1405 - 1468) was for many centuries presumably the most renowned Southeast European personality , already in his lifetime regarded as a standard bearer of resistance against the Ottoman advance. From the 19th century until the present time, many Southeastern European national movements referred to him as a symbol of their political aspirations. The oral and written memory of Scanderbeg in and outside of Southeastern Europe is impressive. Nevertheless, the historical figure and its contemporary sociocultural context are far less well explored than might be expected.
