Location: Petrela
Built: 5th century AD
Byzantine Emperor Justinianim I
Petrelë Castle is located on top of the mountain overlooking Erzen valley in Tirana County. It was constructed as guard post in the fifth century by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I. By that time, almost the entire Western Roman Empire was captured and divided among various tribes of barbarians. However, the Eastern or Byzantine Empire, while maintaining independence, did not give up hope to restore the former greatness of the Roman Empire. Petrelë Castle belonged to a series of castles built by Byzantines to protect their possessions from attacks from the West and at the same time prepare for the invasion of the Apennine Peninsula. This fortress also served as an advanced signaling center for warning the Kruje Castle of a potential invasion. Today the fortress is open to tourists. There is a restaurant within its medieval walls.
he castle of Petrela, from the
discoveries made, is a medieval castle built during the reign of the
Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, in the VI century AD. This was one of
the forts erected by him in the defense system of the Empire.
It is a castle built on a terrain with quite steep slopes, even
on the southern and southeastern side steep, which have made the
castle very protected. It was erected at the moment when the Villa
Castle (the ancient castle which is located opposite the Petrela
Castle) lost its importance.
The castle is built on a rocky
hill located southeast of the city of Tirana. This hill is a
continuation of the Krraba highlands, and is separated from the
plain of Tirana by a series of ripples as well as by numerous gorges
suitable for crossing. It is here that in the earliest periods have
passed roads that have had military but also economic importance.
It had a very favorable geographical position, as from Petrela
could be seen Kruja as well as the system of defensive
fortifications around Durrës, part of which was Petrela himself. It
had a very suitable terrain for the development of the agricultural
economy. As a result, during antiquity, the city of Villa was born
and developed. In the Middle Ages, as a result of the many changes
that took place, the Villa was reduced as a center and moved to a
safer place, where today the castle of Petrela was built.
Petrela has a dual fortification system. It consists of the castle
itself and a perimeter wall located outside it. This wall starts to
the east of the castle and continues towards the west. At the
beginning of it is the road that leads to the castle, which crowns
the upper part of the rock. The eastern and southern side of the
rock falls sharply, while its northern side has a slope of 30-350.
It was here that it was easier to penetrate the castle, and its
fortification was concentrated. On this side are built two powerful
towers that are connected to each other by a strong curtain. The
only entrance to the castle consists of a narrow and short corridor.
Near the gate are the ruins of an observation tower, while near
the eastern tower are identified traces of two rooms that may have
served as housing. Three water stars are also part of the
fortification system of the castle.
Inside the wall of the
ancient period mentioned above, there is a nymph of the same period.
Only the catchment area has been preserved from it. For its
construction, well-baked bricks were used, as well as waterproofing
mortar that was used for plastering as well as for the complete
construction of the stere.
Phase 1 belongs to
tower 1, which consists of 3 floors. 2 floors have served for
combat, while the first floor has served as a stere for water.
According to the authors it should have an overall height of 18-20
m. The walls of the tower are built according to the well-known
technique "opus testaceum", while the turrets, vaults and walls in
most of them are built of brick. Traces of plaster observed on the
second floor of the tower indicate that this floor has been
plastered.
The stera, located on the first floor of the
tower, has a diameter of 2.90 m and is covered with a spherical
dome. From the inside it is insulated with waterproofing mortar with
brick powder. Its water supply was provided by a system of ceramic
pipes, which passed from the terrace of the tower to the side of the
wall, which then led the water to the stere. The second floor of the
tower has an internal diameter of 4.15 m and a wall thickness of up
to 2.70 m. The second floor of the tower, as well as the stera, was
covered with domes. The second floor of the tower consisted of three
turrets, which were oriented to the southwest and southeast, where
the attack was simpler. The turrets were covered with arches, and
had a space that went up to 40cm. Seeing that the stair ramps were
missing, the authors think that the ascent and descent to the tower
was done through escalators, and the communication between the
interior was done through light stairs.
So, in this first
phase we are dealing with a powerful tower, equipped and with
sufficient water reserves, capable of resisting even long sieges.
Phase 2 of the fortification belongs to the wall that the authors
have identified as the wall "K L A B C D G". This wall was built on
the north side of the castle, and partly from the east and west, as
here the protection was provided by the terrain that is quite steep.
This wall has a length of 37 m, width 1.05 m which in some cases
goes up to 1.30, and is maintained at a height of 5 m. For the
construction of the wall, stones were used that were placed in a
messy way, and connected between them with good quality mortar. To
make this wall as stable as possible, wood was also used. Within the
area of this wall, a stere with a regular quadrangular plan is
preserved. Brick powder mortar was used for its waterproofing.
Phase 3 belongs to the eastern tower, the inner part of the
front wall, and according to the authors, probably the same phase
belongs to the entrance. For the construction of the walls of this
phase, raw limestone was used, which has a more or less regular
placement. The stones are bonded between them with good quality
mortar, while pieces of bricks and tiles are often used on the wall.
Tower number 3 has a wall thickness of 2.70 m and a total height of
12.80 m. The floors of the tower are separated from each other by
wooden floors placed over the beam. Its 2nd floor is covered by a
spherical dome. The second floor also has 2 turrets, which are
similar to the turrets of the western tower. While to enter the
above-mentioned wall, it was passed to an entrance that had the
shape of the letter L. The entrance was covered with a vault made of
precious stones.
While the 4th phase of the castle belongs to
the outer perimeter wall. The outer wall is built of small stones
connected between them with mortar of quite good quality. Inside it
numerous fragments of tiles have been used for leveling the wall.
Although the outer wall has a good natural protection, it is
equipped with 3 turrets. This wall has a width of 1.30 m. It is
stored at a height of up to 4 m, as well as a length of 80 m.
Phase 5 belongs to the cladding of the eastern tower, the outer
wall, as well as the reconstructions that have been made to the
western tower. For the constructions that were made during this
phase, small unworked stones were used, as well as fragments of
irregularly laid tiles. On the wall surfaces are clearly visible
traces of beams that have been used as belts, but also traces of
scaffolding.
During its 6th and final phase, chests were
built south and east of the castle. The wall of this phase rests on
phase 5. The constructions of this phase have a rather irregular
masonry, and small stones were used for its construction.
Based on the construction technique of "opus testaceum" of tower 1,
the authors think that it belongs to late Roman antiquity. So the
tower number 1 that belongs to the first phase must have been built
between the IV-VI centuries, a date that is also supported by the
found pottery. While the wall of phase 2 (identified as the wall ‘‘
K L A B C D G ’’) reinforced and with timber must have been built
during the early Middle Ages. This wall may have served as a shelter
for the inhabitants of Petrela during the early Middle Ages. The
constructions of phase 3 must have been done by the second half of
the century. XII, where in sources it appears to us as a castle,
after the end of the wars between the Normans and the Byzantines.
This dating coincides with the construction technique as well as the
material found. In the 15th century the castle of Petrela had turned
into a small castle but also quite powerful. Barleti lets us know
such a thing. He described the fortress of Petrela as impregnable,
and even Skanderbeg sent an extremely powerful army to take it. It
is Barleti who gives us information about the time of construction
of the castle. According to him, the castle was built by the first
of the large Topia family. Later this castle will be repaired by the
Ottomans in the century. XVI. The information about this is given to
us by an anonymous author, who considers Petrela strong compared to
Ndroq weak. The constructions that have been made during the last
phase must belong to the century. XVII-XIX.
The role of Petrela as a fortified center will increase
during the early Middle Ages, after the abandonment of the ancient
city of Persqop. In the early Middle Ages the inhabited center would
be moved to Petrela as it offered greater security.
It could
also be used to control the road that passed through the neck of
Krraba and then joined the Egnatia road. Petrela was also an
integral part of the fortification system around Durrës, during late
antiquity and the Middle Ages.