Berat Castle (Albanian: Kalaja e Beratit), also referred to as the Citadel of Berat and castle quarter, is a fortress overlooking the town of Berat, Albania. It dates mainly from the 13th century and contains many Byzantine churches in the area and Ottoman mosques.[1] It is built on a rocky hill on the right bank of the river Osum and is accessible only from the south. It is situated at an elevation of 214 metres (702 ft).[2]
After being burned down by the Romans in 200 B.C., the walls were strengthened in the 5th century under Roman Emperor Theodosius II to protect from Barbarian incursions into the Balkans. They were subsequently rebuilt during the 6th century under the Emperor Justinian I and again in the 13th century under the Despot of Epirus, Michael I Komnenos Doukas, cousin of the Byzantine Emperor. This last phase can be seen as a Monogram formed by red bricks set in a wall of the castle. The castle was under the rule of John Komnenos Asen in the mid-14th century The main entrance, on the north side, is defended by a fortified courtyard and there are three smaller entrances.
14th century Church of the Holy Trinity-(Kisha Shen Triadha)
The fortress of Berat in its present state, even though considerably damaged, remains a magnificent sight. The surface that it encompasses made it possible to house a considerable portion of the cities inhabitants. The buildings inside the fortress were built during the 13th century and because of their characteristic architecture are preserved as cultural monuments. The population of the fortress was Christian, and it had about 20 churches (most built during the 13th century) and only one mosque, for the use of the Turkish garrison (of which there survives only a few ruins and the base of the minaret). The churches of the fortress were damaged through years and only some have remained.
Berat Castle is depicted on the reverse of the Albanian 10 lekë coin, issued in 1996, 2000 and 2013.[3]
^. Archived from the original on 2018-11-13. Retrieved 2014-09-13.
^Bank of Albania. Currency: Albanian coins in circulation, issue of 1995, 1996 and 2000 2009-03-06 at the Wayback Machine. – Retrieved on 23 March 2009.
berat, castle, albanian, kalaja, beratit, also, referred, citadel, berat, castle, quarter, fortress, overlooking, town, berat, albania, dates, mainly, from, 13th, century, contains, many, byzantine, churches, area, ottoman, mosques, built, rocky, hill, right, . Berat Castle Albanian Kalaja e Beratit also referred to as the Citadel of Berat and castle quarter is a fortress overlooking the town of Berat Albania It dates mainly from the 13th century and contains many Byzantine churches in the area and Ottoman mosques 1 It is built on a rocky hill on the right bank of the river Osum and is accessible only from the south It is situated at an elevation of 214 metres 702 ft 2 Berat CastleKalaja e BeratitBerat Albania 40 7067 N 19 9522 EBerat CastleBerat CastleTypeCastleSite informationOwner AlbaniaControlled byIllyrian Parthini Roman Empire Byzantine Empire Kingdom of Albania Muzaka Family Ottoman Empire AlbaniaOpen tothe publicYesSite historyBuilt4th Century BCBattles warsSiege of Berat 1280 1281 Siege of Berat 1455 Siege of Berat 1833Siege of Berat 1834Siege of Berat 1839Siege of Berat 1847 Battle of Berat 1943 Monogram of Michael on the walls of the castleHistory edit nbsp Houses inside Berat CastleAfter being burned down by the Romans in 200 B C the walls were strengthened in the 5th century under Roman Emperor Theodosius II to protect from Barbarian incursions into the Balkans They were subsequently rebuilt during the 6th century under the Emperor Justinian I and again in the 13th century under the Despot of Epirus Michael I Komnenos Doukas cousin of the Byzantine Emperor This last phase can be seen as a Monogram formed by red bricks set in a wall of the castle The castle was under the rule of John Komnenos Asen in the mid 14th century The main entrance on the north side is defended by a fortified courtyard and there are three smaller entrances nbsp 14th century Church of the Holy Trinity Kisha Shen Triadha The fortress of Berat in its present state even though considerably damaged remains a magnificent sight The surface that it encompasses made it possible to house a considerable portion of the cities inhabitants The buildings inside the fortress were built during the 13th century and because of their characteristic architecture are preserved as cultural monuments The population of the fortress was Christian and it had about 20 churches most built during the 13th century and only one mosque for the use of the Turkish garrison of which there survives only a few ruins and the base of the minaret The churches of the fortress were damaged through years and only some have remained Berat Castle is depicted on the reverse of the Albanian 10 leke coin issued in 1996 2000 and 2013 3 See also editBerat List of castles in Albania Tourism in AlbaniaReferences edit UNESCO Berat Castle Altitude and Positioning Archived from the original on 2018 11 13 Retrieved 2014 09 13 Bank of Albania Currency Albanian coins in circulation issue of 1995 1996 and 2000 Archived 2009 03 06 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on 23 March 2009 Photo history and info of Berat Castle 40 42 29 N 19 56 42 E 40 708 N 19 945 E 40 708 19 945 nbsp nbsp This article about a castle in Albania is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Berat Castle amp oldid 1188328270, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
