The Vilayet of Scutari, Shkodër or Shkodra (Turkish: İşkodra Vilayeti or Vilayet-i İşkodra; Albanian: Vilajeti i Shkodrës) was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire that existed from 1867 to 1913, located in parts of what today is Montenegro and Albania. In the late 19th century it reportedly had an area of 13,800 square kilometres (5,310 square miles).[2]
The Scutari Vilayet was established in 1867.[3] The Sanjak of Scutari was established when Ottoman Empire acquired Shkodra after the Siege of Shkodra in 1478–79. A big part of Principality of Zeta was added to territory of Sanjak of Scutari in 1499.[4] In 1514 this territory was separated from the Sanjak of Scutari and established as separate Sanjak of Montenegro, under the rule of Skenderbeg Crnojević. When he died in 1528, the Sanjak of Montenegro was merged with Sanjak of Scutari, as unique administrative unit with certain degree of autonomy.[5]
In the late Ottoman period, unlike in other areas of the empire, Albanian Catholics in İşkodra vilayet had access to emerging Albanian language schooling subsidized by Austria-Hungary.[7] Local Catholic clergy were also involved in developing mostly religious Albanian literature, aimed at preserving and strengthening the Roman Catholic faith in the region.[7] Due partly to the location of being near the border with Montenegro the state exempted the townspeople of İşkodra from regular military service and unlike other urban dwellers within the empire they paid fewer taxes.[7]
Ottoman control mainly existed in the few urban centres and valleys of the vilayet and was minimal and almost non-existent in the mountains, where Malisors (Albanian highlanders) lived an autonomous existence according to kanun (tribal law) of Lek Dukagjini.[8] Disputes would be solved through tribal law within the framework of vendetta or gjakmarrja (blood feuding) and the activity was widespread among the Malisors, while Ottoman officials strongly disproved of the practice.[7] Nineteen percent of male deaths in İşkodra vilayet were caused by murders due to vendetta and blood feuding during the late Ottoman period.[7] Malisors viewed Ottoman officials as a threat to their tribal way of living and left it to their bajraktars (chieftains) to deal with the Ottoman political system.[8]
The Malisors (highlanders) lived in three geographical regions within İşkodra sanjak.[9] Malesia e Madhe (great highlands) with its religiously mixed Catholic-Muslim five large (Hoti, Kelmendi, Shkreli, Kastrati and Gruda) and seven small tribes; Malesia e Vogel (small highlands) with seven Catholic tribes such as the Shala, Shoshi, Toplana, Nikaj; and Mirdita, which was also a large powerful tribe that could mobilise 5,000 irregular troops.[9] The government estimated the military strength of Malisors in İşkodra sanjak as numbering over 30,000 tribesmen and Ottoman officials were of the view that the highlanders could defeat Montenegro on their own with limited state assistance.[10]
Dıraç sanjak contained the fertile plain of Zadrima between Mirdita and the Drin river.[11] Political life in the sanjak was dominated by a few powerful Albanian landowners such as the Toptani family who controlled the area around Kruja and Tirana as a personal fiefdom with family holdings amounting to some 123,000 acres.[11] To protect economic interests landowning beys in the area maintained small private armies numbering between 200 and 500 men that also served as bodyguards during travel.[11] In the 1880s from an Albanian point of view the sanjaks of İşkodra and Dıraç along with the whole of İşkodra vilayet belonged to the region of Gegënia.[12]
A map showing the administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire in 1317 Hijri, 1899 Gregorian, Including the Vilayet of Scutari and its Sanjaks.
During the 1880s, the population of İşkodra vilayet ranged between 200,000 and 300,000 people, split between the two sanjaks of İşkodra (Catholic majority) and Dıraç (Muslim majority).[7] Albanians were the main ethnicity in the vilayet consisting more than 90 percent of the population.[7]
Ottoman-Albanian intellectual Sami Frashëri during the 1880s estimated the population of Shkodër as numbering 37,000 inhabitants that consisted of three-quarters being Muslims and the rest Christians made up of mostly Catholics and a few hundred Orthodox.[15]
1874 estimation
According to Russian consulate Ivan Yastrebov's estimations, there were 80.000 Catholic males, 20.000 Orthodox males, and 9.500 Muslim males in the Sanjak of Scutari. The majority of the population spoke the Albanian language. He asserted that the Orthodox, and a number of Muslims, spoke the Serbian language.[16]
1912 estimation
A publication from 21 December 1912 in the Belgian magazine Ons Volk Ontwaakt (Our Nation Awakes) estimated 185,200 inhabitants:[17]
^Bayly Winder, Richard (1969). Near Eastern round table, 1967-68. New York: Near East Center and the Center for International Studies, New York University. p. 110. Retrieved 29 September 2011. In June 1867, thirteen new vilayets were formed: Bursa, Dardanelles, ... Ankara, Diyarbekir (Kurdistan), Sivas , Kastamonu, Thessaloniki (Salanik), Konya, and Yanina (Epirus and Thessaly), Prizren, and Ishkodra (Scutari of Albania).
^Ćorović, Vladimir (1933). Istorija Jugoslavije (in Serbian). Beograd: Narodno Delo. Retrieved 27 April 2011. Год. 1499. припојена је била Црна Гора скадарском санџакату. Али, год. 1514. одвојио је султан поново и поставио јој за управника, као санџак-бега, потурченог Станишу, односно Скендер-бега Црнојевића.
^Ćorović, Vladimir (1933). Istorija Jugoslavije (in Serbian). Beograd: Narodno Delo. Retrieved 27 April 2011. 1528... Црна Гора је потом поново припојена скадарском санџакату и остала је са извесним ... правима његов саставни део...
^Gençoğlu, Mustafa (16 October 2017). "İŞKODRA VİLAYETİ'NİN İDARİ TAKSİMATI VE YAPISI (1867/1868-1908)". Celal Bayar Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi. 13 (3) – via dergipark.ulakbim.gov.tr.
^Vickers, Miranda (1999). The Albanians: a modern history. I.B.Tauris. pp. 77, 78. ISBN978-1-86064-541-9.
^"İşkodra Vilayeti - Tarih ve Medeniyet". 8 October 2009.
^Gawrych, George (2006). The Crescent and the Eagle: Ottoman rule, Islam and the Albanians, 1874–1913. London: IB Tauris. pp. 29, 217. ISBN9781845112875.
^Folić, Milutin (1991), "Izveštaji ruskog konzula Ivana Stepanoviča Jastrebova iz Skadra o slovenskom življu i njihovim crkvama u Albaniji u drugoj polovini XIX veka", Stanovništvo slovenskog porijekla u Albaniji : zbornik radova sa međunarodnog naučnog skupa održanog u Cetinju 21, 22. i 23. juna 1990 (in Serbian), Titograd: Istorijski institut SR Crne Gore ; Stručna knj., OCLC 29549273; Гласник Српског ученог друштва, књ. XL. стр. 182-183
^Published on 21 December 1912 in the Belgian magazine Ons Volk Ontwaakt (Our Nation Awakes) - view the table of Vilajet Skutari: Skynet GodsdBalkan
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March 24, 2023
scutari, vilayet, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, december,. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Scutari vilayet news newspapers books scholar JSTOR December 2009 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Vilayet of Scutari Shkoder or Shkodra Turkish Iskodra Vilayeti or Vilayet i Iskodra Albanian Vilajeti i Shkodres was a first level administrative division vilayet of the Ottoman Empire that existed from 1867 to 1913 located in parts of what today is Montenegro and Albania In the late 19th century it reportedly had an area of 13 800 square kilometres 5 310 square miles 2 Vilayet i IskodraVilajeti i ShkodresVilayet of the Ottoman Empire1867 1913FlagThe Scutari Vilayet in 1867 1912CapitalScutari present day Shkoder Area Coordinates42 4 N 19 30 E 42 067 N 19 500 E 42 067 19 500 Coordinates 42 4 N 19 30 E 42 067 N 19 500 E 42 067 19 500Population 1911 1 349 455HistoryHistory Vilayet Law1867 First Balkan War1913Preceded by Succeeded bySanjak of Scutari Provisional Government of AlbaniaKingdom of MontenegroToday part ofMontenegroAlbania Contents 1 History 2 Administrative divisions 3 Demographics 3 1 1874 estimation 3 2 1912 estimation 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksHistory EditMain article Sanjak of Scutari The Scutari Vilayet was established in 1867 3 The Sanjak of Scutari was established when Ottoman Empire acquired Shkodra after the Siege of Shkodra in 1478 79 A big part of Principality of Zeta was added to territory of Sanjak of Scutari in 1499 4 In 1514 this territory was separated from the Sanjak of Scutari and established as separate Sanjak of Montenegro under the rule of Skenderbeg Crnojevic When he died in 1528 the Sanjak of Montenegro was merged with Sanjak of Scutari as unique administrative unit with certain degree of autonomy 5 In 1867 the Sanjak of Scutari merged with the Sanjak of Skopje and became the Scutari Vilayet Its sanjaks were Sanjak of Scutari Prizren and Sanjak of Dibra In 1877 Prizren passed to the Kosovo Vilayet and Dibra passed to the Monastir Vilayet while Durres Dirac township became Durres Sanjak After the Russo Turkish War 1877 1878 Bar Podgorica Ispozi and Zabyak townships were ceded to Montenegro in 1878 Also Ulgun one was ceded to Montenegro in 1881 6 In the late Ottoman period unlike in other areas of the empire Albanian Catholics in Iskodra vilayet had access to emerging Albanian language schooling subsidized by Austria Hungary 7 Local Catholic clergy were also involved in developing mostly religious Albanian literature aimed at preserving and strengthening the Roman Catholic faith in the region 7 Due partly to the location of being near the border with Montenegro the state exempted the townspeople of Iskodra from regular military service and unlike other urban dwellers within the empire they paid fewer taxes 7 Ottoman control mainly existed in the few urban centres and valleys of the vilayet and was minimal and almost non existent in the mountains where Malisors Albanian highlanders lived an autonomous existence according to kanun tribal law of Lek Dukagjini 8 Disputes would be solved through tribal law within the framework of vendetta or gjakmarrja blood feuding and the activity was widespread among the Malisors while Ottoman officials strongly disproved of the practice 7 Nineteen percent of male deaths in Iskodra vilayet were caused by murders due to vendetta and blood feuding during the late Ottoman period 7 Malisors viewed Ottoman officials as a threat to their tribal way of living and left it to their bajraktars chieftains to deal with the Ottoman political system 8 The Malisors highlanders lived in three geographical regions within Iskodra sanjak 9 Malesia e Madhe great highlands with its religiously mixed Catholic Muslim five large Hoti Kelmendi Shkreli Kastrati and Gruda and seven small tribes Malesia e Vogel small highlands with seven Catholic tribes such as the Shala Shoshi Toplana Nikaj and Mirdita which was also a large powerful tribe that could mobilise 5 000 irregular troops 9 The government estimated the military strength of Malisors in Iskodra sanjak as numbering over 30 000 tribesmen and Ottoman officials were of the view that the highlanders could defeat Montenegro on their own with limited state assistance 10 Dirac sanjak contained the fertile plain of Zadrima between Mirdita and the Drin river 11 Political life in the sanjak was dominated by a few powerful Albanian landowners such as the Toptani family who controlled the area around Kruja and Tirana as a personal fiefdom with family holdings amounting to some 123 000 acres 11 To protect economic interests landowning beys in the area maintained small private armies numbering between 200 and 500 men that also served as bodyguards during travel 11 In the 1880s from an Albanian point of view the sanjaks of Iskodra and Dirac along with the whole of Iskodra vilayet belonged to the region of Gegenia 12 A map showing the administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire in 1317 Hijri 1899 Gregorian Including the Vilayet of Scutari and its Sanjaks In 1912 and beginning of 1913 it was occupied by members of Balkan League during the First Balkan War In 1914 the territory of Scutari Vilayet became a part of Principality of Albania established on the basis of peace contract signed during London Conference in 1913 13 Administrative divisions EditSanjaks of the Vilayet 14 Sanjak of Scutari Shkoder Lezhe Orosh Puke Tuzi Sanjak of Durres Durres Tirana Kruje Kavaje Shijak Demographics EditDuring the 1880s the population of Iskodra vilayet ranged between 200 000 and 300 000 people split between the two sanjaks of Iskodra Catholic majority and Dirac Muslim majority 7 Albanians were the main ethnicity in the vilayet consisting more than 90 percent of the population 7 Ottoman Albanian intellectual Sami Frasheri during the 1880s estimated the population of Shkoder as numbering 37 000 inhabitants that consisted of three quarters being Muslims and the rest Christians made up of mostly Catholics and a few hundred Orthodox 15 1874 estimation Edit According to Russian consulate Ivan Yastrebov s estimations there were 80 000 Catholic males 20 000 Orthodox males and 9 500 Muslim males in the Sanjak of Scutari The majority of the population spoke the Albanian language He asserted that the Orthodox and a number of Muslims spoke the Serbian language 16 1912 estimation Edit A publication from 21 December 1912 in the Belgian magazine Ons Volk Ontwaakt Our Nation Awakes estimated 185 200 inhabitants 17 Muslim Albanians 80 000 Muslim Serbs 40 000 Orthodox Serbs 30 000 Catholic Albanians 14 000 Orthodox Vlachs 10 000 Jews 5 000 Muslim Gypsies 5 000 Muslim Turks 1 200See also EditVilayets of the Ottoman EmpireReferences Edit Teaching Modern Southeast European History Archived 20 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine Alternative Educational Materials p 26 Europe by Elisee Reclus p 152 Bayly Winder Richard 1969 Near Eastern round table 1967 68 New York Near East Center and the Center for International Studies New York University p 110 Retrieved 29 September 2011 In June 1867 thirteen new vilayets were formed Bursa Dardanelles Ankara Diyarbekir Kurdistan Sivas Kastamonu Thessaloniki Salanik Konya and Yanina Epirus and Thessaly Prizren and Ishkodra Scutari of Albania Corovic Vladimir 1933 Istorija Jugoslavije in Serbian Beograd Narodno Delo Retrieved 27 April 2011 God 1499 pripoјena јe bila Crna Gora skadarskom sanџakatu Ali god 1514 odvoјio јe sultan ponovo i postavio јoј za upravnika kao sanџak bega poturchenog Stanishu odnosno Skender bega Crnoјeviћa Corovic Vladimir 1933 Istorija Jugoslavije in Serbian Beograd Narodno Delo Retrieved 27 April 2011 1528 Crna Gora јe potom ponovo pripoјena skadarskom sanџakatu i ostala јe sa izvesnim pravima њegov sastavni deo Gencoglu Mustafa 16 October 2017 ISKODRA VILAYETI NIN IDARI TAKSIMATI VE YAPISI 1867 1868 1908 Celal Bayar Universitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi 13 3 via dergipark ulakbim gov tr a b c d e f g Gawrych 2006 p 29 a b Gawrych 2006 p 30 a b Gawrych 2006 pp 31 32 Gawrych 2006 p 33 a b c Gawrych 2006 pp 33 34 Gawrych 2006 p 28 Vickers Miranda 1999 The Albanians a modern history I B Tauris pp 77 78 ISBN 978 1 86064 541 9 Iskodra Vilayeti Tarih ve Medeniyet 8 October 2009 Gawrych George 2006 The Crescent and the Eagle Ottoman rule Islam and the Albanians 1874 1913 London IB Tauris pp 29 217 ISBN 9781845112875 Folic Milutin 1991 Izvestaji ruskog konzula Ivana Stepanovica Jastrebova iz Skadra o slovenskom zivlju i njihovim crkvama u Albaniji u drugoj polovini XIX veka Stanovnistvo slovenskog porijekla u Albaniji zbornik radova sa međunarodnog naucnog skupa odrzanog u Cetinju 21 22 i 23 juna 1990 in Serbian Titograd Istorijski institut SR Crne Gore Strucna knj OCLC 29549273 Glasnik Srpskog uchenog drushtva kњ XL str 182 183 Published on 21 December 1912 in the Belgian magazine Ons Volk Ontwaakt Our Nation Awakes view the table of Vilajet Skutari Skynet GodsdBalkanExternal links Edit Scutari Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 24 11th ed 1911 pp 518 519 Media related to Scutari Vilayet at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Scutari vilayet amp oldid 1144676592, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
