Travels in Southeastern Europe

The burden of the Balkans / by M. Edith Durham.

THE STORY OF THE PEOPLE. 55 Whatever weakness the Serbs may have since displayed, it must always be remembered that theirs is the glory of being the first to struggle for and obtain freedom from the Turkish yoke. Their example was followed very shortly by the Greeks, who, aided by the South Albanians, beloved of Lord Byron, fought free not long afterwards. Meanwhile Albania, too, had struck out for independence. Had the whole country risen, liberty would then have doubtless been obtained; but the tribal divisions were too strong. There were rival powers within. The north was ruled by the Bushatlis Pashas of Skodra. There was the powerful Christian tribe of the Mirdites, under Bib Doda; Kurd Pasha ruled in Central Albania, and in the south was the redoubtable Ali Pasha, one of the most remarkable men, after Skenderbeg, that Albania has produced. Ambitious, indomitable, unscrupulous, and possessed of military genius, he overthrew all the local chieftains of the South, and set himself to obtain supreme power. Victorious wherever he went, in a short time he was lord of the whole of South Albania, and quite independent. He held his Court with great splendour at Janina, and tried hard to enlist the friendship and'support of England. His lands included Ochrida, Berat, Permeti, Avlona, Arta, and Suli. He planned to attack Bushatli, Pasha of Skodra, and seize North Albania. By way of weakening Turkish power he aided the rising of the Greeks, and Greeks and Albanians made common cause.
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Title
The burden of the Balkans / by M. Edith Durham.
Author
Durham, Mary Edith, 1863-1944.
Canvas
Page 55
Publication
London :: Nelson,
[1905]
Subject terms
Eastern question (Balkan)
Balkan Peninsula -- Description and travel.

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"The burden of the Balkans / by M. Edith Durham." In the digital collection Travels in Southeastern Europe. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/ans3900.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 30, 2025.
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