Balsha II Balsha: The Rise & Fall of an Ambitious Prince
Balsha II Balsha (r. 1379-1385), was the youngest son of Balsha I (the attested founder of the Albanian principality of Balsha). He succeeded his brother Gjergj I Balsha (George I Balsha, r. 1372-1379) as the ruler of the principality. His other brother, Strazimir I Balsha, had also ruled the principality in 1362-1372. Balsha II called himself “prince of Arbëria”, “faithful autocrat of all the lands of Zeta and the Coast”, and “with God’s grace, ruler of Zeta”.
The Domain of Balsha II
Balsha II inherited a domain that extended in all the lands included in the imaginary quadrilateral Budua-Prishtina-Kostur-Himara, with the expectation of Durrës and its hinterland. The lands between Devoll and Vjosa also enjoyed some sort of autonomy, under the Muzakas, although some sort of vassalage state to the Balshas. In all, the territory under Balsha totalled some 50,000 km² (~31,000 mi²), roughly the size of current Slovakia.
Either his predecessor or Balsha II himself is the founder of a southern branch of the Balsha family. Eqrem bey Vlora noted the existence of impressive remains in the village of Patos, just north of Ballsh. The authors states that the locals called those ruins the Balsha Palace (“Serajet e Balschenjvet”). Even the town of Balsh probably took its name from the Balsha, being a testimony of their presence in that region.
Since at least 1372, Balsha II had established two important marital ties. He married Komnena of Bulgaria earlier that year, daughter of John (Ivan) Komnenos-Asen with his second wife Anna Palaiologina. The marriage with the niece of the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos, having an absence of male heirs, allowed Balsha II early authority over Vlora, Kanina, and Himara. Another marriage he concluded with the Muzaka family, taking Komnena or Komina, the only daughter of Andrea II Muzaka, ruler of Kostur and Euphemia Matrënga (Mataranga). Through such smart ties, Balsha effortlessly had secured the southern line of his domains. Durrës and its hinterland remained the only independent and meaningful enclave within his principality, ruled by Karl Thopia.
Conquest of Durrës: A Dramatic Shift
Balsha II set his sights over Durrës as a natural target of the expansion policy carried out by his predecessors. The Balsha family had tried to subdue the domains of Karl Thopia as early as 1364 but they had then failed. Now, enjoying a dominant geo-strategic position, a conquest of Durrës was easier. In about 1383, Balsha II finally took the prestigious town of Durrës by force, including its fertile hinterland. Defeated, Karl Thopia retreated into the mountainous fortress of Kruja from where he planned his vengeance. In the meantime, the new “duce of Durrës” and ruler of the largest ever political medieval formations of the Albanians was relentless.
Marin Barleti very briefly describes the expansion of 1383-1385 during which Balsha II and his forces “took possession of Kruja, where Thopia ruled, and as such, from victory to victory, declared war [in 1385] on Stephen Tvrtko [I, king of Bosnia], king of the Upper Moesia, that in the end they defeated along with his army, routed, and chased all the way to Ragusa [Dubrovnik] and there they surrounded him. Finally, with the intermediation of Ragusians, a peace was concluded between them and the borders were set up to river Narenta [Neretva], that separates the lands of Fari [Hvar], a city of Dalmatia”.
Dispossessed from both Durrës and Kruja, the irritated Karl Thopia overthrew the regional political dynamic by asking the assistance of Sultan Bayezid “the Thunderbolt” (r.c. 1360-1403). The Ottomans accepted the offer that promised Thopia repossession of Durrës but otherwise and beyond Durrës, a vassalage position. For some readers, this call for assistance may represent a change of fortune not only in the history of Albania, but the whole of the Balkans. By launching this expedition, the Ottomans started a new wage of conquest that would in the next 100 years sweep across the whole of southeastern Europe.
Battle of Savra
Little information remains on how Balsha prepared for the foes. Barleti hints that he was given poor advice by his close generals. Eqrem bej Vlora leans towards a different version: Balsha II ignored the advice from his close generals to delay the battle. The chronicle of Gjon Muzaka, dated 1510, is of no help. In any case, most sources agree that the army gathered by Balsha to counter the enemy was gathered in haste. This opinion can also be challenged. We know that on 8 August, a month before the battle, Balsha II asked the Venetians to support him with four galleys. The Venetians apparently did not offer the assistance, choosing calculated neutrality. However, this appeal reveals that Balsha was aware of the threat and had some reasonable time to prepare.
On 18 September 1385, the forces of Balsha II met in open field with the Ottoman forces led probably by Çandarli Kara Halil Hayredin Pasha (in office from 1364-1387). It represented the first open battle between the Albanians and the Ottomans. Of course, to know the sizes of such armies, we cannot rely on Barleti, known for commonly inflating such figures. The most reasonable assumption suggests that Balsha had with him 1,000 knights whereas Hayredin Pasha drew up some 5,000. Both armies clashed with one another in the Savra or Savër field, just south of Lushnje. The Ottomans ultimately routed the enemy, even killing Balsha in combat. In the aftermath, Durrës and its hinterland returned to Karl Topia. The Ottomans established a political-military foothold in Albania that they were determined to retain.
Bibliography
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