TIRANA, June 13- The General Directorate of Archives opened on Monday at the Castle of Tirana the exhibition “The League of Prizren in 1878-2019 between the documents of the Central State Archives.”
The League of Prizren was held on June 10, 1878, at the city of Prizren and was the first Albanian movement organized in an administrative, political and military manner. Albanians called a nationwide assembly, where very important decisions would be made for the country. Following the signing of the St Stephen Agreement between Russia and Turkey where no territorials rights were given to Albania, and in anticipation of the Berlin Congress which would most likely remove from the Albanian map numerous provinces, the Albanian patriots devised this meeting where they would announce the ultimate division of Ottoman rule. The Assembly hosted delegates without distinction of religion, who came from all four Vilayets of Albania, Shkodra, Bitola, Ioannina and Kosovo. The League of Prizren lasted five days and the number of delegates reached 110, including Ahmet Koronica, Abdullah Pasha Dreni, Shaban Prizreni, Zija Prishtina, Filip Doda, Sulejman Vokshi, Shuajip Spahiu, Ali Ibra, Abdyl Frasheri, and many others, choosing as chairman the oldest member who also had great moral power, Iljaz Pashe Dibra.
In the first meeting of the League speeches were given by various delegates, one of whom was Abdyl Frasheri who said “we Albanians descend from the Pelasgians and we are the oldest people here in the Balkans, and the Slavs came late and being in greater numbers, pushed us into the Southwest of the Balkans in this narrow belt where we are today. It was not enough the robbery they did to us then but they are asking from us more land today. They are demanding for Plav and Gucia, and the Greeks a piece of the Ioannina Vilayet , which is a part of the unparalleled part of our dear Homeland. The purpose of this meeting today is to cut off the ardor from these cunning enemies, linking the Albanian covenant and swearing to defend with blood the lands left to us by our grandparents and great-grandparents.”
The motto of this meeting was “Let’s fight until we drop the last drop of blood. Before the interest of the Homeland private interests disappear.” The delegates considered above all the importance of ensuring the peace and the disappearance of blood feuds and, if not forever, at least until Albania’s situation was fixed. The League of Prizren operated alike as a national government, ruled and regulated the provinces and cities of Albania in terms of administration, also collected warriors and taxes. The first two decisions taken by the League of Prizren were a petition launched to the Berlin Congress and another Ottoman Empire. These decisions made it clear that Albania could not give any inch of its land, accompanied by dozens of firms by participating delegates.
