Demetrio Franco ( sq, Dhimitër Frëngu; 1443–1525) was an
Albanian
Albanian may refer to:
*Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular:
**Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans
**Albanian language
**Albanian culture
**Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...
historian. He was a close accomplice of
Skanderbeg, later publishing works on his life.
Life
Franco was born in
Drivasto in 1443 to a
Catholic family. Through his mother he was a cousin of
Pal Engjëlli
Pal Ëngjëlli ( la, Paulus Angelus; 1416 – 1470) was an Albanian Roman Catholic cardinal, clergyman, scholar, and Archbishop of Durrës who in 1462 wrote the first known sentence retrieved so far in Albanian. Pal Ëngjëlli is reported to ...
, the Archbishop of Durrës and a close collaborator of
Scanderbeg
, reign = 28 November 1443 – 17 January 1468
, predecessor = Gjon Kastrioti
, successor = Gjon Kastrioti II
, spouse = Donika Arianiti
, issue = Gjon Kastrioti II
, royal house = Kastrioti
, father ...
.
In 1466 he accompanied Skanderbeg in Rome as a scribe.
In 1479 after Shkodër was conquered by the
Ottoman Empire he migrated to Italy, where he served as
vicar until his death in Trevi in 1525.
Service and work
Franco himself accompanied
Skanderbeg to
Italy in the winter of 1466–1467. Following his death in 1468, Franco moved to
Tivar
Bar ( Montenegrin and Serbian: Бар, ; sq, Tivar; it, Antivari or ''Antibari'') is a coastal town and seaport in southern Montenegro. It is the capital of the Bar Municipality and a center for tourism. According to the 2011 census, the c ...
, and then to
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
. In April 1480, he published a biography of Skanderbeg in
Latin at the printing house of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
Erhard Ratdolf Erhard is a male German given name and surname, and may refer to:
People
* Erhard of Regensburg, bishop of Regensburg in the 7th century
* Erhard Altdorfer (c. 1480–1561), German Early Renaissance printmaker, painter and architect
* Erhard Arnold ...
.
His most notable piece work is considered to be ''Gli illustri e gloriosi gesti e vittoriose imprese fatte contro i Turchi dal Signor Don Georgio Castriotto detto Scanderbeg, principe d' Epiro'', along with the aforementioned biography of Skanderbeg.
Sources
* Demetrio Franco : "Gli illustri et gloriosi gesti et vittoriose imprese cobtra Turchi fatte dal Signor Giorgio Castriotto detto Scanderbeg principe di Epiro, (manuscript, 1480), Italian translation 1584, in Venice.
* Paolo Jovio : "Commentario delle cose de Turchi et del Signor Gorgio Scanderbeg, prencipe d'Epirro., Venice, 1539.
* Jaques De Lavardin, Histoire de Georges Castriote surnommé Scanderbeg Roi d'Albanie, Paris 1576".
* Jean Nicolas Duponcet : "Histoire de Scanderbeg Roy d'Albanie",
Paris 1709.
* R.P. Duponcet : "Les exploits heroïque de Scanderbeg Roi d'Albanie,
Liège, 1854.
* Anonimo di Palermo : "Storia di Giorgio Castriotto sopranomminato Scanderbeg, principe d'Albania, Palermo, 1847.
* C.C. Moore, George Castriot Scanderbeg, King of Albania, 1850.
* Fan Stillian Noli : " Historia e' Sknderbeut§", Tirana, 1924.
* Harry Hodkinson Scanderbeg, London, 1999.
* Lek Pervizi, translator, of Veprat e Lavdishme te Skenderbeut Of Dmetrius Francus, Tirana, 2005
*Lek Pervizi, Scanderbeg, Album commemoratif, Bruxelles, 2018
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frëngu, Dhimiter
15th-century births
15th-century deaths
People from Shkodër County
16th-century Albanian Roman Catholic priests
16th-century Albanian historians
15th-century Albanian Roman Catholic priests
15th-century Albanian historians