Siege Of Krujë (1466–1467)

The second siege of Krujë () took place from 1466 to 1467. Sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire led an army into Albania to defeat Skanderbeg, the leader of the League of Lezhë, which was created in 1444 after he began his war against the Ottomans. During the almost year-long siege, Skanderbeg's main fortress, Krujë, withstood the siege while Skanderbeg roamed Albania to gather forces and facilitate the flight of refugees from the civilian areas that were attacked by the Ottomans. Krujë managed to withstand the siege put on it by Ballaban Badera, sanjakbey of the Sanjak of Ohrid, an Albanian brought up in the Ottoman army through the devşirme. By 23 April 1467, the Ottoman army had been defeated and Skanderbeg entered Krujë.

Mehmed had decided to construct a fortress in what is now Elbasan which would provide a perennial base for future Ottoman assaults on Skanderbeg's domains. The fortress especially worried Venice since Elbasan was constructed on the banks of the Shkumbin River which would allow the Ottomans to send ships into the Adriatic and threaten Venetian colonies. Seeing that his situation had become unfavorable, Skanderbeg made a trip to Italy where he would try to convince Pope Paul II and Ferdinand I of Naples to give him aid for his war. Despite many promises from the pope, Skanderbeg received little due to the fear of a Neapolitan war with Rome and infighting in the Roman Curia. Ferdinand and the Republic of Venice likewise deferred Skanderbeg's requests to the pope. By the time he left Italy, the League of Lezhë had been weakened and needed his intervention.

After his return the Venetians decided to send troops against the Ottoman advances. Skanderbeg gathered 13,400 men, among whom were many Venetians, to launch an assault on the Ottoman besieging camp, who had taken command once Mehmed left Albania after the construction of Elbasan. Skanderbeg had split his army into three parts and surrounded the besiegers. Ballaban was killed during the fighting and the Ottoman forces were left without a commander and a depleted force which was surrounded. Afterwards the Albanian-Venetian forces completed the rout by killing the remaining Ottoman forces before they could escape by way of Dibër. The victory was well received by both Albanians and Italians. This did not signal the end of the war, however, as soon after, Skanderbeg took up some assaults on Elbasan after being urged to by Venice, but was not able to take the fortress due to lack of artillery. Venice itself was in conflict with its Italian neighbors, which led Mehmed to begin another campaign against the Albanians. This would result in another siege on Krujë.

Background

Skanderbeg had been an Ottoman sanjakbey, who defected from the empire and united several Albanian princes under the League of Lezhë. From Krujë, his main fort, he led the league in the Ottoman-Albanian wars. Having defeated the Ottomans in many battles he allied with Western Christian states and leaders, especially with Alfonso V of Aragon and the Papal States. On 14 August 1464, Pope Pius II, one of Skanderbeg's major benefactors, died and his plans for a crusade against the Ottoman Empire disintegrated. The alliances and promises for help from the major Christian powers were canceled with the exception of the Kingdom of Hungary under Matthias Corvinus and the Republic of Venice. Sultan Mehmed II realized the power vacuum created after Pius died and he tried to take advantage of the situation. He thus attempted to sign a peace agreement with Hungary and Venice so that his forces could focus on Albania to gain a base for future campaigns in the Italian peninsula. His efforts were unsuccessful, however, since neither Venice nor Hungary accepted his proposed treaty. Mehmed thus kept his armies stationed in the Balkans, one force near Jajce in Bosnia, one in Ohrid, and another one in the Morea.

Skanderbeg led an incursion into Ottoman territory near Ohrid with the aid of Venetian forces under a ''condottiero'' named Antonio da Cosenza, also known as Cimarosto, on 6 September 1464. Together, they defeated the Ottoman forces under Şeremet bey stationed there on 14 or 15 September. The Venetian Senate informed the Hungarians of the joint Albanian-Venetian success on 29 September. Mehmed, sensing the weakness in his frontier, assigned Ballaban Badera as commander, replacing Şeremet. Ballaban was an Albanian by birth who had been incorporated into the Ottoman army through the devşirme system and was sanjakbey of the Sanjak of Ohrid in 1464 and 1465. In the meantime, Pope Paul II began planning his own crusade, but with means different from his predecessor. He planned to get the major European states to help fund the crusade while Venice, Hungary, and Albania would do the fighting. He also wanted to aid the Albanians as much as possible and urged the Kingdom of Naples to supply Skanderbeg with able forces. Venice began to consider peace with the Ottomans since its resources had significantly decreased, while Hungary adopted a defensive strategy, however, pressure from the Pope and Skanderbeg forced them to abort their efforts.

The Ottoman-Albanian war continued through 1465 with Ballaban Badera meeting Skanderbeg at Vaikal, Meçad, Vaikal again, and Kashari. In the meantime, Mehmed continued to negotiate peace with Hungary and Venice. Skanderbeg found himself isolated during these negotiations, even if they did not succeed, as the conflicting powers temporarily ceased conflict. Furthermore, Ferdinand I of Naples did not send his promised forces and the Venetian forces under Cimarosto left Albania. During the autumn of 1465, Ottoman forces moved from the Morea and Bosnia in order to speed up the peace negotiations. Venice, however, refused peace and Skanderbeg believed that a new Albanian-Venetian campaign would begin. He kept Pal Engjëlli, his ambassador, in constant correspondence with the Signoria (Venetian Senate), which sent him to Albania to inform Skanderbeg that troops were being raised, although only 300 had been recruited at the time, with Cimarosto as the commander. Venice was also in the process of sending its provveditores in Albania Veneta 3,000 ducats to recruit men. They would also send four cannons, ten springalds, and ten barrels of gunpowder. Throughout April, rumors spread that the Ottomans were preparing to march into Albania. By 18 April 1466, Venice received knowledge that the Ottomans were heading towards Albania.

Campaign

Once news of the Ottoman approach arrived, Venice sent reinforcements to its cities along Albania; Durazzo (Durrës) had already garrisoned 3,000 men. The Scutari Fortress was also reinforced after Skanderbeg's counsel and the walls were rebuilt. On 19 April 1466, news spread that the sultan was going to march into Avlonya (Vlorë) with an army of 100,000 men although the Ragusans reported that the number was 30,000. Ottoman forces were ready to enter the Kingdom of Naples and pressured Ferdinand to form an alliance with Mehmed. The situation was not clear in the Balkans, however, as it was thought that the Ottomans could march against Bosnia, Serbia, Dalmatia, Negroponte, or Albania. By the beginning of May, however, it was clear that the Ottomans would attack Albania because of the approach of Mehmed's troops towards Albania after the end of his campaigns in Wallachia, Karaman

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