Wonders of Albania: Romans & Blood Feuds (Part 1) - Butrint

Wonders of Albania
Romans & Blood Feuds (Part 1) - Butrint

Bettany Hughes travels to mountainous Albania in Balkans, to explore a land of epic fortress towns, archaeological sites and a diverse history and culture. In this first episode Bettany visits the ancient city of Butrint and meets remote communities in the spectacular Albanian Alps.

Romans & Blood Feuds (Part 2) - Albanian Alps

[altinplaku]

Thank you for your hard work to explore and share Albanian history and beauty with the world, at the moment we are all called criminals.

[Ccc.]

I am half Albanian and I am proud of it oh yeah 😎.

[Terrortales-tk]

Keep up with the work. Absolutely amazing.

[agimternova]

Just i case you missed it:
History of Butrint City (UNESCO World Heritage) start before 1200 BC, but officially in 1200 BC. Word Butrint (But-rrin-nta) is albanian geg. This beautiful City, was founded by Trojan Prince Enea Dardani among other cities like Mikena (1200 BC), Rome (1200 BC), Kartagjena (today Tunisia), 1200 BC. All cities, founded by him, r UNESCO World Heritage.
Ps: Troja (not Troy) City 2000-1200 BC, was a dardan city. Word Troja or Truall, is tipical albanian & has meaning in albanian lenguage only. The last albanian king of the Troje was Prijam or Prijesi Jam or i'm the Leader or i'm the boss.
Ps2: War of Troja, was a civil war between albanians dardans vs albanians shpat-arte knows as spartans.
PS3: The survivers of this terrible civil war, founded Europian civilisations.. Even word Europe is albanian & has meaning in albanian lenguage only.

[fabmukaj]

Great video. Thank you for showing the Albanian history

[nikosmarinellis]

All Bettany showed are Greek and Roman archaological sites, monuments and inscriptions, Bouthroton is actually officialy recognized by UNESCO as a Hellenic city. Is there anything Albanian in Albania?

[arsimdrmaku]

PELAZGIAN, ILLYRIAN, ALBANIAN, ILLYRICUM SACRUM DANIELE FARLATI, TROJA, BUTRINT, ATHINA, DODONA, BULISI, VINCA, SHKODRA, NAISSUS, SINGIDUNUM, DALMATIA, DARDANIA, VICIANUM, ULPIANA, DURRSI, SHKODRA, RAGUZA, SPLIT, RISAN, PULA, KONSTANDINOPOJA, USW

[southepirote]

The place called Greece never existed before as we know it today. The people who live in so called Greece today used to be called "Romej" during Byzantine Empire and "Raja" during Ottoman Empire times (except the Arvanitas who used to be called always by their name like "Albani", "Arbanoi", etc.) and the name "Greece" never existed during Byzantine times.

The people who live in the so called Greece today are NOT the descendants of ancient Greece (as the world history knows it). That ancient culture and civilization, went extinct times ago, like many other ancient civilizations (like Latin civilization as well, language of which is spoken only in the certain official religious ceremonies in Vatican today and for international medical terminology).

During Ottoman times in the Balkans, after the big powers pushed for an uprising in the place that today is called "Greece", an independent country was formed in 1821-1832. The majority of the population there was of Arvanitas (and Chameria) stock, they also were the backbone of the uprising for independence from the Ottoman Empire. The rest of the minority population was of Slav, Turks and Aromanian stock.

After the gain of independence the place was so divided, and with a prolonged civil war that a real country could not be formed.

Fearing the disintegration of the place after Ottomans left (and possibility of a return of the Ottomans), Prince Otto of Germany was brought in by European powers to clear the mess and do nation - building there. He was proclaimed King of the place by big powers and given plenipotentiary powers.

The Price Otto royal family in Germany happen to be an admirer of the ancient civilizations, one of them being the extinct ancient Greek civilization, traces and archeological findings of which are also seen in that region called today
"Greece" as well.

Being an ancient history romantic and buff, Otto came up with the idea, that the only way to keep the place together and for a chance to build a country there, was to adopt/impose some kind of neutral/foreign ancient language and culture
for all people living in that place, that will make possible for the people to stick together under one language and culture imposed on them.

So with a special royal decree, he proclaimed a version of the ancient Greek (the easier one to be taught and learned by people there in those times) as an official language of the place, and also came up with the new name for the
place, calling it with a special royal decree "Greece".

Everything else was banned, and the new "country" formed, was ordered to be rebuild anew in resemblance of the old romantic view of the ancient Greek civilization, starting with the buildings, names of people, places, cities and villages, regions, mountains, fields and all were changed to made-up names loaned by the ancient literature of ancient Greek
civilization.

This of course was associated with money brought by European powers to rebuild. The more people in that place agreed with the change of their true national and ethnic identity and declare themselves artificially "Greeks/Helenes" and adopt to the new order, the more money was to be pouring in.

Naturally, the strongest resistance to this artificial and made-up solution, was made by the Arvanitas (and Chameria), but at no avail.

It is legendary, the loss by one vote in the Price Otto's Parliament of that time, of Arvanitas proposal to have the Albanian
(Arvanite) language as an official language of the place called 'Greece" today, and to call the new country "Arvanoi" (instead of "Greece").

There is plenty of scientific and factual evidence, archival and historical documents, as well as studies and publications by major authors and authorities in the field about as above.

One interesting fact here, is that one of the earlier German/Austrian well known historians and scientists of that time, Fallmerayer, alerted Prince Otto and others to this nonsense, of declaring a whole people and place by a
name not belonging to them, and injecting an extinct language, culture and civilization on people who had no idea about it and did not belong to it at all. Well, Fallmerayer may have proven to be right.

By the way, Fallmerayer, is a banned figure and historian in what is called Greece today.

Germany is still paying for the Otto's mistake, even today. It has gotten stuck with the country so called "Greece". It is now forced to pour free money, even today, out of Germany's pocket (through European Union as well) year after year to keep it alive and going, as this "Greece" cannot stand on its own. It is an artificial creation of Prince Otto's fantasy (a "zombie" country so to speak), and the new generations of the Germans and Europeans are continuing to pay the price for it.

Moreover, what Prince Otto did back then, is tantamount to ethnic cleansing. He forced inhabitants of a whole region/place (called "Greece" today) to change by force their culture, language, national and ethnic identity to something
else that those people were not, so they could artificially change in order to look modern and civilized (like ancient Greeks in Otto's personal view) and possibly be united. And of course, Arvanites and Chams (as the majority population in the region) suffered mostly from this ethnic cleansing.

All this revelation, informs another major point: history taught about what today is called Greece, it appears to be taught wrong. People are wrongly taught in schools that today's Greece and its people are the direct descendants of ancient Greeks. Greece and Greeks of today, in some extend, also think they are superior to others just because they are called
"Greeks" and their country "Greece" by decree (not by the virtue of the truth). They also seem to believe for some reason, they are entitled to the German and European money being handed out to them.

The school textbooks and historiography should change, telling people the truth as it is. And with this, will come many other changes, in the way we see relations with the country called "Greece" today

[lumturiesaraci]

Hello. You have made a good documentary about Albania, covering classical antiquity by talking about Burtrint in the deep south, medieval period by talking about Gjirokastra - its classical antiquity being Antigonia, then you moved to the Albanian alps in the far north talking about blood feud - commonly known as "an eye for an eye", then modern day Albania in Tirana about communist evil deeds and its sick, psychopath, fucked-up, twisted mind E. Hoxa. But you have left out one great city you did not talk about, not my city of Elbasan founded by ancient Italy in 220 BC but I mean the classical antiquity city of APOLLONIA - founded in 600 BC, just as important in its day as Butrint even though Butrint was 300 years older. Apollonia had a population of about 50 000 people which i think it is very remarkable back in classical antiquity. The second thing you left out is in regard to communism; you talked about its iron fist rule from 1944 to 1991 not 1992 as you said. You did not say how communism came about, how it got in power. It was your country of Britain led by Churchill, you and the British and perhaps the world hold him as a great hero, using all adjectives in superlative and so on. But the truth could not be more different. Churchill was a sick man too, obsessed to beat the NAZI's and he stopped at nothing to achieve his sick goal, carrying out terrorist attacks in Norway, France, etc. Churchill supported the Albanian Communist Party led by the mind - twisted E. Hoxha. The British government supported and got the communists and its leader to power in Albania. And they British did not stop here - Albanian exiles trained in Malta in the second half of the 1940's and then these anti - communist exiles entered Albania in 1947 and again in early 1950's by sea and by land through Greece so that they could over throw the communist government. And guess what It was the British government who betrayed these albanian anti communist to be more precise it was the MI6. As soon as E. Hoxha got the power the British left or more like E. Hoxha did not like showed them the door. But the British government still loved the Albanian communist regime and its leader. So there were not relationships between the two nations but the MI6 got the intelligence and gave it to the Soviets and the Soviets brought it to communist Tirana So those those anti-communist albanian exiles were betrayed by the British MI6 and they were slaughtered the Albanian secret police or as you called it "the Sigurime). The secret police knew exactly the time and the place where these albanian exiles were coming and where. lived in that regime. So you did not mentioned it. Anyway when of if you come back to Albania, you should go to Apollonia and make a short documentary about it and also you should stated in your documentary that it was the doing of the British government led by the obsessed Churchill that the communist took power in Albania in Nov 1944, and it was the British government again who ever led it from 1945 and the MI6 who consolidated the communist government in Albania.

[Arber-]

Albania was also in Macedonia Empire and Alexander and Philipp || build a lot of cities in today’s Albania

[MensurKlobocista]

If it wasn't for the ILLYRIANS THE ROMAN EMPIRE WOULD'VE LOST ITS EMPIRE 300 YEARS BEFORE THE GREATEST ROMAN EMPERORS WERE ILLRIANS MADE EMPERORS IN THE BATTLEFIELDS CONSTANTINE THE GREAT GOTHIGUS DIOCLETIAN THE GOLDEN YEARS WERE DURING ILLYRIAN RULE WE WERE THE WARRIIRS OF MACEDONIAN EMPIRE ROMAN EMPIRE AND FOR THE VATICAN PER SAY

[tonitonillyrian]

you cannot visit my country, even call it Greco-Roman, when they are born from Albanians . Illyrian . please stop this theater. in the time of the Albanians, the Greeks and the Romans had not yet been born.
🦅🦅🇦🇱🇦🇱🦅🦅

[blackcat.]

Romans, Greeks and ottomans occupied but could not conquer hence being Albania today. Just stating the facts. Lol 😂

[j.C]

Albaneze mensen hebben bijzondere geschiedenis, al 2000 jaar oud . En voor de kriste, laten mensen beter lezen voor hun eigen best wil .om dat mensen in kosove en albanie kennen eigen geschiedenis nog niet helemaal . Mensen in kosove dente nog dat se moslims zijn . En dat is jammer . Dat betekent ! Zijn nog niet zo slim . En dat is zonde . Jammer genoeg,

[nikosmarinellis]

Albanians are the only nation in the Balkans that fully surrendered to Ottoman Turks. They were the most loyal to Turks up to 1912. For that reason even today Albania is majority Muslim and 3 million Turkalbanians live in Turkey. Turkish Autocrat Erdogan built a huge mosque in the centre of Tirana, Namazgase Xhamia, a symbol of Turkish cultural domination in Albania, Whereas neighboring Nations, suck as Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece kept their historical, cultural and linguistic riches and traditions, Albania failed to do so. But why? Simply because the albanian language had No Alphabet till 1908, thus it had No literature, No Poetry or even education, thus it was vulnerable to turkish-islamic influence. This of course has tremendous implications: The cultural backwardness of Albania which makes it lag behid the European family of nations.

[armandotafa]

No you're not telling history madame there's no greek empire in history there's is roman empire and you're looking at its origins. As far as greece goes it has hijacked my alphabet and the original inhabitants existence cannot be acknowledged for some reason nor can they speak or learn their language

[luanpebro]

We wolkom evrey one in Albenia, but no't like this to com in my Contry, and speeking abote Greeks and Romans for our, castels, wey no't go to Grees and speek for Arvanites uo the are, to tall them 200, years ago in Grees wes speeking Arvanitika, Albenian, and to day the speek Albenian lanuguage, but the no't larning in Scol, but the are praud to speek Albenian, language, is one holders language in World,

[rockykrass]

Emperor Justinian made it "Canonical Law" and he had it from the Illyrian tribes, and today all churches, education laws, courts, governments of the entire western world are governed by it, and our national hero Lek Dugagjini used it in the century 13, and later also Gj.K. Skenderbeu against the Ottoman conqueror, and later also the best strategist of P.Osmane Suleiman the Magnificent

[renren]

why do you title and blood feuds? Romans weren't in Iliria, but were the Ilirians who make you the Etrusc discovery

[rolandmarku]

I have the blood Ilirian, a have the blood Ilirian!