Land of the Eagle: A Timeline of Albania Quiz

In antiquity, what is now Albania was inhabited by the Illyrians, a group of tribes who spoke an Indo-European language: a large part of the Balkan Peninsula came to be known as Illyria to the Greeks and Romans. The first account of these peoples is found in the "Periplus of the Euxine Sea", a text written in Greek in the 4th century BC to serve as a guidebook to those traveling in the region of the Black Sea. The first Illyrian kingdom was founded by Bardylis around 400 BC; the most powerful kingdom of the region, however, emerged in the 3rd century BC, controlling territories that included parts of Greece. However, the Illyrians were defeated by Rome in a series of wars, which lasted from 229 to 168 BC - the year in which Gentius, the last Illyrian king, was defeated and captured by the Romans. The territory became part of the Roman provinces of Dalmatia, Macedonia and Moesia Superior.

Another important kingdom that eventually lost its fight against Rome was Epirus, located in present-day southern Albania and northwestern Greece. Pyrrhus, the King of Epirus who fought a five-year war (280-275 BC) against the Roman Republic, and was eventually defeated in spite of his powerful army and his skills as a military leader, has became proverbial because of the high human toll of his victories over the Romans. In fact, a "Pyrrhic victory" is one in which the losses on the victor's side are nearly as heavy as those sustained by the losing side.

In 395, when the split between Western and Eastern Roman Empire occurred, the territory of present-day Albania became part of the Eastern (or Byzantine) Empire - a state of affairs that lasted for many centuries. Nearly one and a half century later, the Principality of Arbanon (Arbėria) was established in north-central Albania by a nobleman named Progon, with the city of Krujė as his capital. For a few years, the Principality enjoyed a large measure of autonomy from the Byzantine Empire, becoming fully independent in 1204 - the year of the Fourth Crusade, when Constantinople was sacked by the Crusaders and the Empire splintered in a number of smaller states. One of these, the Despotate of Epirus, invaded the Principality of Arbanon in 1216, putting an end to its independence.

The Greek name Arbanon comes from the name of the Albanoi, one of the Illyrian tribes that lived in the region during antiquity. During the Middle Ages, Albania was called Arbėria: this name was later replaced by Shqipėria, usually translated as "land of the eagle". Ethnic Albanians refer to themselves as Shqiptar ("children of eagles"), while the term Arbėreshė designates the Albanian ethnolinguistic group who lives in Southern Italy and Sicily.

After the dissolution of the Principality of Arbanon in 1252, Albanian chiefs were keen on regaining a measure of freedom from successor states of the Byzantine Empire such as the Despotate of Epirus and the Empire of Nicaea. In February 1272 they entered into an agreement with Charles I of Anjou, King of Sicily, who had already taken possession of the city of Durazzo (now Durrės). Charles then proclaimed himself King of Albania, hoping to use this foothold in the Balkan Peninsula to launch an overland invasion of the Byzantine Empire. However, the Byzantines foiled this attempt, promptly recovering most of Albania. A period of instability followed for most of the 14th century, during which various principalities were established on the Albanian territory.

Charles I of Anjou was the youngest son of Louis VIII of France, who became a powerful lord through marriage to the heiress of Provence, and then by being bestowed the counties of Anjou and Maine by his brother, King Louis IX. His Mediterranean empire, begun with his conquest of Sicily in 1264, did not last long, and he died in the early days of 1285.

Gjergi Kastrioti (1405-1468) belonged to one of Albania's most prominent noble houses, which in the 15th century controlled a Principality in the country's north-central part. Sent as a hostage to the Ottoman court when he was a child, he trained in the elite corps of the Janissaries, earning the nickname of Skanderbeg (from the Turkish "Iskander bey", meaning "Lord Alexander") for his military skill, compared to that of Alexander the Great. For many years he remained loyal to the Ottoman sultan, serving as governor (sanyakbey) of Dibra, a region now shared by Albania and North Macedonia - until his defection from the Ottoman army in 1443. He renounced Islam, reverting to his native Christian faith, and - with the patronage of the Venetians - in 1444 established a military alliance with other Albanian nobles known as the League of Lezhė.

Skanderbeg's campaign against the Ottomans lasted for 25 years. Though his army was smaller and not as well-equipped as the Ottoman forces, his use of guerrilla tactics - facilitated by Albania's rugged territory - proved unexpectedly successful. In spite of some major setbacks, Skanderbeg managed to secure support from Pope Nicholas V and consolidate his power, resisting efforts by Sultan Mehmed II to conquer Albania. After a decisive victory in the Battle of Albulena (1457), Skanderbeg was given the title of "Athleta Christi et Defensor Fidei" (Champion of Christ and Defender of the Faith) by Pope Callixtus III. Skanderbeg's resistance to Ottoman expansion held until the end of his life: however, decades of war had left the country in ruins, and caused the death of many Albanian nobles as well as civilians.

The flag of Albania is based on that of the League of Lezhė; the double-headed eagle was originally the emblem of the House of Kastrioti.

Though Skanderbeg's military prowess managed to keep the Ottomans in check for 25 years, it only delayed the inevitable Turkish conquest of Albania. His capital of Krujė fell to the Ottoman forces in 1478, and the following year the fall of Shkodra (now Shkodėr) marked the beginning of a domination that lasted for almost 450 years. By the end of the 15th century, Albania was entirely controlled by the Ottoman Empire, like most of the Balkan Peninsula.

While most of the Albanian nobility sought refuge in various parts of Italy, in particular Venice and the Kingdom of Naples, much of the remaining population gradually converted to Islam, which offered them advantages not available to those who continued to practice Christianity. Thanks to their embrace of the empire's dominant religion, many Albanians reached prestigious positions in the Ottoman administration, particularly in the military. In spite of its small size, Albania thus acquired a major role in the Empire, becoming one of the few European countries where Islam is still the most commonly practiced religion. Most of those conversions to Islam took place in the 17th century.

In the late 18th century, a cultural and political movement known as the Albanian Renaissance (Rilindja) - influenced by the ideals of the Enlightenment and Romanticism - began to spread throughout the country, fostering a yearning for national independence that was initially suppressed by the Ottomans. The Ottoman Empire's defeat in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 determined a rearrangement of the balance of power in the Balkan Peninsula, with three major principalities of the Empire - Serbia, Romania and Montenegro - declaring independence, and Bulgaria gaining a considerable measure of autonomy. The Treaty of San Stefano (1878), which put an official end to the conflict, determined the loss of large parts of the Albanian territory to Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria. This led to the creation of the League of Prizren to protect Albanian interests.

In over 4 centuries, Turkish domination had left a lasting mark on Albania, leaving the people without a strong national identity because of religious differences and the lack of a unified form of the language. However, the efforts of the League of Prizren sowed the seeds of the Albanian quest for independence. Following a revolt against a reform that would have kept the country divided in four provinces (vilayet), Albanian independence was officially declared on 28 November 1912 during the First Balkan War, fought by the Kingdoms of Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece and Montenegro against the Ottoman Empire.

Though Albanian sovereignty was recognized by the London Peace Conference of 1912-1913, the borders set by the subsequent Treaty of London (29 July 1913) caused many ethnic Albanians to be left outside the country. The new state, named Principality of Albania, was put under the control of an international commission: this, however, did not prevent widespread unrest, especially from that part of the population that still sided with the Ottoman Empire. Beset with political instability and economic difficulties, Albania was left in a vulnerable position - of which Italy, its neighbour across the Adriatic and Ionian Seas, promptly took advantage.

The First Republic of Albania, proclaimed in 1925, only lasted until 1928, transitioning to a monarchy headed by former Prime Minister and President Ahmed Zogu (Zog I) with the backing of Fascist Italy. During Zog's reign Albania became almost completely dependent from Italy, and was eventually invaded by Italian forces in April 1939. Benito Mussolini declared the country an Italian protectorate, and forced Zog into exile - from which he was never able to return. Though Italy aimed to expand its influence further into the Balkan Peninsula, these plans were foiled by the fierce Albanian resistance - as well as the fall of Mussolini in 1943.

After the end of the Italian Fascist regime, Albania was occupied by Nazi Germany. The occupation, however, was met by strong resistance from the National Liberation Movement, a communist organization established in 1942 with the help of neighbouring Yugoslavia. Enver Hoxha, First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania (formerly named Communist Party), a staunch admirer of Joseph Stalin, was appointed supreme commander of the National Liberation Movement. After German withdrawal at the end of 1944, Hoxha became the head of a provisional government. When the Second Republic of Albania (also known as People's Republic of Albania) was established on 10 January 1946, Hoxha became its leader.

Hoxha ruled Albania with an iron fist for over four decades, implementing extremely restrictive policies - such as the prohibition of any religious practices and the abolition of private property rights - that isolated the country from the rest of the world and forced dissidents into exile. He dealt with the challenges of ruling a poor, backward country, exhausted by decades of war, by imposing a massive modernization programme that also had positive goals, such as the elimination of illiteracy and the advancement of women's rights. Though a communist country, Albania was aligned with the USSR only until 1968, when it withdrew from the Warsaw Pact following the invasion of Czechoslovakia.

With Hoxha's death in 1985, after years of ill health, the Communist Party's stranglehold on Albania eased somehow. Although Albanians were at first largely unaware of what was transpiring elsewhere, the revolutions that occurred in 1989 in most Eastern Bloc countries encouraged part of the population to express their discontent with the established order. In 1990 Albanian students took to the streets: the protests organized in the capital Tirana in December of that year resulted in the government led by Ramiz Alia (who had replaced Hoxha) allowing political pluralism, and the subsequent foundation of the anti-communist Democratic Party.

Although the Communist Party retained its majority in the March 1991 elections, the end of its rule was delayed by only one year. The parliamentary elections held on 29 March 1992 saw the victory of the Democratic Party; a few days later, Sali Berisha was elected President. However, the transition from a communist regime to a parliamentary democracy was fraught with setbacks - due in particular to government corruption and the proliferation of pyramid schemes that caused many people to lose money and property. This eventually led to widespread civil unrest, which in 1997 claimed the lives of over 2,000 people.

The difficult years of Albania's transition from an authoritarian communist regime to a parliamentary democracy and market economy were marked by large-scale immigration - in particular to Italy, with which the country has longstanding ties. However, Albania's struggles to emerge from decades of isolation, political and social turmoil and economic hardship eventually bore fruit. Although political instability lasted well into the first decade of the 21st century, the economy grew steadily, allowing the government led by Prime Minister Edi Rama of the Socialist Party (in office since 2013, having won election three times in a row) to implement sweeping reforms.

At the 2008 Bucharest summit, Albania - which had developed closer ties with Western Europe in the years following the end of communist rule - was invited by NATO to join the organization, and became a full member on 1 April 2009. At the end of the same month, Albania applied for membership of the European Union, and was granted official candidate status in 2014. As Albania's candidacy was linked with that of North Macedonia, negotiations (due to begin in 2020) were delayed by Bulgaria by over two years, and officially started in July 2022.