Rozafa Fortress

Rozafa Castle (Albanian: Kalaja e Rozafës) or Shkodër Castle (Albanian: Kalaja e Shkodrës) is a castle in the city of Shkodër, in northwestern Albania. It rises imposingly on a rocky hill, 130 metres (430 ft) above sea level, surrounded by the Buna and Drin rivers. Shkodër is the seat of Shkodër County, and is one of Albania's oldest and most historic towns, as well as an important cultural and economic centre.

The hill was settled since the Early Bronze Age. The earliest fortification walls are dated to the 4th-3rd century BCE constituting the citadel of the Illyrian city of Skodra, which together with various sites of the lower city, shows the growing and vibrant nature of the Illyrian capital under the Labeatae, especially during the reign of king Gentius. Nevertheless, the visible walls of the castle are mostly of Venetian construction.

Text adapted from “Rozafa Castle” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Rozafa Fortress ranks #378 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #1 of the 23 mapped in Albania. Founded c. 1450, it is older than 48% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 434 atlas entries founded in the 15th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 11,295 times in the last 60 days, more than 94% of the atlas. 2 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Shkodër, 3 km away. See how Albania compares in the castle statistics.

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Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗