Kanina Castle

Kaninë, Albania

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Kanina Castle, known locally as Kalaja e Kaninës, stands on a hill 380 meters above sea level about six kilometers from the coastal city of Vlorë in southwestern Albania.

Originally founded in the 3rd century BC on the site of an ancient Illyrian settlement inhabited by the Amantes tribe, the castle played a key strategic role in guarding the Bay of Vlora and connecting inland routes with the coast. Over the centuries, it evolved from an Illyrian stronghold into a fortified town under Byzantine control, reconstructed by Emperor Justinian I in the 6th century, and later became the seat of the Principality of Valona in the 14th century.

The castle served as both a military fortress and a feudal residence, notably home to the family of Gjergj Araniti, father of Donika Kastrioti, the wife of Albania’s national hero Skanderbeg. Its layout included thick defensive walls, towers, gates known locally as the Village Gate, King’s Gate, and Bey’s Gate, along with cisterns, palaces, churches, and mosques within the enclosure.

Throughout its long history, Kanina Castle witnessed Byzantine, Norman, Serbian, Venetian, and Ottoman rule and endured damage from conflicts including the Venetian attacks of 1690, World War I, and the 1920 War of Vlora.