Burgajet Castle

Coordinates: 41°38′24″N 20°3′16″E / 41.64000°N 20.05444°E / 41.64000; 20.05444 Castle Burgajet was a large fortified house, located in Burgajet in the Dibër County of Albania. It was the birthplace, and family seat, of King Zog I of the Albanians.[1][2]

Jason Tomes described it thus;

a solid rectangular building with two small wings facing into a courtyard. This was Castle Burgajet, citadel of the chieftain of Mati...the biggest house for miles and the only one with glazed windows. The interior was even more distinctive...Fancy furnishings, imported from Austria, had recently become the hallmark of wealth. Salon chairs, draperies, table-lamps, and bric-a-brac...[3]

His family were the traditional feudal rulers of the Mat District of Albania and were large landowners.

On ascending the throne, Zog took up residence in a palace in Tirana (with a Summer Palace in Durrës - see image). This (along with it being looted and set alight to be cont.) was a factor leading to Castle Burgajet falling into ruin.

Before King Zog was forced to flee Albania he had an ambitious plan to rebuild the Castle but this never transpired; during his reign, however, a plaque commemorated his birth there.[3] When asked why he did not rebuild Burgajet, Zog replied "I was too busy rebuilding my country."

References

  1. ↑ Encyclopædia Britannica Online
  2. ↑ Albanian Royal Family - Royal Residences
  3. 1 2 "King Zog; Self-Made Monarch of Albania, Jason Tomes P. 8, ISBN 0-7509-3077-2


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