Abdyl Frashëri
Encyclopedia
Abdyl Frashëri People's Hero of Albania
(1839, Frashër
, Përmet District
, Albania
– 23 October 1892, Istanbul
, Turkey
) was an Albanian diplomat, politician, writer, and a first political ideologue of the Albanian National Awakening through the League of Prizren
. He is the elder brother of other nationalist Albanian activists, Naim
and Sami.
(Përmet District
, Albania
, then Ottoman Empire
) into the family of a declassed Spahi
. He was the older brother of Naim Frashëri
and Sami Frashëri. Abdyl Frashëri spent the first part of life in his village of birth until 18 he moved to Ioannina
for work.
(Komiteti Shqiptar i Janinës), which had been formed the same year, he drafted the project of declaration of independence by Albania. However, his hopes of an independent Albanian state were heavily threatened from Albania
's rivals, such as Greece
and Serbia
, which were supported by the Russian Empire
. Frashëri organization held talks with representatives of Greece
in July and December 1877 to form a political and military Greco-Albanian coalition and use it against the Ottoman Empire
. In the December 1877 talks Stephanos Skouloudis
, the secret Emissary to the Albanians outside of Greece, was the Greek counterpart. Skouloudis rejected the idea of an independent Albania within its ethnic boundaries and the talks failed.
), was elected chairman of the Central Committee for Defending Albanian Rights
(Komiteti i Stambollit), which was formed in Istanbul. He gave an important contribution to the elaboration of the political platform that the national movement should adopt after the Russian victory over the Ottoman Empire, and especially after the signoff of the Treaty of San Stefano
. According to Abdyl Frashëri the conditions created by the expansionistic trends of Russia and the interests of Western powers to keep the Ottoman Empire alive, and the intentions of Albania's Balkan neighbors to take Albanian lands, the most appropriate solution would be the creation of an autonomous Albanian state under the suzerainty
of the Ottoman Empire, or, at least by creating a unique vilayet under the Ottoman Empire. If this unique Albanian vilayet
would be realized, it would sanctionate Albania's borders.
. After the founding of the League, which adopted this platform, Abdyl Frashëri distinguished himself as the leader of the League. Its main activities developed especially in areas Janina and Kosovo vilayets. He participated in almost all the major assemblies were organized by the General Council of the League of Albanian or its interregional committees. In the League of Prizren's founding assembly he was elected chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. On 1 November 1878 he represented Toskëria in the First Assembly of Debar
, where a resolution was adopted to formally require from the Sublime Porte the creation of the autonomous united vilayet of Albania. He was the principal organizer of the Assembly of Preveza
in January 1879, which managed to prevent the release of Çameria in favor of Greece.
In the spring of the year 1879 Abdyl Frasheri headed the Prizren League delegation to visit the capitals of major Powers to protect the integrity of the Albanian lands and the rights of the Albanians. Abdyl Frasheri was also the main promoter to form an interim government. He also led the National Assembly of Gjirokastër
that took the decision to create an autonomous Albanian state. He was within the movement that the Albanians should be armed.
Abdyl Frashëri, defended the program of Gjirokastër in the Second Assembly of Debar, where as always led the radical wing of the movement. Although the autonomy program was not accepted by representatives of the moderate power, he moved to Kosovo
and there, along with he started to put into action the decisions taken at Gjirokastër. He became a member of the interim government that was formed in Prizren in early 1881 and he gave an important contribution to the political and military preparations that were made for the protection of autonomy against the Ottoman military expedition.
in 1978, on the 100th anniversary of the League of Prizren.
People's Hero of Albania
Hero of Albania, more properly Hero of the People is the highest title that can be bestowed on a citizen of Albania.-Creation:The title was created in 1945 and the Albanian parliament confirmed it by Law in 1954 and then reconfirmed by Law Nr.6133 on February 12, 1980...
(1839, Frashër
Frashër
Frashër is a municipality in the Përmet District, Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. The municipality consists of the villages Frashër, Zavalan, Ogren-Kostrec, Gostivisht, Miçan, Vërçisht, Kreshovë and Soropull.-Notable people:...
, Përmet District
Përmet District
The District of Përmet is one of the thirty-six districts of Albania, part of Gjirokastër County. Its population of 22,029 includes Aromanian minorities. The district has an area of 930 km². It is in the south-east of the country, and its capital is Përmet...
, Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
– 23 October 1892, Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
) was an Albanian diplomat, politician, writer, and a first political ideologue of the Albanian National Awakening through the League of Prizren
League of Prizren
The League for the Defense of the Rights of the Albanian Nation commonly known as the League of Prizren was an Albanian political organization founded on 10 June 1878 in Prizren, in the Kosovo province of the Ottoman Empire....
. He is the elder brother of other nationalist Albanian activists, Naim
Naim Frashëri
Naim Frashëri was an Albanian poet and writer. He was one of the most prominent figures of the Albanian National Awakening of the 19th century, together with his two brothers Sami and Abdyl...
and Sami.
Early life
Was born in FrashërFrashër
Frashër is a municipality in the Përmet District, Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. The municipality consists of the villages Frashër, Zavalan, Ogren-Kostrec, Gostivisht, Miçan, Vërçisht, Kreshovë and Soropull.-Notable people:...
(Përmet District
Përmet District
The District of Përmet is one of the thirty-six districts of Albania, part of Gjirokastër County. Its population of 22,029 includes Aromanian minorities. The district has an area of 930 km². It is in the south-east of the country, and its capital is Përmet...
, Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, then Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
) into the family of a declassed Spahi
Sipahi
Sipahi was the name of several Ottoman cavalry corps...
. He was the older brother of Naim Frashëri
Naim Frashëri
Naim Frashëri was an Albanian poet and writer. He was one of the most prominent figures of the Albanian National Awakening of the 19th century, together with his two brothers Sami and Abdyl...
and Sami Frashëri. Abdyl Frashëri spent the first part of life in his village of birth until 18 he moved to Ioannina
Ioannina
Ioannina , often called Jannena within Greece, is the largest city of Epirus, north-western Greece, with a population of 70,203 . It lies at an elevation of approximately 500 meters above sea level, on the western shore of lake Pamvotis . It is located within the Ioannina municipality, and is the...
for work.
Head of the Albanian Committee of Ioannina: Work for independence of Albania
Frashëri distinguished himself as a political personality since 1877, when the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) seemed to severely jeopardize the integrity of the Albanian lands. As the chairman of the Albanian Committee of JaninaAlbanian Committee of Janina
The Albanian Committee of Janina was an Albanian organization of the 19th century with the aim of defending Albanian rights.The Albanian Committee of Janina was formed in May 1877 in Ioannina, modern Greece, then a city of the Ottoman Empire by Abdyl Frashëri from Frashër, modern Albania, a...
(Komiteti Shqiptar i Janinës), which had been formed the same year, he drafted the project of declaration of independence by Albania. However, his hopes of an independent Albanian state were heavily threatened from Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
's rivals, such as Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
and Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, which were supported by the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. Frashëri organization held talks with representatives of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
in July and December 1877 to form a political and military Greco-Albanian coalition and use it against the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. In the December 1877 talks Stephanos Skouloudis
Stephanos Skouloudis
Stephanos Skouloudis was a Greek banker, diplomat and prime minister.- Early life :He was born in Istanbul on November 23, 1838. His parents, John and Zena Skouloudis, were originally from Crete and his father was a businessman in Constantinople, where Skouloudis completed grade school...
, the secret Emissary to the Albanians outside of Greece, was the Greek counterpart. Skouloudis rejected the idea of an independent Albania within its ethnic boundaries and the talks failed.
Head of Central Committee for the Defence of the Rights of the Albanian People: Work for autonomy of Albania
At the end of 1877, Abdyl Frasheri (then a Member of Parliament of the second parliament of the Ottoman EmpireOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
), was elected chairman of the Central Committee for Defending Albanian Rights
Central Committee for Defending Albanian Rights
The Central Committee for Defending Albanian Rights was formed in the city of Istanbul, Turkey, then Ottoman Empire in 1877 by an influential group of Albanian intellectuals, patriots, and politicians, such as Sami Frashëri, Pashko Vasa, Abdyl Frashëri, Jani Vreto, Ymer Prizreni, Zija Prishtina,...
(Komiteti i Stambollit), which was formed in Istanbul. He gave an important contribution to the elaboration of the political platform that the national movement should adopt after the Russian victory over the Ottoman Empire, and especially after the signoff of the Treaty of San Stefano
Treaty of San Stefano
The Preliminary Treaty of San Stefano was a treaty between Russia and the Ottoman Empire signed at the end of the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–78...
. According to Abdyl Frashëri the conditions created by the expansionistic trends of Russia and the interests of Western powers to keep the Ottoman Empire alive, and the intentions of Albania's Balkan neighbors to take Albanian lands, the most appropriate solution would be the creation of an autonomous Albanian state under the suzerainty
Suzerainty
Suzerainty occurs where a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which controls its foreign affairs while allowing the tributary vassal state some limited domestic autonomy. The dominant entity in the suzerainty relationship, or the more powerful entity itself, is called a...
of the Ottoman Empire, or, at least by creating a unique vilayet under the Ottoman Empire. If this unique Albanian vilayet
Albanian Vilayet
The Albanian Vilayet was a projected vilayet of the Ottoman Empire in the western Balkan Peninsula, which was to include the four Ottoman vilayets with substantial ethnic Albanian populations: Kosovo Vilayet, Scutari Vilayet, Monastir Vilayet and Janina Vilayet...
would be realized, it would sanctionate Albania's borders.
Creation of the League of Prizren
As one of the main authors of the political platform of the Central Committee of Istanbul, which Abdyl Frashëri publicly stated through articles published in several organs of the European press during the spring of year 1878, he participated actively in establishing the League of PrizrenLeague of Prizren
The League for the Defense of the Rights of the Albanian Nation commonly known as the League of Prizren was an Albanian political organization founded on 10 June 1878 in Prizren, in the Kosovo province of the Ottoman Empire....
. After the founding of the League, which adopted this platform, Abdyl Frashëri distinguished himself as the leader of the League. Its main activities developed especially in areas Janina and Kosovo vilayets. He participated in almost all the major assemblies were organized by the General Council of the League of Albanian or its interregional committees. In the League of Prizren's founding assembly he was elected chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. On 1 November 1878 he represented Toskëria in the First Assembly of Debar
Debar
Debar is a city in the western part of the Republic of Macedonia, near the border with Albania, on the road from Struga to Gostivar. It is the seat of Debar Municipality.-Geography:...
, where a resolution was adopted to formally require from the Sublime Porte the creation of the autonomous united vilayet of Albania. He was the principal organizer of the Assembly of Preveza
Assembly of Preveza
The Assembly of Preveza was a meeting of Albanian delegates from 11 to 13 January 1879, in Preveza, Ottoman Empire, aiming to halt the annexation of Epirus by Greece, following the Congress of Berlin....
in January 1879, which managed to prevent the release of Çameria in favor of Greece.
In the spring of the year 1879 Abdyl Frasheri headed the Prizren League delegation to visit the capitals of major Powers to protect the integrity of the Albanian lands and the rights of the Albanians. Abdyl Frasheri was also the main promoter to form an interim government. He also led the National Assembly of Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër is a city in southern Albania with a population of 43,000. Lying in the historical region of Epirus, it is the capital of both the Gjirokastër District and the larger Gjirokastër County...
that took the decision to create an autonomous Albanian state. He was within the movement that the Albanians should be armed.
Abdyl Frashëri, defended the program of Gjirokastër in the Second Assembly of Debar, where as always led the radical wing of the movement. Although the autonomy program was not accepted by representatives of the moderate power, he moved to Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
and there, along with he started to put into action the decisions taken at Gjirokastër. He became a member of the interim government that was formed in Prizren in early 1881 and he gave an important contribution to the political and military preparations that were made for the protection of autonomy against the Ottoman military expedition.
Suppression of the League of Prizren, arrest and death
After the League of Prizren was suppressed by the Ottoman Empire in 1881, Abdyl Frashëri was arrested and sentenced to death by an Ottoman Special Trial, but the sentence was returned to life in prison. However, after 3 years in prison (1882–1885) and an extradition to Istanbul, he was released for health reasons in 1892, with the conditional to give up any patriotic or political activity. Although ill and isolated, he never gave up his patriotic ideas until his death, the same year of his release in Istanbul on 23 October 1892. His remains were brought to TiranaTirana
Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...
in 1978, on the 100th anniversary of the League of Prizren.