Dukagjini Family

The Dukagjini family was one of the most important feudal families in medieval Albania.

Origins

The term "Ducagini d'Arbania" is first mentioned in a seventh-century document from Ragusa (Dubrovnik).^[1] According to this document, the Ducagini instigated a revolt against Byzantine rule in Bosnia and, in particular, in the city port of Ragusa where they were said to have intervened twice, coming de terra ferma, i.e. overland. They failed and had to submit after the second unsuccessful intervention in Ragusa.^[1]

The name Ducagini is thought to derive from the Latin dux (alb. Duka) and the common Albanian name Ghin (Gjin). In fact, in a document dated to 1281, an Albanian chieftain referred as dux Ginius Tanuschus Albanensis^[1] is mentioned as an enemy of Angevin rule in Albania and that he was later captured and imprisoned for his actions. ^[2]

Branches

The origins of the family's branches are not clear. In the 15th century, sources appear for two separate branches of the Dukagjin family. The representative of one branch, Gjergj Dukagjini appears as an owner of some villages near Lezhë and a commander of a force of 40 cavalry and 100 infantry. It appears that Gjergj Dukagjini died before 1409. According to the chronicle of Gjin Muzaka, Gjergj Dukagjini had three sons, Gjergj, Tanush and Nikollë Dukagjini. Nikollë Dukagjini is first mentioned in a document dated to 1409. He was a participant in League of Lezhë, a supporter of Scanderbeg in the Albanian-Ottoman wars and appears to have died somewhere between 1452-1454. His sons, Draga and Gjergj Dukagjini who were killed around 1462, played minor political roles.^[2]

The names of the other branches of Dukagjini's family are mentioned in a Ragusian document from 1387. The brothers Lekë and Paul Dukagjini are described as owners of Lezhë who secured a free pass to Ragusan merchants in their dominion.

Pal Dukagjini (died 1393) had five sons named Tanush (the little), Progon, Pal (II), Andrea, and Gjon Dukagjini. Pal II Dukagjini was killed in 1402 in Dalmatia while he was returning from Venice; Progon died in 1394. In a later document Tanush (the little) Dukagjini appears as an ally of Kojë Zaharia and appears to have died somewhere before 1433. Andrea Dukagjini died in 1416, while his brother Gjon became a priest and appears to have died in 1446.

Lekë Dukagjini had two sons, Progon and Tanush (Major) Dukagjini and one daughter whose name does not appear in the sources. Progon Dukagjini married the girl of Karl Thopia and appears to have been killed in 1402 under Venetian service. Tanush (Major) Dukagjini moved into Shkodër with his family, composed of two sons Pal and Lekë Dukagjini and two girls, of whom we only know one's name, Kale. In 1438, Tanush (Major) Dukagjini was interned in Padua and is not mentioned again in the chronicles.^[3]

His little son, Lekë Dukagjini (born in 1420), did not play a great political role and is mentioned for the last time in 1451, as an enemy of Venice. His other son Pal Dukagjini (1411–1458) participated in the League of Lezhë and was an ally of Scanderbeg. Pal had four sons, Lekë, Nikollë, Progon and Gjergj Dukagjini.^[4]

The name of Gjergj Dukagjini is mentioned only once in historical sources, while his brother Progon died before 1471. The other two brothers, Lekë and Nikollë Dukagjini, left the country after the capture of Shkodër in 1479, going to Italy. They returned in 1481 trying to liberate their territories from the Ottomans. One of their sons, Progon Dukagjini tried to do the same in 1501 but with little success.^[4]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Hammond, Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière (1976). Migrations and invasions in Greece and adjacent areas. Noyes Press. p. 56. ISBN 9780815550471. http://books.google.com/books?id=O9saAAAAYAAJ&q=dukagjini+%2B+ragusa&dq=dukagjini+%2B+ragusa&hl=en&ei=8XewTYXmCsKUOpDNifsI&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CDgQ6AEwAQ. Retrieved 21 April 2011. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Historia e Popullit Shqiptar Albanian Academy of Science Tiranë 2002,Toena p. 264
3. ^ The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest Author John Van Antwerp Fine Edition reprint, illustrated Publisher University of Michigan Press, 1994 ISBN 0472082604, 9780472082605 p. 535-536
4. ^ ^{a b} Historia e Popullit Shqiptar Albanian Academy of Science Tiranë 2002,Toena p. 265