Dhimitër Progoni, Prince of Albania

Dhimitër Progoni was the the third and the last Prince of Albania from the Progon Dynasty, reigning between 1208 and 1216. He succeeded his brother Gjin and brough the principality to its climax. Western sources of the time attribute him the titles "judex" (judge) and "princeps Arbanorum" (prince of the Albanians), while Byzatine records refer to him as "megas archon" (grand archon). Marrying Komnena, daughter of the Serbian Prince Stefan Nemanja and granddaughter of the Byzantine Emperor Alexios III Angelos, he also earned the exalted Byzantine title "panhypersebast".

Dhimitër’s marriage with Nemanja’s daughter did not rule out the risk of a Serbian expansion toward the Albanian domains. However, in 1204, the most serious threat came from the Venetian Duchy of Durrës, a Latin entity formed after the Fourth Crusade in the former territories of the Byzantine Empire. In search for allies, Dhimitër signed in 1209 a treaty with the Republic of Raguza and began negotiations with Pope Innocent III regarding his and his subjects’ conversion to Catholicism. This is considered a tactful move, which Dhimitër undertook to establish ties with Western Europe against Venice.

Dhimitër had no son to succeed him. His wife, Komnena, married an Albanian noble, Grigor Kamona, who later became Prince of Albania. [ [http://www.albasoul.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=245 Zeqo, Moikom. "Kur lindi shteti tek shqiptarët?". Albasoul.com] ]

References

*Jubani, Zef et al. "Historia e popullit shqiptar: për shkollat e mesme". Libri Shkollor: Prishtinë, 2003. 48.

ee also

*History of Albania
*Monarchs of Albania