Key Facts
- Siege duration
- Early 1477 to June 1478
- Siege attempt number
- Fourth and final siege of Krujë
- Years after Skanderbeg's death
- ~10 years
- Fate of male defenders
- Massacred by Ottomans despite promised safe passage
- Fate of female defenders
- Taken as slaves by Ottoman forces
Strategic Narrative Overview
The fourth Ottoman siege of Krujë began in early 1477 and lasted over a year. The besieging Ottoman forces cut off supply lines, reducing the garrison and population to severe starvation. With no relief forthcoming and morale shattered, the defenders could not break the blockade. Sultan Mehmed II offered safe passage to all defenders in exchange for surrender, and the exhausted garrison accepted his terms in June 1478.
01 / The Origins
Following the death of Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg in 1468, the main military architect of Albanian resistance against the Ottoman Empire, the defenders of Krujë were left without their foremost commander. The Ottomans under Sultan Mehmed II had previously failed three times to take the city and renewed their campaign to consolidate control over Albania and the western Balkans, a strategically vital corridor toward Italy.
03 / The Outcome
Upon the city's surrender, the Ottomans violated their pledge: all men in Krujë were massacred and the women were enslaved. The fall of Krujë effectively ended organized Albanian resistance and brought the region under firm Ottoman control. Albania would remain part of the Ottoman Empire for several centuries, transforming the demographic, religious, and political character of the region.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Mehmed II.
Side B
1 belligerent
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.