Durrës

Durrës is the <a href="/facts/List_of_cities_and_towns_in_Albania/dwycByIj">second most populous city</a> of the <a href="/facts/Albania/8GP40BUD">Republic of Albania</a> and <a href="/facts/County_seat/ItAWPoWw">seat</a> of <a href="/facts/Durr%25C3%25ABs_County/UfEdlPu7">Durrës County</a> and Durrës Municipality. It is one of Albania's oldest <a href="/facts/List_of_oldest_continuously_inhabited_cities/74JX06Jp">continuously inhabited cities</a>, with roughly 2,500 years of <a href="/facts/Recorded_history/pnBxFEvW">recorded history</a>. It is located on a flat plain along the <a href="/facts/Albanian_Adriatic_Sea_Coast/tDkS6kkI">Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast</a> between the mouths of the <a href="/facts/Erzen_River/DR4CFE25">Erzen</a> and <a href="/facts/Ish%25C3%25ABm_(river)/EQDtnpXN">Ishëm</a> at the southeastern corner of the <a href="/facts/Adriatic_Sea/v5I5Jl3f">Adriatic Sea</a>. Durrës' climate is profoundly influenced by a seasonal <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_climate/gGsJAKE5">Mediterranean climate</a>.
Durrës was founded under the name of <a href="/facts/Epidamnos/uc5Cj1Cq">Epidamnos</a> around the 7th century BC, by <a href="/facts/Ancient_Greece/PTVBrWXq">ancient Greek</a> colonists from <a href="/facts/Corinth/GtvbldxS">Corinth</a> and <a href="/facts/Korkyra_(polis)/vELgVQ4K">Corcyra</a> in cooperation with the <a href="/facts/Taulantii/kRjzWYNr">Taulantii</a>, a local <a href="/facts/Illyrians/GlwCC68g">Illyrian</a> tribe. Also known as Dyrrachium, Durrës developed as it became an integral part of the <a href="/facts/Roman_Empire/l4E1aUuV">Roman Empire</a> and its successor the <a href="/facts/Byzantine_Empire/njEELXWF">Byzantine Empire</a>. The <a href="/facts/Via_Egnatia/EbMMq9DV">Via Egnatia</a> started in the city and led east across the fields, lowlands and highlands of the Balkan Peninsula to <a href="/facts/Constantinople/fLcY371n">Constantinople</a>.
In the <a href="/facts/Middle_Ages/RqzEKB9v">Middle Ages</a>, Durrës was contested between <a href="/facts/Second_Bulgarian_Empire/zAWspoUj">Bulgarians</a>, <a href="/facts/Venetian_Empire/zB4WgCRo">Venetians</a>, <a href="/facts/Albanian_principalities/ltV4kPx5">local Albanian noble families</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Ottoman_Empire/6QvfTRsg">Ottoman Empire</a>. The Ottomans ultimately prevailed, ruling the city for more than 400 years from 1501 until 1912. Following the <a href="/facts/Albanian_Declaration_of_Independence/nrAvytXn">Albanian Declaration of Independence</a>, the city served as the capital of the <a href="/facts/Principality_of_Albania/KYWDsu8W">Principality of Albania</a> for a short period of time. Subsequently, it was annexed by the <a href="/facts/Kingdom_of_Italy/X5hxYBvF">Kingdom of Italy</a> in the <a href="/facts/Interwar_period/EWLuS41R">interwar period</a> and was occupied by <a href="/facts/Nazi_Germany/8kRbqRpo">Nazi Germany</a> during World War II. Durrës experienced a strong expansion in its demography and economic activity under the <a href="/facts/People%2527s_Socialist_Republic_of_Albania/P0M3yl47">People's Socialist Republic of Albania</a>.
The transport connections, concentration of economic institutions and industrial tradition underlie Durrës' leading economic position in Albania. It is served by the <a href="/facts/Port_of_Durr%25C3%25ABs/0TT1bCKK">Port of Durrës</a>, one of the largest on the Adriatic Sea, which connects the city to other neighbouring countries. Its most considerable attraction is the <a href="/facts/Durr%25C3%25ABs_Amphitheatre/F8kbSUty">Amphitheatre of Durrës</a> that is included on the <a href="/facts/List_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_Albania/PoKIxyfK">Albanian tentative list</a> for designation as a <a href="/facts/UNESCO/QSbkRv3o">UNESCO</a> <a href="/facts/World_Heritage_Site/6AbWWKV4">World Heritage Site</a>. Once having a capacity for 20,000 people, it is the largest amphitheatre in the <a href="/facts/List_of_Roman_amphitheatres/qftJSrFP">Balkan Peninsula</a>.

Durrës open-in-new

Durrës