Mat District
Mat District (Albanian: Rrethi i Matit) was one of the thirty-six districts of Albania (which were dissolved in 2000) that is now part of Dibër County. It is named after the Mat River, that flows through the district. It had a population of 48,803[1] (2010 estimate), and an area of 1,029 km². Its capital was Burrel.
District of Mat Rrethi i Matit | |
---|---|
Map showing MAT District within Albania | |
Country | |
County | Diber County |
Capital | Burrel |
Government | |
• Hereditary Governor | Crown Prince Leka II |
Administrative divisions
The district consisted of the following municipalities:
Klos Municipality
|
Mat Municipality
|
Note: - urban municipalities in bold
History
At the beginning of the 15th century the Lord of Matja was Gjon Kastrioti, father of Skanderbeg.[2] When Skanderbeg began his rebellion against Ottomans he also became the lord of Mat and some other territories as well.[3] A synod of Catholic archdiocese was held in Matja in 1462 by Pal Egnelli known for his baptismal formula.[4]
Notable locals
- Zog of Albania, King of the Albanians
- Tarhoncu Ahmed Pasha, Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire
Hereditary Governors
Name | Portrait | Birth and death | Reign started | Reign ended | Marriages | Succession right | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Zogu Pasha
[Zogu the Great] |
? | ? | ? | Unknown wife | ||
2 | 'Abdu'llah Bey Zogolli | ? | ? | ? | Unknown wife | son of
Zogu Pasha | |
3 | Ahmad Bey Zogolli | ? | ? | ? | Unknown wife | son of
'Abdu'llah Bey Zogolli | |
4 | Mahmud Pasha Zogolli | ? | ? | ? | Unknown wife
[4 childs] |
son of Ahmad Bey Zogolli | |
5 | Xhelal Pasha Zogolli | ? | ? | ? | Ruhijé Hanem
[4 childs] |
son of Mahmud Pasha Zogolli | |
6 | Riza Zogolli | ? | ? | ? | Never married | son of Xhelal Pasha Zogolli | |
7 | Xhemal Pasha Zogu | 1860
Castle Burgajet (Albania) – 1911 |
? | 1911 | Zenja Malika Khanum
1880 [1 child] Sadiya Khanum 1887 [8 childs] |
brother of Riza Zogolli | |
8 | Zog I | 8 October 1895
Burgajet Castle (Ottoman Empire) – 9 April 1961 (aged 65) |
1911 | 9 April 1961 | Countess Geraldine Apponyi de Nagy-Apponyi
April 1938 [1 child] |
Son of Xhemal Pasha Zogu | |
9 | Leka I | 5 April 1939
– 30 November 2011 (aged 72) |
9 April 1961 | 30 November 2011 | Susan Cullen-Ward
1975 [1 child] |
Son of
Zog I | |
10 | Leka II | 26 March 1982
(age 34) |
30 November 2011 | Present | Elia Zaharia
2016 |
Son of
Leka I |
Gallery
- Ottoman Bridge in Klos
- Klos, Mat
- King Zog monument in Burrel
- Lake of Shkopet
References
- "POPULLSIA SIPAS RRETHEVE, 2001-2010". Albanian Institute of Statistics. Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2010-09-09.
- Franz Babinger (January 1992). Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time. Princeton University Press. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-691-01078-6. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
....his father, lord of the Matja district in Upper Albania...
- John Musachi (2003). Early Albania: A Reader of Historical Texts, 11th-17th Centuries. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 53. ISBN 978-3-447-04783-8. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
Later, Lord Scanderbeg became not only Lord of Mat but also Lord of Kruja, of Dibra and of Birina, i.e. of Randisia, Tomorista, Misia and the Gjonem country down to the sea.
- Robert Elsie (24 December 2012). A Biographical Dictionary of Albanian History. I.B.Tauris. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-78076-431-3. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
On his return to Durrës in 1462, Paulus Angelus held a synod in Matja to reorganise his archdiocese. In this connection he is remembered as the author of the baptismal formula he introduced in Albanian, one of the rare records of the Albanian