Kastrioti (kephale)


Kastrioti or Castriot of Kanina was a kephale of Kanina in 1368. He was probably the first member of the Kastrioti family mentioned in historical documents. If so, he was the father of Pal Kastrioti, grandfather of Gjon Kastrioti and great-grandfather of Skanderbeg. Some scholars believe that his first name was Branilo, while other scholars suggest that this belief is the result of misreading a historical document.

Family

Kephale Kastrioti was probably a member of the Kastrioti family; if so he was the first member mentioned in historical documents. According to Noel Malcolm, the Kastrioti family was originally from western Kosovo, from where Kastrioti came to Kanina. It is assumed that Kastrioti received his estates in Albania from Serbian Emperor Dušan after the latter captured Berat, Valona and Kanina in 1345. Kastrioti served on the court of Serbian prince who ruled the Principality of Valona. Kastrioti's title in 1368 was kephale of Kanina. He governed Kanina castle as its kephale or castellan. Because of the position kephale Kastrioti had on the court in Valona, Milan Šufflay refers to Valona as the cradle of power of the Kastrioti family.
Kephale Kastrioti was probably ancestor to Gjon Kastrioti and Skanderbeg. His son was probably Pal Kastrioti, who had three sons: Konstantin, Aleksa and Gjon who was Skanderbeg's father.

Reign

According to some scholars in 1356 Kastrioti was a captain in the service of Aleksandar Đorić though there is an opinion that Đorić was not a feudal lord but Đurica, the logofăt. Kephale Kastrioti was among noblemen who did not accept Vukašin Mrnjavčević as successor of Stephen Uroš IV Dušan of Serbia and maybe even fought against him in 1370. The Ottomans did not know about him so after they captured the territory he once controlled they did not name it against him.

Ethnic origin

Some scholars concluded that this kephale was of Greek origin based on his name Kastriot. It seems there is a scientific consensus that kephale Kastrioti was of Serbian origin.

First name controversy

First name of this Kastrioti who was a kephale of Kanina is disputed. Many scholars believe his name was Branilo. Branilo first name is quite common in the Kastrioti lineage of Kastrioti family. According to this view, when one of Branilo's descendants converted from Islam to Christianity he chose his first name after his ancestor Branilo Kastrioti. Fan Noli and some other scholars thought that Branilo assertion has been based on Karl Hopf's mistake in interpretation of one historical document. According to their explanation Hopf's assertion that the first name of the kephale of Valona was Branilo was based on the document from Ragusan archives in which kephale of Kanina was named only as Kastrioti. According to the Austrian historian Heinrich Kretschmayr this kephale was in fact Pal Kastrioti, father of Gjon Kastrioti.