Site historique
Apollonia
A Corinthian colony that became a Roman university town — Octavian was studying here when Caesar was killed.
En clair
Three groups shaped ancient Albania: the Illyrians who lived here, the Greeks who built cities on the coast, and the Romans who took over and built the road east.
Explication synthétique
Three groups shaped ancient Albania: the Illyrians who lived here, the Greeks who built cities on the coast, and the Romans who took over and built the road east.
The Illyrians
Groups of Indo-European-speaking peoples across the western Balkans from around 1100 BC. They had kingdoms, hill cities like Byllis and Amantia, and a maritime reputation that Rome described as piracy. Rome defeated King Gentius at Shkodra in 168 BC.
Whether modern Albanians descend from the Illyrians is a genuinely open scholarly question, widely asserted and not fully settled.
The Greek colonies
Corinth and Corcyra founded Epidamnos, now Durrës, in 627 BC, and Apollonia in 588 BC. These were substantial trading cities with theatres, temples and their own coinage. Butrint and Orikum were also Greek foundations.
Rome
After 168 BC the region became Roman Illyricum. Rome's decisive contribution was the Via Egnatia, the road that began at Durrës and Apollonia and ran east to Byzantium, making this coast the gateway between Italy and the eastern empire for a thousand years.
The amphitheatre at Durrës, the largest in the Balkans, dates from this period.
Where to see it
Butrint, Apollonia, Byllis, Antigonea, Amantia and the Durrës amphitheatre — all covered in detail on their own pages in this Atlas.
Sujets connexes
Ce sont de vraies relations dans l'Atlas — des lieux proches de celui-ci et des sujets auxquels il appartient réellement. Rien ici n'est une recommandation générique.
Sujets associés
Site historique
Butrint
A Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman city layered on one wooded peninsula — Albania's first UNESCO site.
Période historique
The Illyrians
The Indo-European tribes of the western Balkans, and the ancestors most Albanians claim.
Période historique
Roman Illyricum
The Via Egnatia crossed here, making the coast Rome's gateway to Greece and the East.
Période historique
The Greek Colonies
Corinthian and Corcyraean foundations at Epidamnos, Apollonia and Orikum along the coast.
Guide
Archaeological Albania
Butrint, Apollonia, Byllis, Antigonea and Amantia — five sites that cover 2,500 years between them.
Sources
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