John Kastrioti

Gjon Kastrioti
Reconstruction of the coat of arms of the Kastrioti
Reign	1407–1437
Spouse	Voisava
Detail Titles and styles Lord of Mat
Noble family	Kastrioti
Father	Pal Kastrioti
Born	13??
Died	4 May 1437
Buried	Serbian Orthodox monastery Hilandar in Mount Athos
Occupation	1385–1407: Ottoman vassal 1407–1410: Venetian ally 1415–1417: Ottoman vassal 1419–1426: ally of Despot Stefan until 1437: Ottoman vassal

Gjon Kastrioti or John Castriot (13?? – 4 May 1437) was an Albanian nobleman, member of the Kastrioti family, and the father of Skanderbeg. He governed the territory between Cape of Rodon and Debar and had at his disposal an army of 2,000 horsemen.

According to Gjon Muzaka's chronicle (1515), Gjon Kastrioti's father was nobleman Pal Kastrioti, who held two villages, Sina and Lower Gardi. These two villages were located on the mountain of Qidhna northwest of Debar.

Gjon managed to expand his family domain over the region of Mat.

Gjon married Voisava, the daughter of a "Triballian" ruler, the lord of Polog (situated in modern R. Macedonia) and had nine children with her: four sons and five daughters. The sons' names were Stanisha, Reposh, Kostandin, and George (Skanderbeg) and the daughters' names were Mara, Jelena, Angjelina, Vlajka and Mamica. The oldest daughter of Gjon Kastrioti, Maria Kastrioti, also called Mamica, married Muzakë Topia. Gjon Kastrioti was also the name of the grandson through George Kastrioti.

According to some sources, Gjon Kastrioti participated on the Serbian side against the Ottomans in the Battle of Pločnik (1386). Some even attribute the Serbian victory to him, through his cleverness and cooperation with Bosnian troops. In 1386, like many other noblemen from Albania, Gjon became an Ottoman vassal. In 1402 together with other Ottoman vassals from Albania he supported Bayezid I in the Battle of Ankara. He was one of the noblemen who were guarantors for Balša III and Jelena Balšić in the treaty they concluded with the Venetians on 6 June 1408 during the First Scutari War. At the beginning of 1412 Venetians offered 1,000 ducats of yearly provisions to Gjon and the Đurašević brothers to switch sides and leave Balša III, but they refused.