Porto Palermo

Porto Palermo Castle Kalaja e Porto Palermos
Himarë, Albania
Porto Palermo Castle
Porto Palermo Castle Kalaja e Porto Palermos
Coordinates	40°03′44″N 19°47′26″E / 40.062317°N 19.790475°E / 40.062317; 19.790475
Site information
Owner	Albania
Controlled by	Albania
Site history
Built by	final form created by Ali Pasha of Tepelena

Kep i Palermos Lighthouse
Porto Palermo

Albania
Location	Kep i Palermos Porto Palermo Albania
Coordinates	40°02′58.9″N 19°47′39.4″E / 40.049694°N 19.794278°E / 40.049694; 19.794278
Year first constructed	n/a
Foundation	stone base
Construction	stone tower
Tower shape	irregular octagonal prism tower with balcony and light atop
Markings / pattern	unpainted tower
Height	10 metres (33 ft)
Focal height	113 metres (371 ft)
Light source	solar power
Range	8 nautical miles (15 km; 9.2 mi)
Characteristic	Fl W 8s.
Admiralty number	E3734
NGA number	14368
ARLHS number	ALB-001

Porto Palermo Castle (Albanian: Kalaja e Porto Palermos) is a castle near Himarë in southern Albania. It is situated in the bay of Porto Palermo, a few kilometers south of Himarë along the Albanian Riviera. Huffington Post ranked Porto Palermo first among 15 Undiscovered European Destinations for 2014. The area together with Llamani beach will be proclaimed a protected area holding the status of Protected Landscape by the Albanian Government.

The well preserved castle is commonly, but wrongly, asserted, by guide books and the local tourist guides, to have been built in early 19th century by Ali Pasha of Tepelena. This is untrue as it has been built prior to the evolution of the star fort design. Most probably it was built by the Venetians as it could be relieved by sea and it has the same triangular plan with round towers found in the Venetian fort at Butrint. Its design is very unusual in having no courtyard. Normally castles had provision for housing some horses, if only to receive and send messengers. In 1921 the castle was called Venetian. At that time the identity of its builders ought to have been clear, from a plaque above the entrance gate. This plaque is now missing but the weathering of the stones clearly shows that it has not been missing for many decades. Almost certainly this plaque had a carving of the lion of St. MarkPorto Palermo Castle is a castle near Himara in southern Albania with an intriguing history. It is situated in the closed bay of Porto Palermo, a few kilometers south of Himarë, and makes nearly an island that is connected to the mainland by a narrow strip of land. The fort served as former Soviet submarine base during the communist regime in Albania, and nowadays its semi abandoned tunnel and barrack attract attention of visitors, as well as the stronghold walls and gates built by the powerful Ali Pasha of Ionina.

By the middle of the 17th century the Ottoman Empire system of administration of vilayets of sanjaks /provinces/ changed into the near-autonomous governance of local rulers who were known as pashas. At the end of the 18th century the sultan appointed a certain Ali from Tepelen as the governor of the most of the Epirus /of the present day southern Albania/ and the large part of the Greek mainland, with his court at Ionina – Yannina. The ancestors of Ali were Christian Albanians, and became Mussulmans under the Turkish invasion. As young fellow, Ali was patrolling highroads and lanes, with his gun on his shoulder and his yataghan in his belt, attacking, holding for ransom, or plundering all whom he encountered. Afer some years of this profitable business, he found himself a wealthy man and came to power with a distinguished and honourable rank among the beys of the country..