Читать книгу The Peaks of the Balkans Trail. Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo онлайн

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The Illyrians didn’t simply vanish – several Roman emperors including Aurelius and Diocletian were actually of Illyrian descent, and a number of Illyrian tribes also left their names in the region, including the words Dalmatia (from the Delmatae tribe) and Adriatic (from the Ardiaei).

Following the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fourth century AD, and a succession of Hunnish and Gothic invasions, Slavic tribes settled in the Balkans from the sixth century AD. Byzantium remained a dominant influence in the Balkans, albeit waxing and waning with the rise and fall of other powers in the region such as the Bulgars.

The medieval period

During the 11th century the Serbian state of Duklja (in what is now Montenegro) gained independence from Byzantium, while the following century in Albania, Arbanon was established as a semi-autonomous principality. Duklja was in turn absorbed into Raška, which grew into medieval Serbia, and by the 14th century Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo were all incorporated into the vast medieval Serbian Empire. The seat of the Serbian Patriarchate (Orthodox Church) was located in Peć (Pejë), in Kosovo, and the medieval architecture of Peć and Deçan – just east of the Peaks of the Balkans Trail, and a very worthy detour – is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.