Rrëshen ( sq-definite, Rrësheni) is a small town and a former municipality in

Lezhë County Lezhë County () is one of the 12 counties of Albania. The population as of 2021 was 120,678, in an area of 1,620 km².Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

. At the 2015 local government reform, Rrëshen became a subdivision and the seat of the municipality

Mirditë Mirditë ( sq-definite, Mirdita) is a municipality in Lezhë County, northwestern Albania. It was created in 2015 by the merger of the former municipalities Fan, Mirditë, Fan, Kaçinar, Kthellë, Orosh, Rrëshen, Rubik, Albania, Rubik and Selitë, ...

. It was the administrative seat of the former

Mirditë District Mirditë District () was one of the 36 districts of Albania, which were dissolved in July 2000 and replaced by 12 newly created counties. It had a population of 37,055 in 2001, and an area of . It is in the north of the country, and its capital w ...

. The population at the 2023 census was 6,773.

The City

As an administrative seat, the town has schools and a hospital. After the

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

era, new facilities such as a

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

, a

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

, and a cultural centre appeared in the area. The truck route from the Kosovar border to

Tirana Tirana ( , ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in Albania, largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills, with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest ov ...

and

Durrës Durrës ( , ; sq-definite, Durrësi) is the List of cities and towns in Albania#List, second most populous city of the Albania, Republic of Albania and county seat, seat of Durrës County and Durrës Municipality. It is one of Albania's oldest ...

passes on each side of Rrëshen, providing good communications with the capital and the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

. Before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the city was classed as a small village, but administrative changes and an increase in the mining industry boosted the city's status. However, since the fall of Communism, most of the mines have become disused. This has resulted in mass migration to

and larger, more industrial centres.

Religion

Its cathedral, Katedralja e Jezusi i Vetmi Shpëtimtar i Botës, is the episcopal see of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rrëshen, which was created in 1996 by promoting the Territorial Abbacy of Shën Llezhri i Oroshit from Territorial Abbey to a bishopric. It is a

suffragan diocese A suffragan diocese is one of the dioceses other than the metropolitan archdiocese that constitute an ecclesiastical province. It exists in some Christian denominations, in particular the Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandr ...

in the province of the Metropolitan Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tiranë–Durrës.

Gallery

Notable people

* Eugent Bushpepa (born 1984), singer and songwriter * Musine Kokalari (born 1917), writer and political activist * Albion Marku (born 2000), footballer * Edison Ndreca (born 1994), footballer * Fatmir Vata (born 1979), footballer

References

Sources and external links

Rrëshen Municipality

Mirdita Tourism Portal

Former municipalities in Lezhë County Administrative units of Mirditë Towns in Albania {{Lezhë-geo-stub