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Shurdhah () is an island in northern
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 ...
in the Vau i Dejës Reservoir. It was formed after the flooding of the Drin river valley during the construction of the HPS. It is the largest island in the reservoir with an area of 7.5 hectares. From the most northern tip of the island to the most southern tip of it, it has an estimated length of . It is accessible by tourist boat in summer from the Vau i Dejës dam or Rragam. Shurdhah is attested in medieval sources as ''Sarda'' and its submerged area was an early medieval settlement in Albania linked to the
Komani-Kruja culture The Komani-Kruja culture is an archaeological culture attested from late antiquity to the Middle Ages in central and northern Albania, southern Montenegro and similar sites in the western parts of North Macedonia. It consists of settlements usual ...
.


History

Sarda was founded between the 6th and 7th centuries and is linked to the development of the
Komani-Kruja culture The Komani-Kruja culture is an archaeological culture attested from late antiquity to the Middle Ages in central and northern Albania, southern Montenegro and similar sites in the western parts of North Macedonia. It consists of settlements usual ...
in northern Albania. The town was strategically located on the old road from the
Adriatic Sea 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 ...
to Dardania and served as a resting point along the trade route. The settlement originally had a wall encircling the entire hill it was built on. Encircled on three sides by the Drin river, Sarda had 12 defensive towers of various forms. Sarda seems to have been a modest settlement from its foundation to the 9th century when it saw rapid expansion. From the 9th to the 12th century Sarda developed continuously. Two rings of walls were built and fourteen churches were constructed within the site which covered at that time no more than 6ha. Sarda is attested as a bishopric since the 9th century. It may have become the new seat of a bishopric which was previously seated in Koman. In the 12th century, it became the seat of joint bishop of Sapa and Sarda. In the 13th century Sarda had territorial disagreements with Scutari. The island was the original settlement of the feudal Lekë Dukagjini patriarch, famous for the rules of the Kanun. It was ravaged by the
Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...
in 1491. In 1973, when the dam was completed, the city of Sarda became an island on the left bank of the river Drin.


Ecclesiastical history

Around 1100 a Diocese of Sarda was established on the island. No residential incumbents available. The see of Sardë shortly comprised also the Diocese of Dagnum (Dagno, Daynum, Danj; Daynensis), founded as suffragan of
Archbishopric of Antivari The Archdiocese of Bar (; ; ) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Montenegro.
(now Bar, in
Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...
) during the second half of the fourteenth century, which was united with Sarda by
Pope Martin V Pope Martin V (; ; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Oddone Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. His election effectively ended the We ...
in 1428. The bishopric of Sardë (Sardoniki) itself was suppressed no later than 1600, allegedly in 1491 when
Pope Innocent VIII Pope Innocent VIII (; ; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death, in July 1492. Son of the viceroy of Naples, Cybo spent his ea ...
joined it to the
Diocese of Sapë In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...
(Sappa), and the united sees were
suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...
s in the
ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...
of the Metropolitan
Archdiocese of Antivari The Archdiocese of Bar (; ; ) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Montenegro.
until the end of the eighteenth century.


Titular see

In 1933 the diocese was restored as
Titular bishopric A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...
of Sarda. The title has been held by: * Luis Baldo Riva,
Redemptorists The Redemptorists, officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (), abbreviated CSsR, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brothers). It was founded by Alphonsus Liguori at Scala ...
(C.SS.R.) (1969.03.13 – 1978.01.15) as
Auxiliary Bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...
of Trujillo (
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
) (1969.03.13 – 1977.06.27), later
Bishop-Prelate In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders and is responsible for teaching doctrine, governing Catholics in his jurisdiction, sanctifying the world and representing the c ...
of
Territorial Prelature of Chuquibamba The Territorial Prelature of Chuquibamba () is a Roman Catholic territorial prelature located in the city of Chuquibamba in the ecclesiastical province of Arequipa in Peru. History On 5 June 1962, the Territorial Prelature of Chuquibamba was est ...
(Peru) (1977.06.27 – death 1983.06.27) * Roland Pierre DuMaine (1978.04.24 – 1981.01.27) as Auxiliary Bishop of
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
(California, USA) (1978.04.24 – 1981.01.27); later Bishop of San Jose (USA) (1981.01.27 – retired 1999.11.27) * François Xavier Nguyễn Văn Sang (85) (1981.03.24 – 1990.12.03) as Auxiliary Bishop of Hà Nôi (Hanoi, Vietnam) (1981.03.24 – 1990.12.03); later Bishop of Thái Bính (Vietnam) (1990.12.03 – retired 2009.07.25) * Titular Archbishop Ramiro Moliner Inglés (1993.01.02 – 2024.08.20)


Tourism

One can visit the ruins of the 11th-century medieval castle, which includes two rings of defensive walls and towers (some sadly submerged in the lake), the remains of a Byzantine church and other early medieval walls. The setting on the steep rocks rising from the lake is especially impressive.


References


Sources

*


External links


GCatholic
{{Islands of Albania Islands of Albania Geography of Shkodër County Archaeological sites in Albania