Borsh

Borsh (ˈbɔɾʃ; Borshi, ˈbɔɾʃi) is a maritime village, in the Albanian Riviera, in the former Lukovë municipality, Vlorë County, Albania. At the 2015 local government reform, it became part of the municipality Himarë. The village is inhabited by Albanians, many of whom have traditionally been Bektashi. In Borsh, the Lab dialect of Albanian is spoken. Borsh borders with Fterra, Qeparo, Piqeras, Kuç, Çorraj, Kalasa, Zhulat, Tatzat, and has a population of 2500 registered inhabitants. The region which Borshi is located was part of the Chaonia of the ancient region of Epirus. Borshi was probably fortified from antiquity and it belonged to Kemara (modern Himara) then part of the Chaonian tribal state, one of the main ancient Greek tribes in Epirus. In the Hellenistic period Borshi was a northwestern-most stronghold of the fortification system of Chaonia after Himara. The Chaonian fortification in Borsh of which Phoenice served as centre controlled a crucial road that connected Chaonia and southern Illyria. The castle remained in use in Roman times and was refortified by the Emperor Justinian in the sixth century. Nothing is known of the settlement in the Byzantine era, until it is mentioned as Sopotos in 1258 when it was part of the Despotate of Epirus that grew out of the failing Byzantine empire. Borsh then went through a period of considerable turmoil, changing hands several times between the Despotate of Epirus and Norman crusades invaders before being taken by the Turks in 1431. Fifty years later it was captured by Albanians led by Skanderbeg's son Gjon Kastrioti II, but was retaken by the Turks eleven years later and heavily refortified. On June 10, 1570 the castle of Sopot was taken by James Celsi, Proveditor of the Venetian navy, who left after leaving in charge the commander of Nauplion, Emmanuel Mormoris. This also caused part of the nearby Himariotes to submit to Venetian rule. The next year the Ottoman army recaptured it and took Mormori as a prisoner.