Shkodër Cathedral

Shkodër Cathedral, also known as St Stephen’s Catholic Church, is a cathedral in the city of Shkodër in northern Albania. Saint Stephen is honored at the Roman Catholic church.

The Montenegrin forces damaged the cathedral, notably the south east side, during the Siege of Scutari (1912–1913), sparking fire in the bell tower. In 1967, the church was closed and reopened in 1990.

The dedication of this church to Saint Stephen, the city’s first patron saint, follows that of a previous church of the same name, which is now covered by the Rozafa Castle and a mosque was erected on its ruins. In his Historia de vita et gestis Scanderbegi Epirotarum principis (The story of the life and deeds of Skanderbeg, the prince of Epirotes), a notable 16th-century Albanian writer mentions the former church and the city’s patron saint when describing the Siege of Shkodra, which lasted from 1478 to 25 April 1479 and saw the League of Lezh helplessly protect the castle from the Ottoman Empire army until

The city’s bishops were forced to reside outside the city throughout the Ottoman occupation’s first three centuries. Monsignor Pal Pjeter Kamsi was ultimately permitted to return to Scutari in 1762, five years after the foundation of the first Albanian Pashalik under the Bushati dynasty.

After the faithful had repeatedly requested permission from the Sultan for the construction of the church, Abdülmecid I gave the edict in 1851.

The dome, which was originally constructed of wood, almost fell off 35 years after its completion, but it was rebuilt in 1897 with different materials that have lasted to this day. Albanian painter Kol Idromeno coffered the vault in 1909. His vault paintings, particularly the one of Lady of Shkodër accompanied by two angels dressed in Shkodër traditional costumes, may still be seen today. The city of Shkodër lies in the backdrop, flanked by Rozafa castle.

The bell tower and clock, which had been presented by the Kakarriqi brothers, were destroyed by an earthquake in 1905 and a bombardment on March 12, 1913, during the Siege of Scutari. Following the Cultural Revolution, the Kakarriqi family acquired another clock in 1925, which functioned until 1967, when the chapel was turned into a Palace of Sports. Ironically, the Albanian Communist Women’s Congress was convened in the cathedral in 1973. The gateway was closed up and the towers were dismantled in 1967.

The cathedral was reopened in 1990, and on November 11, 1990, it hosted the first Mass in the nation since 1967. On March 21, 1991, a symbolic Mass was celebrated in the cathedral. Pope John Paul II paid a visit in 1993.

According to legend, the scale of the cathedral was established by agreeing that it should equal the length of a string thrown from the stripes of a single skinned cow. The string was initially placed into the hands of the Scutari’s Wli, who inserted it into his little finger and flung it, according to Gjergj Nik Sheldija, who was present throughout the conversation. Following his throw, the British consul went considerably farther, the French consul even further, and the consuls of Russia, Greece, and even the Austro-Hungarian Empire all went much further than the Wli. This one is alleged to have responded, laughing behind his moustache, “You presumably intend to throw all the Catholics of Albania here.”