Fortress of Lesendro

In the past, before the construction of roads and railways, the fortress of Lesendro was located on a small long island, which, due to its position at the mouth of the Chernojevic River, was often called the “key to the lake”, so the island fortress became a permanent “apple of discord” in the Montenegrin struggle for independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Location: the fortress is located on a small peninsula of Lake Skadar adjacent to the section of the Bar-Belgrad highway near the town of Vranjina in the Bar municipality.

In the XVIII century, during the reign of Vladyka Peter II Petrovich Njegos, it was decided to build a defensive fortification to protect the Montenegrin lands adjacent to the Chernoevich River from the Turkish danger, so that the local population could safely engage in trade and fishing. The reason for the construction of the outpost was the capture and execution by the Ottoman Rashid Pasha of 8 Montenegrins during their trade mission to the neighboring Shkoder. As a result, a defensive fortification of 3150 m2 with high walls and towers appeared on the island of Lesendro. According to legend, Peter II loved to visit here, and even wrote several of his works within the walls of the fortress.

The fortress was under Montenegrin rule until 1843, when the Turks made a successful foray, taking advantage of the absence of a regular garrison in the fortress, engaged in other military operations. They captured Lesendro and neighboring Vranyina, which allowed them to strengthen their military presence in this part of Skadar Lake. The loss of the fortress so upset Njegosha that the people even developed the proverb “Suffers like the lord of Lesendro”, which is used to describe someone’s strong disorder.

The island was liberated from the Turks only in 1878, when, by the decision of the Berlin Congress, it withdrew to independent Montenegro along with neighboring Zabljak. After liberation, the fortress was used as a military arsenal, in this role it existed until the First World War.