Vešala

Vešala (Albanian: Veshallë, Macedonian: Вeшaлa) A small village in the Šar Mountains. It is 11.9 kilometres away from its closest city Tetovo and 1247 metres above sea level.

History

Vešala is home to some of the oldest Albanian clans within the Šar Mountains. Unlike the northern Albanian villages, Vešala was not isolated, being part of the old trade route, Prizren via Kalkandelen. According to the Nahiyah, the population of Vešala moved out and prospered under the Ottoman Empire, but still maintained residence in Vešala.^[1] This was a strong custom in Vešala as the Albanians were bounded to the village of their ancestor and could never permanently leave their home. This custom also strengthened their ties with Albanian nationalism.

During the First World War, Serbian Royalists began invading Albania to seize the coast line. During the occupation, the Serbian army committed numerous crimes against the Albanian population.^[2][3] After the Treaty of London and the French never arriving to pick up the troops from the coast, the Royalists began to retreat through the mountains (Albanska golgota).^[4] A battalion of 37 Royalist approached Vešala. As the Royalist had razed many of the villages to the ground during the occupation, the Albanians of Vešala, seeing the Royalists approaching from the bottom of the mountain, ambushed them. After bounding them, the Royalist were pushed off Guri Gjatë (Long rock), a natural landmark of the Šar Mountains, and plunged to their deaths.

During the insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia, Vešala along with most villages of the Šar Mountains acted as a supply base and safe zone for the NLA forces.

Today

The village of Vešala has about 280 houses with 2500 inhabitants. Many of the families from Vešala live in Switzerland and Germany. However, like their ancestors, many of them return to Vešala during the summer.

References

Coordinates: 42°04′N 20°51′E / 42.067°N 20.850°E / 42.067; 20.850