Unearthing History: Underground Cities and Military Heritage in Albania and Europe

• Pages: 1-28

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Vol. 10 No. 3

November, 2024

Academic Journal of Business, Administration

Law and Social Sciences

E-ISSN 2410-8693

ISSN 2410-3918

Research Article

© 2024 Saimir Kristo, Etleva Dobjani & Saimir Shtylla

This is an open access article licensed under the Creative Commons

Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

Unearthing History: Underground Cities and Military Heritage in Albania

and Europe

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Saimir Kristo

Barleti University, Tirana, Albania

Assoc. Prof. Dr Etleva Dobjani

Barleti University, Tirana, Albania

PhD. Saimir Shtylla

Barleti University, Tirana, Albania

DOI: hps://doi.org/10.2478/ajbals-2024-0016

Abstract

Bunkers in Albania are emblematic of the country’s tumultuous past. With approximately

170,000 documented bunkers, each varying in spatial typology, geographical position, and

structural features, these structures were built to shelter army troops and thwart foreign

invasions (Kristo and Jojic, 2020). For nearly half a century, Albania’s isolation encapsulated

its people within a heavily guarded geography, creating a “living prison” where free

movement was restricted, even within the country until the fall of the dictatorial regime.

Bunkers were strategically placed both in natural landscapes and urban centers, often forming

elaborate ensembles of three or more, and extending to tunnels within hills and mountains.

This research aims to explore the potential relationships between these bunkers and foreign

visitors or tourists in various contexts of their locations. Dierent typologies of bunkers can

be found at the seaside, in valleys, and on mountains, reecting strategies based on proximity

to borders with Montenegro, Kosovo, Greece, Northern Macedonia, Italy and the Adriatic

Sea. These strategic areas hold signicant interests and values, the positioning of bunkers as

unique examples and opportunities for alternative tourism in Albania. The military heritage

and bunkers scaered across Eastern Europe stand as silent witnesses to a complex history

shaped by conicts, ideologies, and geopolitical shifts (Stiller, Dhamo, Aliaj and Kristo, 2019).

These structures are remnants of an era dened by intense geopolitical tensions and the ever-

present threat of military conict, particularly during the Cold War. They reect the diverse

strategies and responses of dierent nations to these challenges, oering unique insights into

the historical and cultural fabric of the region.

Keywords: History, underground cities, military heritage, Albania, Europe.

Vol. 10 No. 3

November, 2024

Academic Journal of Business, Administration

Law and Social Sciences

2

E-ISSN 2410-8693

ISSN 2410-3918

1. Introduction: Broader Eastern European Context of Underground Military

Structures

For (Galviz et al., 2016) the so-called “global undergrounds” are places of hope, fear,

work, memory and resistance. Regardless of their purpose, underground sheltering

has been an ever-since goal in centuries for various civilisations (Reynolds, 2019). The

phenomenon of underground military structures is a signicant aspect of the Cold

War era and beyond, in order to avoid hypothetical Hiroshimas (Monteyne, 2011) by

reecting the diverse military strategies and geopolitical concerns of various countries

until the collapse of the Berlin Wall (Figure 2) separating two dierent “worlds”. While

Albania’s extensive bunker-building program under Enver Hoxha was primarily

focused on protecting the nation from perceived threats and maintaining a state of

isolation, other European countries developed similar structures with dierent uses

and purposes (Kristo and Jojic, 2020). These bunkers and underground facilities not

only highlight the defensive strategies of their respective nations but also serve as

important cultural and historical landmarks.

Figure 1 Collapse of the statue of dictator Enver Hoxha in Tirana

Figure 2 Separation between east and west and the Collapse of the Berlin Wall