1714 revolt of Chameria

The 1714 revolt of Chameria () was one of the first and most important Albanian peasants' revolt against the Ottoman Empire in the 18th century which caused additional upheavals in the region in the 1714-1715 period.
Background
The continuous economic exploitation of the local feudals onto the Albanian people caused continuous resistence against them. The Albanian peasants in the 17th and 18th century often times rebelled in different forms that spanned from fleeing the farms to armed revolts and upheavals.
One of the bloodiest upheavals in Albanian inhabited territories was the 1714 revolt of Chameria peasants against the Ottoman Empire. The situation in the region of Chameria was tensioned between the local population and the Ottoman Empire, as well as with local beys. Since 1708 the Chams from the Margariti, Mazarakia and Paramythia settlements were not obeying anymore the bey of the sandjak of Delvina and killed the tax collector sent by him. In may, 1714, after numerous incidents, more than 1500 Chams attacked Delvina and killed the bey of the region. After their revolt, the sultan Ahmed III ordered an immediate attack, and finally in June 1714 managed to restore a new bey.
Aftermath
Adjacent regions of Konitsa and Kolonjë followed the example of the Chameria Revolt by killing the tax collector of Leskovik on that same year. In 1715 an even bloodier upheaval occurred in Kurvelesh, where the whole population refused to pay taxes. Against this upheaval Ottoman soldiers from the Castle of Gjon Boçari, and the Kaninë Castle had to intervene. However all these upheavals were crushed, but the first serious move in southern Albania from the Albanian peasants started from the Chameria ones.<ref name="History of the Albanian People"/>

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