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116 "I should say," he tells us, "that the pure dove of the Holy Ghost, after it had been outraged by the Greeks, gathered its feathers and wings and took flight to rest its foot among the Albanians, inspiring them with greater courage than they had had before, and illuminating their minds, so that they should keep far from the wiles and traps of false prophets." I doubt very much, however, whether this beautiful language corresponds to the fact. Indeed, among the Albanian refugees in Italy we shall hear of some who, even after they had arrived, remained in schism (p. 119). However, there seems a reasonable probability that many Albanians, before they fled the Turk, were already Uniates. In any case, when they came to Italy, by far the greater number accepted that position, and protested that they always had been in union with Rome. In those days it would have been difficult for a community to settle down in peace in the kingdom of Naples, unless it were Catholic.

In the fifteenth century, during the disorders of the Turkish conquest of the Balkans, an Albanian chief, George Alexander Castriota, called Scanderbeg, succeeded in making a great part of his country, for a time, independent. He had been given by his father as a hostage to the Sultan; he was brought up as a Moslem and was at first a favourite of Murad II (1421-1451). Then he rebelled against the Turks, fought not only against them, but against Venice too, and became the great hero of the independence of his people. He established himself at Croia. In his lifelong war against the Turks he had varying success; but eventually the Sultan was forced to recognize him as a semi-independent prince, on condition that he paid tribute. Meanwhile Scanderbeg became known all over Europe as the great enemy of the Turk, so he had the sympathy of Christendom. He came to Italy several times. In 1461, leaving for a time his war against the Turks, he came with an army and restored King Ferdinand I of Naples, who had been deposed by his subjects. In 1465 he came to Rome, to ask the help of Pope Pius II (1458-1464) against the common enemy. He was received with great honour. His negotiations with the Pope had to do with Pius II's attempt to organize a