Mehmet Shpendi (Sokol Shpendi), patriot, leader of popular uprisings for national liberation, was captured disloyally by the Montenegrins and shot. He was born in the village of Pecaj in Shala (Dukagjin) in 1851. From a young age, he participated in the mountain warrior bands against Turkish and Montenegrin forces. During the period of the League of Prizren (1878–1881), he led the people of Shala in defending Plavë, Gucia, Hoti, and Gruda. In 1890, he founded the fighter formation “Djelmnia e Shalës,” which he led in assemblies and battles. He represented Shala and was a popular leader in the uprisings of the Great Highlands in 1910, 1911, and 1912. He led the battle at Qafa e Agrit (July 1910) against the Ottoman forces of Shefqet Turgut Pasha. He collaborated with Ded Gjo Luli in the revolt of the Great Highlands and the raising of the flag in Deçiq. He is known as one of the signatories of the Greçë memorandum (June 1911). Later, he led the uprising forces for the liberation of Skopje (1912), and on the day of independence, he raised the national flag at the “assembly banner” in Abat of Shala. In 1915, he led the popular resistance to defend Dukagjin. He was executed in the village of Plan in Dukagjin, where several leaders of Shala and villagers were also massacred. (In the photo: Mehmet Shpendi)
Text: Encyclopedic Dictionary of Kosovo – Vol. II , Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosovo, Prishtina, 2018, page 1613.
Photo: © https://sq.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mehmet_Shpendi
Graphic processing: AHCF
