About

The Franciscan Order has been present in Shkodër since the thirteenth century and for much of that time ran the city's main schools, its printing press and its intellectual life. The friary on the street now named for Gjergj Fishta — who taught and lived here — was suppressed under communism along with the entire order; priests were imprisoned and several were executed.

The Franciscans returned after 1991 and the building functions again as a working religious house. The church attached to it is open to visitors. The friary is not a museum and there is no organised visit, but the street context — the Marubi museum, the cathedral and the diocesan museum are all within a few minutes' walk — makes it a natural stop when covering the Catholic heritage of the centre.

Practical info