The first siege of Krujë occurred in 1450 when an Ottoman army of 100,000 men tried to siege Albanian town of Krujë. The League of Lezhë, led by Skanderbeg, experienced low morale after losing Svetigrad and Berat between 1448 and 1450. Nevertheless, Skanderbeg's exhortations and the support of the clergy, who claimed to have had visions of angels and victory, motivated the Albanians to defend the capital of the League, Krujë, at all costs. After leaving a protective garrison of 4,000 men under his trusted lieutenant Vrana Konti (also known as Kont Urani), Skanderbeg harassed the Ottoman camps around Krujë and attacked the supply caravans of Sultan Murad II's army. By September the Ottoman camp was in disarray as morale sank and disease ran rampant. The Ottoman army acknowledged that the castle of Krujë would not fall by strength of arms, lifted the siege, and made its way to Edirne. Soon thereafter, in the winter of 1450–51, Murad died in Edirne and was succeeded by his son, Mehmed II.
Campaigns of 1448 and early 1450
After several failed invasions of Albania by Ottoman captains, Murad II laid siege to the fortress of Svetigrad (which is thought to be today's Demir Hisar) on May 14, 1448, with a force of 80,000 men. Svetigrad was an important strategic point, since it controlled the routes from Macedonia into Albania. The small garrison, composed of Albanians, Bulgarians, and other Europeans, held the fortress while Scanderbeg attacked the Ottoman camp from outside. After the Ottomans poisoned the wells, a group of defenders decided to open the gates and let the Turks in, thus giving control of the fortress to the Ottomans. The Sultan retired from Albania and Skanderbeg laid siege to Svetigrad on September 23, 1448. After several failed assaults, Skanderbeg lifted the siege and retreated. In early 1450, Berat was captured by the pasha of Gjirokastër through a night attack, causing Gjergj Arianit to desert Skandebeg's cause.
Prelude
Albanian morale before the siege
The morale of the Albanians sank after the losses in the previous years. When the Turks began marching towards Krujë on April 5, 1450, the people claimed to have seen cherubims and angels flying over Albania. Skanderbeg himself claimed that he had received a vision of St. George handing him a flaming sword to "destroy the enemies of true religion (Christianity)." This speech, along with many other visions of the clergy, raised Albanians' morale, motivating them to fight.
Albanian dispositions and preparations
Before the siege began, Skanderbeg exited Krujë with 8,000 men—among whom were many Slavs, Italians, Frenchmen, and Germans. 2,000 of these were infantry and 6,000 were cavalry. Skanderbeg found Mount Tumenishta (now known as Mount Skënderbeu) to be a suitable position from which to attack the Ottomans. Krujë was left with a garrison of 4,000 men under the command of Vrana Konti. Vrana had under his command several Germans, Italians, and Frenchmen, to whom he emphasized the importance of the siege and also ordered them to their positions. Krujë had enough supplies for a sixteen-month siege. The women and children of Krujë were sent for protection to Venetian possessed cities, whereas the others were ordered to burn their crops and move into the mountains and fortresses.
Ottoman dispositions and preparations
Murad reached Krujë on May 14 with approximately 100,000 of his best soldiers (60,000 of which was cavalry) . Murad proposed to Vrana that he should hand over the fortress, but Vrana refused. After receiving the refusal, Murad set his army to cast ten cannons, one of which could fire rocks weighing 400 pounds and another 200 pounds. Despite the firepower, the Turkish firing positions were at a disadvantage, since Krujë "was almost part of the mountain which it had been built." The cannons could fire two or three times a day and were not accurate. Two large and four smaller guns were placed on the Tirana side, and the remainder were aimed at the main gateway.