Çerçiz Topulli was born on September the 20th 1880 from a notable family of Gjirokastër. He was an Albanian revolutionary and guerrilla fighter involved in the national movement operating in the mountainous areas of southern Albania. He was the younger brother of Bajo Topulli.

During early 1906, he and his brother Bajo founded an Albanian armed guerrilla group. The group was active for three years, except for the winter of 1906-1907 when he and his older brother, Bajo went to Sofia and Bucharest. Both brothers had been professionals who decided to engage in guerilla warfare after leaving the comforts of town life. The guerilla group became part of the national movement seeking to independence of Albania from the Ottoman Empire.

In the spring of 1907, he and his brother in arms, the patriot and writer, Mihal Grameno formed a guerrilla group in Sofia for Albania. In April of that year, they landed in Vlora, having entered the country from Italy. The purpose was to spread Albanian national consciousness among the people, including the immediate need for administrative autonomy for Albanians within the Ottoman Empire. They also brought books in Albanian for the people. Topulli wrote an article “From the Mountains of Albania” in the journal “The Hope of Albania” in its issue. In that article he condemned the many thefts that the Turkish administration would commit towards the Albanians and asked for full independence of Albania. In the article he made calls for an armed insurgency. Soon campaigns of agitation were prepared so as to lead an armed uprising in 1908.

On 25 February 1908, Çerçiz and his followers assassinated the Ottoman binbash (Lieutenant Colonel) of Gjirokastër, who had brutally suppressed those Albanians working for Albanian political ends. Five of them, including Çerçiz Topulli, then fled to Mashkullora, a village near Gjirokastër. On 18 March they were surrounded in Mashkullora by Ottoman forces from Yanina (present-day Ioannina). The Ottoman force of 150 troops vastly outnumbered Çerçiz’s braves. However, Topulli and his fighters managed to keep the Ottomans at bay from dawn until dusk and then fled into the mountains, an event which was later celebrated in folk ballads.

During the Young Turk Revolution of 1908, the young Turks sent a letter to Topulli inviting him to join them. Topulli’s guerilla group gave important support to the Young Turks during their capture of the Resne garrison and the event was a military victory in the campaign to oust the Sultan Hamid regime. On 23 July a Young Turk leader met with guerilla leaders Topulli and Mihal Grameno in Resne where they expressed his gratitude and viewed the declaration of the new constitution as advantageous for the Albanian nation.

When the Ottoman the young Turks took power, Topulli organized patriotic societies and assisted in the opening of Albanian-language schools, which were banned before.

On 29 May 1909, Çerçiz Topulli founded in Gjirokastër a secret society called Kandilja (The Candle), an underground guerrilla group.

Albanians were soon deluded by the policy of the Young Turks who were breaking promises. Topulli, a former ally of them commented that there was no further need “to shed a single drop of blood for the Turks anymore”. He was of the view that Albanians had nothing in common with the Ottoman Empire.

After the proclamation of the independence of Albania on 28th of November 1912, Topulli became active in the defense of national interests after independence. He went to the north to help with the efforts against Montenegrin forces. Topulli was killed in the Fusha e Shtoit near Shkodra from the Montenegrin forces on the 17th of July 1915. His remains were brought by ceremony in his hometown, Gjirokastër in 1937, which main square bears his name and where a statue of him is also rising

Çerçiz Topulli is also noted for his quotations, which had no other consideration but the final goal to see Albania free and independent. One of his quotations goes “We go with rifle in hand, out into the mountains, to seek freedom, justice, civilization and progress for all … to expel the Turks from our dear Motherland.”

/a.p./