principality · Balkans and Hungary

Despotate of Arta

1358 CE – 1416 CE (approx.) · capital Arta

Albanian despotate in southern Epirus, ruled by the Losha and Shpata clans from Arta until Carlo Tocco took the city in 1416.

Origins

In 1358–1359 Albanian clans defeated Nikephoros II Orsini, the last Orsini despot, and divided southern Epirus. Peter Losha took Arta and was recognised as despot by Simeon Uroš, the Serbian ruler of Thessaly; Gjin Bua Shpata held the Despotate of Angelokastron and Lepanto to the south.

The despots relied on Albanian clans who had moved into Epirus, ruling a Greek town population around Arta. They fought the Serbian rulers of Ioannina, notably Thomas Preljubović, and later Esau de' Buondelmonti. After Losha's death in 1374 Gjin Bua Shpata ruled both despotates until 1399, followed by Muriq Shpata and Yaqub Shpata, who allied with the Ottomans.

Yaqub Shpata was killed in 1416, and Carlo I Tocco, ruler of Ioannina, captured Arta. The city was taken by the Ottomans in 1449.

Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Despotate of Arta. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/despotate-of-arta
MLA: “Despotate of Arta.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/despotate-of-arta. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Despotate of Arta.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/despotate-of-arta.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Despotate of Arta’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/despotate-of-arta (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻