Dating back to the late 19th/early 20th century, the 35-year efforts of the people’s hero, Isa Boletini, are preserved in Boletini’s kulla, his stone tower houses near Mitrovica.

The hero’s family migrated from the village of Isniq, in the Dukagjin region, to Boletin, near Mitrovica. The men’s tower, the first of the two that were built, was located in the center of Boletin, where only the men would stay, and where Isa Boletini grew up.

The Boletini family brought the kulla architectural style to the entire region.

The towers were burned during the battles with Ottoman and Serbian invaders. For five generations, the Boletini family was forced to rebuild the towers six times in a row. “The holy stone” at the entrance of the kulla states the number of battles fought by the Boletini family. The two marks on the stone date back to 1908, from the battle of Isa Boletini against Xhavit Pasha.

The kulla was also used for education. In 1899, the first Albanian school was opened in the region of Mitrovica. The first teacher was Hafiz Ymer Efendiu.

The military history of the hero begins on April 22, 1881, in the Battle of Slivova. While Isa Boletini was 17 years old, he participated in the fights between the men of the League of Prizren and those of Ottoman counter-forces. Isa Boletini also participated in the League of Peja’s battles, and the battles for independence. The memories of Boletini’s battles may now be found in the museum.

In November 1912, Isa Boletini was named a leader of the Albanian national army, and was charged to travel to the London Peace Conference to assist in the resolution of the problems rampant in the Balkans in the early 20th century.

Isa Boletini and his two sons were killed in Podgorica, Montenegro, in 1916, but the kulla continued to be in the property of the Boletini family until 1945. In 1946, the Boletini Family was taken out of the towers, while their wealth was confiscated by the communist regime.

In 2013, restoration of the kulla began, with the financial support of Kosovo’s government.

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