Elbasan Fortress, Historic fortress in Elbasan, Albania.

Elbasan Fortress is a rectangular walled complex measuring about 308 by 348 metres in the city centre. Its perimeter had 26 towers set 40–50 metres apart, most U-shaped, with corner towers of a different plan. The southern wall survives almost intact, and the southern gate is the only one of four original entrances still standing. A massive curved bastion of rough tan, brown and grey stone rises from a lawn beside a paved walkway.

A fortification with three-metre-thick walls was raised in the 4th century AD, possibly after the Gothic invasion of Illyria in 378. Barbarian wars of the 4th and 5th centuries destroyed it, and the Byzantine emperor Justinian I rebuilt it on the old foundations. In 1466 Mehmed II restored it for the Ottomans so quickly that much of the earlier masonry was reused; the south gate is the only one of four gates still standing.

The grounds hold several religious buildings, including the King's Mosque and Saint Mary's Church, showing how different communities used this space across centuries. These structures shape the site and tell of a place where multiple faiths coexisted.

Access is mainly through the southern gate, located in a central area of the modern city and easily reached on foot. Wear sturdy shoes as the terrain is uneven and some sections may be in poor condition.

The walls show traces of at least three distinct construction phases with different stone types and techniques from Roman, Byzantine, and later Ottoman builders. This visible layering allows visitors to read the region's complex history directly through the architecture itself.