Monastery of Skoutara

During the early centuries of Christianity the Region of Himara has played an important role as being part of the Byzantine Empire. On the first millenia Himara was a member of the Despotate of Epirus and for some years it also played the role of the capital. During the Ottoman period the most serious problem for the Church was the massive return to Muslims.

At the same time, various Roman-Catholic propaganda missions operate in Himara's coastal zone. For the support of Orthodox, from the century AD. XVII, new monasteries were built in many areas, which also developed to centers of Orthodox resistance, spiritual cultivation, education, and useful social activities, for example. the monasteries of Kakomea, Akroriza, Himara, Drymades, Qeparo etc.

Despite Communist efforts to enforce an atheistic, secular state. In 1967, the government closed more than 2,100 mosques, churches, monasteries, and other places of worship and declared the country an atheist state. Subsequent complaints like failure to work at Easter on the part of Christians suggest that the official abolition of public was a failure.