AHMET ZOGU ZOG 1 - KING OF THE ALBANIANS 1856 - 1961

Historical Figures

Background and early political career

Born as Ahmet Muhtar Bey Zogolli, he changed his family name to Zogu, meaning "bird" in the Albanian language, droping the Turkish suffix "olli (oğlu)", meaning "son of".

Ahmet Zogolli was born in Castle Burgajet, Albania, third son to Xhemal Pasha Zogolli and Sadijé Toptani. Zog was educated at Galatasaray College in Constantinople [1]. His family was a beylik family, with feudal authority over the region of Mat. The family claimed descent from the Skanderbegs. Their lands were in the same districts as Skanderbeg's family's had been and certainly the Zogu family had deep roots in indigeneous clannish nobility, but no historically attested genealogy has been shown of his alleged lineage from Middle Ages (as opposed to his wife's pedigree from Albania).

Upon his father's death in 1911, Ahmet Zogolli at age sixteen became governor of Mat. He was appointed over his elder brother Xhelal Bey, who had been deemed mentally unfit.

As a young man during the First World War, Zog supported the cause of Austria-Hungary. He was detained at Vienna in 1917 and 1918 and in Rome in 1918 and 1919 before returning to Albania in 1919. During his time in Vienna, he grew to enjoy a Western European lifestyle, and was rumoured to be very popular among the Viennese women.

Upon his return, Zog became involved in the political life of the fledgling Albanian government that had been created in 1920. He became leader of a major reformist party, and his political supporters included many southern feudal landowners (called beys, Turkish for "village chieftain", the social group to which he belonged) and noble families in the north, along with merchants, industrialists, and intellectuals. During the early 1920s, Zog served as Governor of Shkodër (1920-1), Minister of the Interior (March-November 1920, 1921-1924), and chief of the Albanian military (1921-1922). His primary rivals were Luigj Gurakuqi and Fan S. Noli.

It was a dangerous time to be an Albanian politician. In 1923, Zog was shot and wounded in parliament. A crisis arose in 1924 after the assassination of one of Zog's industrialist opponent, Avni Rustemi (the man who in 1920 assassinated Esad Pasha Toptani ); in the aftermath, a leftist revolt was raised by Noli, which forced Zog, along with 600 of his allies, into exile in June 1924. He returned to Albania with the assistance of Yugoslav forces and Yugoslavia-based White Russian troops, and became Prime Minister.

President of Albania

Zog was officially elected to the post of President of Albania by the Constituent Assembly on January 21, 1925, taking office on February 1. Zog's government followed the European model, though large parts of Albania still maintained a social structure unchanged from the days of Ottoman rule, and most villages were serf plantations run by the beys. A Muslim himself, Zog's reforms included the prohibition of veils and prohibitions against cruelty to animals. Zog's principal ally during this period was Italy, which loaned his government funds in exchange for a greater role in Albania's fiscal policy. During Zog's presidency, serfdom was gradually eliminated. For the first time since the death of Skanderbeg, Albania began to emerge as a nation, rather than a feudal patchwork of local beyliks. His administration was marred by disputes with Kosovar leaders, primarily Hasan Prishtina and Bajram Curri.

During his presidency, many referred to him as "king", as they had no idea what the word "president" meant.

Albanian King

In September 1, 1928 Zogu was crowned King of the Albanians "by the will of the people" (Mbret i Shqiptarëve in Albanian). Afterwards he was also declared Field Marshal of the Royal Albanian Army on September 1, 1928. He proclaimed a constitutional monarchy similar to the contemporary regime in Italy. He created a strong police force and instituted the Zogist salute (flat hand over the heart with palm facing downwards). He claimed to be a successor of Skanderbeg, a lineage which was correct to an extent. Zog hoarded gold coins and precious stones, which were used to back Albania's first paper currency.

Zog's mother, Sadijé, was declared Queen Mother of the Albanians, and Zog also gave his brother and sisters royal status as Prince and Princesses Zogu. One of his sisters, Senijé, Princess Zogu (1908-1969), married His Imperial Highness Prince Shehzade Mehmed Abid Efendi of Turkey, a son of Sultan Abdul Hamid II. His only nephew, Tati, was proclaimed His Highness Prince of Kosovo; at this stage King Zog had no issue and the Prince of Kosovo was being groomed to succeed Zog.

Zog attempted to further reinforce his regime's legitimacy by ruling as a constitutional monarch. His kingdom's constitution forbade any prince of the royal house from serving as Prime Minister or a member of the Cabinet and contained provisions for the potential extinction of the royal family. Ironically, in light of later events, the constitution also forbade the union of the Albanian throne with that of any other country. Under the Zogist constitution, the King of the Albanians, like the King of the Belgians, exercised royal powers only after taking an oath before Parliament; Zog himself swore an oath on the Bible and the Qur'an in an attempt to unify the country.

Zog's regime brought stability to Albania and the king organized an educational system. He also attempted to modernize the Albanian military, though the costs involved in this project were high.

Life as king

Although born as an aristocrat and hereditary bey, HM King Zog was somewhat ignored by other monarchs in Europe because he had no links to European royal bloodlines, although he did have strong connections with Muslim Royal families in the Middle-East and Egypt. As King he was, however, honoured by the governments of Italy, Luxembourg, Egypt, Yugoslavia, France, Rumania, Greece, Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia and Austria [[2]]. In the absence of nightclubs or theatre in Tirana, the king spent much of his time playing poker, usually with his sisters. He was also a great lover of perfumed cigarettes, and smoked about 150 a day. His household expenses made up nearly two percent of the national budget.

Zog had been engaged to the daughter of Shefqet Bey Verlaci before he became king. Soon after his coronation, however, he broke off the engagement. According to traditional customs of blood vengeance prevalent in Albania at the time, Verlaci had the right to kill Zog. The king made more than a few enemies - rumour had it that he was the subject of over 600 blood vendettas in addition to Verlaci's - and he frequently surrounded himself with a personal guard and avoided public appearances. He also feared that he might be poisoned, so the Queen Mother assumed supervision of the royal kitchen.

During his reign he is said to have survived over 55 assassination attempts. One of these occurred in 1931 while Zog was visiting a Vienna opera house for a performance of Pagliacci. The attackers struck whilst Zog was getting into his car, and he survived by drawing his own pistol (which he always carried) and firing back at his would-be assassins. This is the only occasion in modern history when a Head of State has returned fire with potential assassins.

In April 1938, Zog married Countess Geraldine Apponyi de Nagy-Apponyi, a Roman Catholic aristocrat who was half Hungarian and half American. Their only child, HRH Crown Prince Leka Zogu, was born in Albania on April 5, 1939.