View source for Zog I

{{Short description|Leader of Albania from 1922 to 1939}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Zog I
| image        = King Zog I.jpg
| caption      = Zog I in 1939
| succession   = [[King of the Albanians]]
| reign        = {{nowrap|1 September 1928 – 9 April 1939}}<br>{{efn|name=reign|
Though Zog I was only formally deposed on the 2nd of January 1946, he enjoyed little recognition after the occupation of Albania by Italy. He was not welcomed as a royal when he arrived in England. The UK refused to form an Albanian government in exile and supported Hoxha and the communist partisans against Nazi Germany and Italy after 1944.}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG118033|title=Zog I, King of Albania|publisher=[[The British Museum]]}}</ref>
| predecessor  = Himself as President
| successor    = [[Victor Emmanuel III]]
{{Infobox officeholder
| embed        = yes
| office       = [[President of Albania]]
| termstart    = 31 January 1925
| termend      = 1 September 1928
| predecessor  = Office established ''(de facto)''<br>
[[Wilhelm, Prince of Albania|Vilhelm I]] ''(de jure, as Prince)''
| successor    = Himself as King
| office1      = [[Prime Minister of Albania]]
| termstart1   = 26 December 1922
| termend1     = 25 February 1924
| predecessor1 = [[Xhafer bej Ypi]]
| successor1   = [[Shefqet Vërlaci]]
| termstart2   = 6 January 1925
| termend2     = 1 September 1928
| predecessor2 = [[Ilias Vrioni]]
| successor2   = [[Kostaq Kotta|Koço Kota]]
}}
| spouse       = {{marriage|[[Geraldine of Albania|Géraldine Apponyi de Nagyappony]]|27 April 1938}}
| issue        = [[Leka, Crown Prince of Albania (born 1939)|Leka, Crown Prince of Albania]]
| full name    = Ahmet Muhtar Zogolli
| house        = [[House of Zogu|Zogu]]
| father       = [[Xhemal Pasha Zogolli]]
| mother       = [[Sadije Toptani]]
| birth_name   = Ahmed Muhtar Zogolli
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|1895|10|8|df=y}}
| birth_place  = [[Burgajet Castle]], [[Burrel, Albania|Burrel]], [[Ottoman Empire]]
| death_date   = {{Death date and age|1961|4|9|1895|10|8|df=y}}
| death_place  = [[Suresnes]], [[Paris]], France
| place of burial = [[Cimetière parisien de Thiais]] (1961–2012)<br />[[Mausoleum of the Albanian Royal Family]] (since 2012)
| religion     = [[Sunni Islam]]
| signature    = Zogu1 (nënshkrim).svg|
}}
{{Zog I of Albania sidebar}}

'''Zog I''' (born '''Ahmed Muhtar [[Bey]] Zogolli'''; 8 October 1895{{spaced ndash}}9 April 1961) was the leader of [[Albanian Kingdom (1928–1939)|Albania]] from 1922 to 1939. At age 27, he first served as Albania's youngest ever [[Prime Minister of Albania|Prime Minister]] (1922–1924), then as [[President of Albania|president]] (1925–1928), and finally as [[King of Albania|King]] (1928–1939).

Born to an aristocratic [[bey]]lik family in [[Ottoman Albania]], Zogolli was active in Albanian politics from a young age and fought on the side of [[Austria-Hungary]] during the [[First World War]]. In 1922, he adopted the name '''Ahmed Zogu'''. He held various ministerial posts in the [[Principality of Albania|Albanian government]] before being driven into exile in June 1924, but returned later in the year with [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Yugoslav]] and [[White movement|White Russian]] military support and was subsequently elected prime minister. Zogu was elected president in January 1925 and vested with dictatorial powers, with which he enacted major domestic reforms, suppressed [[civil liberties]], and struck an alliance with [[Benito Mussolini]]'s [[Fascist Italy]]. In September 1928, Albania was proclaimed a monarchy and he acceded to the throne as Zog I, King of the Albanians. He married [[Geraldine Apponyi de Nagy-Appony]] in 1938, and their only child, [[Leka, Crown Prince of Albania|Leka]], was born a year later.

Albania fell further under Italian influence during Zog's reign, and by the end of the 1930s the country had become almost fully dependent on Italy despite Zog's resistance. In April 1939, Italy [[Italian invasion of Albania|invaded Albania]] and the country was rapidly overrun. Mussolini declared Albania an [[Italian protectorate of Albania (1939–1943)|Italian protectorate]] under King [[Victor Emmanuel III]], forcing Zog into exile. He lived in England during the [[Second World War]] but was barred from returning to Albania by the [[People's Socialist Republic of Albania|anti-monarchist government]] led by [[Enver Hoxha]]. Zog spent the rest of his life in France and died in April 1961 at the age of 65. His remains were buried at the [[Cimetière parisien de Thiais|Thiais Cemetery]] near Paris, before being transferred to the [[Mausoleum of the Albanian Royal Family|royal mausoleum]] in [[Tirana]] in 2012.

==Background and early political career==

Zog was born as Ahmed Muhtar [[Bey]] Zogolli in [[Burgajet Castle]], near [[Burrel]] in northern Albania, third son to [[Xhemal Pasha Zogolli]], and first son by his second wife [[Sadije Toptani]] in 1895. His family was a [[bey]]lik family of [[landowner]]s, with feudal authority over the region of [[Mat District|Mati]]. His grandfather was [[Xhelal Pasha Zogolli]]. His mother's [[Toptani family]] claimed to be descended from the sister of Albania's greatest national hero, the 15th-century general [[Skanderbeg]]. He was educated at [[Galatasaray High School]] ([[French language|French]]: ''Lycée Impérial de Galatasaray'') in [[Beyoğlu]], a district of the capital of the [[Ottoman Empire]]. Upon his father's death in 1911, Zogolli became governor of Mat, being appointed ahead of his elder half-brother, [[Xhelal Bey Zogolli]].

In 1912, he participated in the [[Albanian Declaration of Independence]] as the representative of the Mat District. As a young man during the First World War, Zogolli volunteered on the side 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. Upon his return, Zogolli became involved in the political life of the fledgling Albanian government that had been created in the wake of the First World War. His political supporters included many southern feudal landowners called [[bey]]s, Turkish for "province chieftain" with title variations including Beyg, Begum, Bygjymi.<ref name="Iranica">{{cite web|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/beg-pers |title=BEG |website=[[Encyclopædia Iranica]] |date=15 December 1989 |access-date=16 September 2019}}</ref> The Bey title refers to the social group to which he belonged, which was also used by noble families in the north, along with merchants, industrialists, and intellectuals. During the early 1920s, Zogolli served as Governor of [[Shkodër]] (1920–1921), 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]]. In 1922, Zogolli formally changed his surname from Zogolli to Zogu, which sounds more Albanian.<ref name="TrencsényiKopeček2006">{{cite book|author1=Balázs Trencsényi|author2=Michal Kopeček|title=Discourses of collective identity in Central and Southeast Europe (1770–1945): texts and commentaries|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-L4qAQAAMAAJ|year=2006|publisher=Central European University Press|isbn=978-9637326615|page=177|quote=Ahmet Zogu (who had changed his name from the Turkish sounding 'Zogolli' to the more Albanian sounding 'Zogu')}}</ref>

In 1923, he was shot and wounded in [[Parliament of Albania|Parliament]]. A crisis arose in 1924 after the assassination of one of Zogu's industrialist opponents, [[Avni Rustemi]]; in the aftermath, a [[June Revolution|leftist revolt]] forced Zogu, along with 600 of his allies, into exile in June 1924. He returned to Albania with the backing of [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Yugoslav]] forces and Yugoslavia-based General [[Pyotr Wrangel]]'s White Russian troops led by Russian Gen [[Sergei Ulagay]]<ref name="politikaborder">″Врангелове команде у [[Vranje|Врању]] и [[Skopje|Скопљу]]″. // ''[[Politika]]'', 4 December 2017, p. 19.</ref> and became [[List of Prime Ministers of Albania|prime minister]].

==President of Albania==
[[File:Flamuri i Kryetarit të Republikës (1925–1928).svg|thumb|150px|Standard used by Ahmet Zogu as President of the First Republic.]]
Zogu was officially elected as the first [[List of Presidents of Albania|President]] of [[Albanian Republic (1925–1928)|Albania]] by the Constituent Assembly on 21 January 1925, taking office on 1 February for a seven-year term. A new constitution vested Zogu with sweeping executive and legislative powers, to the point that he was effectively a dictator.<ref>{{Citation |title=Interwar Albania: The Rise of Authoritarianism, 1925–1939 |date=2022 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/concise-history-of-albania/interwar-albania-the-rise-of-authoritarianism-19251939/5111DEDE9F2BCE551D621E4EEB09D6F2 |work=A Concise History of Albania |series=Cambridge Concise Histories |pages=191–225 |editor-last=Fischer |editor-first=Bernd J. |publisher=Cambridge University Press |doi=10.1017/9781139084611.009 |isbn=978-1107017733 |editor2-last=Schmitt |editor2-first=Oliver Jens|url-access=subscription }}</ref> He had the right to appoint all major government personnel, as well as one-third of the lower house.<ref name="cs" />

Zogu'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. On 28 June 1925, Zogu ceded [[Sveti Naum]] to [[Yugoslavia]] in exchange for [[Buçimas|Peshkëpi (Pëshkupat)]] village and other concessions.<ref name="Pearson">{{cite book|title=Albania and King Zog: independence, republic and monarchy 1908–1939|last=Pearson|first=Owen|year=2004|publisher=IB Tauris|page=248|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3_Sh3y9IMZAC&q=Sh%C3%ABn+Naum&pg=PA248|isbn=978-1845110130}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.yllpress.info/14392/mehdi-bej-frasheri-pse-ia-dhashe-shen-naumin-serbise-.html| access-date=10 January 2014| language=sq| title=Mehdi Bej Frashëri: "Pse ia dhashë Shën-Naumin Serbisë"| trans-title=Mehdi bey Frasheri: Why St Naum was given to Serbia| date=5 August 2010| author=Dashnor Kaloçi| quote=...por kufini në vend që të vazhdonte që nga kodra e Zagoriçanit gjer te Qafa e Plloçit, ku ndodheshin dy versante: versanti i Maliqit dhe Liqeni i Ohrit, vija e kufinit të hidhej ke Mali i Thatë, e të përfshinte katundin shqiptaro-orthodoks Pëshkupat...| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110231300/http://www.yllpress.info/14392/mehdi-bej-frasheri-pse-ia-dhashe-shen-naumin-serbise-.html| archive-date=10 January 2014| url-status=dead}}</ref>

Zogu enacted several major reforms. His principal ally during this period was the [[Fascist Italy (1922–1943)|Kingdom of Italy]], which lent his government funds in exchange for a greater role in Albania's fiscal policy. His administration was marred by disputes with [[Kosovo Albanians|Kosovo Albanian]] leaders, primarily [[Hasan Bej Prishtina|Hasan Prishtina]] and [[Bajram Curri]], among others.
[[File:Zog I of Albania Officer's Sword.jpg|left|thumb|150px|Royal sword commemorating the marriage of King Zog I]]
On the debit side, Zogu's Albania was a police state in which civil liberties were all but nonexistent and the press was closely censored. Political opponents were imprisoned and often killed. For all intents and purposes, he held all governing power in the nation.<ref name=cs>{{csref|country=albania|author=Charles Sudetic|section=Interwar Albania, 1918–41}}</ref>

==Albanian king==
[[File:King Zog.jpg|150px|thumb|left|Ahmed Zogu]]
{{Main|Royal Albanian Army|Zogist salute}}

On 1 September 1928, Albania was transformed into a [[Albanian Kingdom (1928–1939)|kingdom]], and President Zogu declared himself to be Zog I, with the title ''King of the Albanians''. He appointed as his advisor [[Mehmed Orhan|Mehmed Orhan Efendi]], a [[Ottoman dynasty|prince]] of the recently abolished [[Ottoman Empire]]. He took as his regnal name his surname rather than his forename since the Islamic name ''Ahmet'' might have had the effect of isolating him on the European stage. He also initially took the parallel name "Skanderbeg III" (Zogu claimed to be a successor of [[Skanderbeg]] through descent through Skanderbeg's sister; "Skanderbeg II" was taken to be [[Wied, Prince of Albania|Prince Wied]], but this fell out of use).<ref>Michael Schmidt-Neke, ''Die Verfassungen Albaniens: mit einem Anhang: Die Verfassung der Republik Kosova von 1990''. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, 2009, p. 34</ref>

On the same day as he declared himself king (he was never technically crowned), he also declared himself [[Field Marshal]] of the [[Royal Albanian Army]]. He proclaimed a [[constitutional monarchy]] similar to the contemporary regime in Italy, created a strong police force, and instituted the [[Zogist salute]] (flat hand over the heart with palm facing downwards). Zog hoarded gold coins and precious stones, which were used to back Albania's first [[paper currency]].
[[File:Flamuri i N.M. së Tij dhe i Ushtrisë.svg|thumb|150px|Royal standard of Zog I and of the Army]]

Zog's mother, Sadije, was declared Queen Mother of Albania, and Zog also gave his brother and sisters Royal status as Prince and Princesses Zogu. One of his sisters, [[Princess Senije Zogu|Senije]] ({{circa|1897}} – 1969), married [[Şehzade Mehmed Abid|Shehzade Mehmed Abid Efendi]], another Ottoman prince and son of Sultan [[Abdul Hamid II]].

Zog'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. The constitution also forbade the union of the Albanian throne with that of any other country, a term which would later be violated with the [[Italian invasion of Albania|Italian invasion]]. Under the Zogist constitution, the King of the Albanians, like the [[List of Belgian monarchs|King of the Belgians]], ascended the throne and exercised Royal powers only after taking an oath before Parliament; Zog himself swore an oath on the [[Bible]] and the [[Quran]] (the king being [[Muslims|Muslim]]) in an attempt to unify the country. In 1929, King Zog abolished [[Sharia|Islamic law]] in Albania, adopting in its place a [[civil code]] based on the [[Switzerland|Swiss]] one, as [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk]] [[Atatürk's reforms|had done]] in [[Secularism in Turkey|Turkey]] in the same decade.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20081203131358/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,881789,00.html Swiss Laws, Greek Patriarch], [[Time (magazine)|''Time'' magazine]], 15 April 1929</ref> 
[[File:Royal Monogram of King Zog I of Albania.svg|thumb|left|100px|Royal monogram]]
Although nominally a constitutional monarch, in practice Zog retained the dictatorial powers he had enjoyed as president. Thus, in effect, Albania remained a military dictatorship.<ref name=cs />

In 1938, as a result of a request from his advisor and friend Constantino Spanchis, Zog opened the borders of Albania to [[Jewish]] refugees fleeing persecution in [[Nazi Germany]].<ref>[http://www.besathepromise.com/bios.html Besa: The Promise > Bios]</ref>

===Life as king===

{{multiple image
| align             = right
| image1            = Monedhë 100 Franga Ari, 1937 (pjesa e parme).png
| width1            = 100
| alt1              = 
| caption1          = 
| image2            = Monedhë 100 Franga Ari, 1937 (pjesa e mbrapme).png
| width2            = 100
| alt2              = 
| caption2          = 
| footer            = Reverse and Obverse of a [[Franga|Zogian gold hundred-franc coin]].
}}

[[File:100 Franka Albania (1926).jpg|thumb|right|206px|[[Franga|100-franc]] banknote of Zog's reign]]

Although born as an [[Aristocracy (class)|aristocrat]] and hereditary [[Bey]], King Zog was somewhat ignored by other monarchs in Europe because he was a self-proclaimed monarch who had no links to any other European royal families. Nonetheless, he did have strong connections with Muslim [[royal families]] in the [[Arab World]], particularly [[Kingdom of Egypt|Egypt]], whose [[Muhammad Ali Dynasty|ruling dynasty]] had Albanian origins. As king, he was honoured by the governments of [[Kingdom of Italy|Italy]], [[Luxembourg]], [[Kingdom of Egypt|Egypt]], [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]], [[French Third Republic|France]], [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]], [[Kingdom of Greece|Greece]], [[Belgium]], [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]], [[Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungary]], [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]], [[First Czechoslovak Republic|Czechoslovakia]], and [[First Austrian Republic|Austria]].{{Citation needed|date=June 2020}}

Zog had been engaged to the daughter of [[Shefqet Verlaci|Shefqet Bey Verlaci]] before he became king. Soon after he became king, however, he broke off the engagement. According to traditional customs of [[Feud#Albania|blood vengeance]] prevalent in Albania at the time, Verlaci had the right and obligation to kill Zog. The king frequently surrounded himself with a personal guard and avoided public appearances. He also feared that he might be poisoned, so the mother of the king assumed supervision of the royal kitchen.<ref name="Shaw">{{cite book|last=Shaw|first=Karl|title=Power Mad!|trans-title=Šílenství mocných|year=2005|orig-year=2004|publisher=Metafora|location=Praha|language=cs|isbn=8073590026|pages=31–32}}</ref>

In April 1938, Zog married [[Countess]] [[Geraldine Apponyi de Nagy-Appony]], a [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] [[Aristocracy (class)|aristocrat]] who was half-[[Hungarians|Hungarian]] and half-[[Americans|American]]. The ceremony was broadcast throughout Tirana via [[Radio Televizioni Shqiptar#History|Radio Tirana]] that was officially launched by the monarch five months later. Their only child, [[Leka, Crown Prince of Albania (born 1939)|Crown Prince Leka]], was born in Albania on 5 April 1939.

==Assassination attempts==

About 600 [[Gjakmarrja|blood feud]]s reportedly existed against Zog,<ref name="gunther1940">{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/stream/in.ernet.dli.2015.149663/2015.149663.Inside-Europe#page/n489/mode/2up | title=Inside Europe | publisher=Harper & Brothers | author=Gunther, John | year=1940 | pages=468}}</ref> and during his reign he reputedly survived more than 55 assassination attempts.<ref name=Vickers>{{cite book|last=Vickers|first=Miranda|title=The Albanians: a modern history |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IzI0uOZ2j6gC&q=Aziz+Cami+1931&pg=PA131|year=2001|publisher=IB Tauris|isbn=1860645410|page=131}}</ref>
One of these occurred inside the corridors of the Albanian Parliament premises on 23 February 1924. [[Beqir Valteri]], originating from the same area as Zog,<ref name="Vllamasi">{{citation| chapter-url=http://www.mnvr.org/ballafaqime-politike-ne-shqiperi-1897-1942-kapitulli-ix/| chapter=IX| author=Sejfi Vllamasi| author-link=Sejfi Vllamasi| title=Ballafaqime politike në Shqipëri (1897–1942): kujtime dhe vlerësime historike| publisher=Shtëpia Botuese "Neraida| year=2000| editor=Marenglen Verli| isbn=9992771313| quote=Ky i fundit paska qënë një djalosh 17-vjeçar, Beqir Valteri, nga fshati Vinjall i Matit, të cilin Zogu e paska ndihmuar duke e dërguar në Itali për të studjuar.| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140220101107/http://www.mnvr.org/ballafaqime-politike-ne-shqiperi-1897-1942-kapitulli-ix/| archive-date=20 February 2014}}</ref><ref>{{citation| title=Diplomacia e Mbretit Zogu I-rë (1912–1939)| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KJi4AAAAIAAJ&q=beqir+valteri| author=Ilir Ushtulenca|publisher=Shtëpia Botuese "Ermir"| year=1997|page=45|oclc=39444050| quote=...Beqir Valteri, student nga Mati...[Beqir Valteri, e student from Mat]}}</ref> was waiting for him and opened fire suddenly.<ref>{{citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8rFDAQAAIAAJ&q=king+zog++beqir+valteri| author=Fan Noli|title=Vepra të plota: Autobiografia| page=91| publisher=Rilindija| year=1968|oclc=38785427}}</ref> Zog was shot twice. Meanwhile, Valteri fled but, surrounded by the militia, took refuge in one of the bathrooms, refusing to surrender and singing patriotic songs. According to the memoirs of [[Ekrem Vlora]],<ref name="MAPO"/> he surrendered after the intervention of [[Qazim Koculi]] and [[Ali Klissura]]. Zog stepped down briefly from political activity,<ref>{{citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dxpS_k-QMd4C&q=ahmet+zogu+assassination+attempts&pg=PA60| author=Linda Mëniku, Héctor Campos| title=Discovering Albanian I Textbook| page=60| publisher=University of Wisconsin Press| year=2011|isbn=978-0299250843}}</ref> but promised to forgive Valteri. Valteri, a member of the revolutionary ''Bashkimi'' ("The union") committee led by [[Avni Rustemi]],<ref>{{citation| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vpIFsca3lKYC&q=beqir+valteri&pg=PA114| author=Michael Schmidt-Neke| page=114| title=Entstehung und Ausbau der Königsdiktatur in Albanien (1912–1939)|series=Regierungsbildungen, Herrschaftsweise und Machteliten in einem jungen Balkanstaat| publisher=Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag| date=1987|isbn=978-3486543216}}</ref> was set free by the Court of Tirana after declaring that it was an individual act.<ref>{{citation| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iY88AAAAIAAJ&q=beqir+valteri| volume=15–16| title=Untersuchungen zur Gegenwartskunde Südosteuropas| publisher=Oldenbourg| author=Dorothea Kiefer| year=1957| page=358| isbn=978-3486496017|oclc= 1607360|issn=0566-2761}}</ref> Meanwhile, all rumors pointed to the opposition, specifically to Rustemi. Two weeks later Zog and Valteri would meet in private. Soon after, Rustemi would be assassinated.<ref name="MAPO">{{citation |author=Blendi Fevziu |title=Si e pushkatuan komunistët atentatorin e Ahmet Zogut |date=2012-10-30 |url=http://mapo.al/2012/10/30/vjen-100-vjet-i-fevziut-si-e-pushkatuan-komunistet-atentatorin-e-ahmet-zogut/ |trans-title=How the gunman who shot Ahmet Zogu was executed by the communists |access-date=26 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202105806/http://mapo.al/2012/10/30/vjen-100-vjet-i-fevziut-si-e-pushkatuan-komunistet-atentatorin-e-ahmet-zogut/ |url-status=dead |publisher=Gazeta MAPO |language=sq |quote=Më 23 Shkurt 1924, gati të gjithë ne deputetët, thuajse kishim zënë vendet tona për seancën e pasdites të Asamblesë. Mungonte vetëm Qeveria, pra edhe Kryeministri Ahmet Zogu. Unë rrija si gjithmonë pranë metropolitit Fan Noli, në bankën e radhës së parë pranë hyrjes. Më ra në sy se atë ditë, grupi i Partisë Demokratike prapa meje po rrinte çuditërisht i heshtur dhe i merakosur. Befas ushtuan dy krisma në shkallët e ndërtesës, që u pasuan nga një qetësi e ngrirë. Pastaj u hapën me vrull dyert e sallës dhe brenda hyri Ahmet Zogu me revolver në dorë. Ai ishte prerë në fytyrë, por ecte me shtatin drejt dhe pas disa çastesh e mori veten, madje buzëqeshi dhe vajti me çap të sigurt tek bangoja e qeverisë, ku u ul në një vend të caktuar për sekretarët...<br>Ahmet Zogu që ishte paralajmëruar për atentatin 2 javë më parë arriti të mësonte se Valteri ishte i shtyrë nga kundërshtarët e tij. Kujtimet e shumë protagonistëve të kohës, shënojnë faktin që ai u takua edhe vetë kokë më kokë me atentatorin. Në fakt atentati i Zogut përflitej në çdo kafene të Tiranës dhe njerëzit e tij, vunë gishtin mbi Avni Rustemin si organizator. |archive-date=2 February 2014}}</ref>

Another attempt occurred on 20 February 1931, while Zog was visiting the [[Vienna State Opera]] house for a performance of ''[[Pagliacci]]''.<ref name="Shaw"/> The attackers ([[Aziz Çami]] and [[Ndok Gjeloshi]]) struck whilst Zog was getting into his car. The attempt was organized by "National Union" ({{langx|sq|Bashkimi Kombëtar"}}),<ref name="Ushtelenca">{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KJi4AAAAIAAJ&q=qazim+mulleti| author=Ilir Ushtelenca| title=Diplomacia e Mbretit Zogu I-rë (1912–1939)| year=1997| oclc= 39444050| publisher=Shtëpia Botuese "Ermir"| pages=219–220}}</ref> a union of Zog opponents in exile which was formed in Vienna (1925) with the initiative of [[Ali Këlcyra]], [[Sejfi Vllamasi]], [[Xhemal Bushati]] etc.<ref name="Andoni">{{citation| language=sq| access-date=31 December 2013| url=http://www.revistajava.al/dossier/2012521/qazim-mulleti-antizogisti-qe-u-sherbeu-fashisteve| author=Ben Andoni| title=Qazim Mulleti – Antizogisti që u shërbeu fashistëve| trans-title=Qazim Mulleti, the anti-Zogist who served the Fascists| date=2012-05-21| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101072654/http://www.revistajava.al/dossier/2012521/qazim-mulleti-antizogisti-qe-u-sherbeu-fashisteve| archive-date=1 January 2014}}</ref> Zog was in the company of Minister [[Eqrem Libohova]], who was wounded, while Zog's guard Llesh Topallaj was mistaken for Zog by Gjeloshi, and shot three times in the back of the head. Çami's gun was stuck and did not fire. Zog came out of the event unharmed, thanks also to the prompt intervention of Albanian Consul Zef Serreqi and local police.<ref name=Vickers/> The Austrian authorities arrested Çami, Gjeloshi, and later [[Qazim Mulleti]], [[Rexhep Mitrovica]], [[Menduh Angoni]], [[Angjelin Suma]], Luigj Shkurti, [[Sejfi Vllamasi]], etc.<ref name=Vickers/><ref>{{cite web |language=sq| access-date=31 December 2013| url=http://www.balkanweb.com/gazetav5/artikull.php?id=121221| publisher=Gazeta Shqiptare| author=Fatos Veliu| date=8 September 2012| title=Tanush Mulleti: Qazimi ishte pjesëmarrës në atentatin kundër Zogut në Vjenë| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101233618/http://www.balkanweb.com/gazetav5/artikull.php?id=121221| archive-date=1 January 2014}}</ref> All the Albanian political ''émigrés'' in Vienna were subsequently arrested, beside [[Hasan Prishtina]]. Most of them were quickly released and expelled from Austria. Gjeloshi was sentenced to 3 years and 6 months of jail, while Çami got 2 years and 6 months.<ref name="Vllamasi2">{{citation| chapter-url=http://www.mnvr.org/ballafaqime-politike-ne-shqiperi-1897-1942-kapitulli-ix/| chapter=IX| author=Sejfi Vllamasi| author-link=Sejfi Vllamasi| title=Ballafaqime politike në Shqipëri (1897–1942): kujtime dhe vlerësime historike| publisher=Shtëpia Botuese "Neraida"| year=2000| isbn=9992771313| editor=Marenglen Verli| quote=Me gjithë këto fakte, hetuesia më 28 prill 1931 vendosi për ndalim gjyqi dhe na liroi, kurse në muajin korrik, liroi me po atë mënyrë Angjelin Sumën dhe Qazim Mulletin. Por, ndërkohë, policia na dëboi nga Vjena, me kusht që të mos kemi të drejtë edhe një herë të hyjmë në Austri.<br> Për atë arësye, qeveria e Vjenës, për t’i bërë një kompliment Italisë, vendosi ta bëjë gjyqin në një vend të vogël, ku populli ka qënë katolik fetar, pasues i Partisë Popullore; nga ana tjetër, për t’u bërë qejfin emigrantëve politikë, neve na liroi, me ndalim gjyqi, Gjyqi Ndok Gjeloshin e dënoi me tre vjet e gjysmë privim lirie dhe Azis Çamin me dy vjet e gjysmë.| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140220101107/http://www.mnvr.org/ballafaqime-politike-ne-shqiperi-1897-1942-kapitulli-ix/| archive-date=20 February 2014}}</ref>

==Relations with Italy==

The fascist government of [[Benito Mussolini]]'s Italy had supported Zog since early in his presidency; that support had led to increased Italian influence in Albanian affairs. The Italians compelled Zog to refuse to renew the [[First Treaty of Tirana]] (1926), although Zog still retained British officers in the [[Royal Albanian Gendarmerie|Gendarmerie]] as a counterbalance against the Italians, who had pressured Zog to remove them.

During the [[Great Depression|worldwide depression]] of the early 1930s, Zog's government became almost completely dependent on Mussolini. Grain had to be imported, many Albanians emigrated, and Italians were allowed to settle in Albania. In 1932 and 1933, Albania could not pay the interest on its loans from the Society for the Economic Development of Albania, and the Italians used this as a pretext for further dominance. They demanded that Tirana put Italians in charge of the Gendarmerie, join Italy in a customs union, and grant the Italian Kingdom control of Albania's sugar, telegraph, and electrical monopolies. Finally, Italy called for the Albanian government to establish teaching of the [[Italian language]] in all Albanian schools, a demand that was swiftly refused by Zog. In defiance of Italian demands, he ordered the national budget to be slashed by 30 percent, dismissed all Italian military advisers, and nationalized Italian-run Roman Catholic schools in the north of Albania to decrease Italian influence on the population of Albania. In 1934, he tried without success to build ties with [[French Third Republic|France]], [[Nazi Germany|Germany]], and the [[Balkan states]]. Albania then drifted back into the Italian orbit.<ref name="DeGrand">{{citation|jstor=40110895 | publisher=Taylor & Francis, Ltd|issn =1749-6985|oclc=123562997| date=Sep 2007|title=The International History Review|author=Alexander De Grand| journal=Intellectual History Review|pages=655–657|volume=29|issue=3}}</ref>

Two days after the birth of Zog's son and heir apparent, on 7 April 1939 ([[Good Friday]]), Mussolini's [[Italian invasion of Albania|Italy invaded]], facing no significant resistance. The Albanian army was ill-equipped to resist, as it was almost entirely dominated by Italian advisors and officers and was no match for the Italian Army. The Italians were, however, resisted by small elements in the gendarmerie and general population. The royal family, realising that their lives were in danger, fled into exile, taking with them a considerable amount of gold from the [[National Bank of Albania|National Bank]] of [[Tirana]] and [[Durrës]].<ref name="Life">{{citation|access-date=11 October 2013|publisher=Life|title=Royal Claimants| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=IT8EAAAAMBAJ&q=king+zog+gold+took+money&pg=PA98| page = 98|date=24 June 1957}}</ref><ref name="Saltmarshe">{{citation|author=Douglas Saltmarshe| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_9KFAAAAMAAJ&q=king+zog+gold+took+money| access-date = 2011-10-13| title=Identity in a Post-Communist Balkan State: An Albanian Village Study| page=56|publisher=Ashgate Pub Ltd|date=2001| isbn=978-0754617273}}</ref> Since the royal family had expected an Italian invasion, the gathering of gold had started in advance.<ref>{{citation|access-date=11 October 2013|language=sq| title=Në kërkim të arit| trans-title= In search of Gold| author=Ksenofon Krisafi| url= https://books.google.com/books?id=7ylDAQAAIAAJ&q=mbreti+zog+franga+ar| isbn=978-9994357581| publisher=Dita 2000|year=2008}}</ref> "Oh God, it was so short" were King Zog's last words to Geraldine on Albanian soil. Mussolini declared [[Italian protectorate of Albania (1939–1943)|Albania a protectorate]] under Italy's King [[Victor Emmanuel III]]. While some Albanians continued to resist, "a large part of the population ... welcomed the Italians with cheers", according to one contemporary account.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Fascist Soldiers Take over Tirana (...)|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|location=[[New York City]]|page=33|date=9 April 1939|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1939/04/09/archives/fascist-soldiers-take-over-tirana-bersaglieri-on-motorcycles-are.html?sq=Fascist+Soldiers+Take+over+Tirana&scp=1&st=p|access-date=14 July 2011}}</ref>

==Former heir presumptive==

Prior to the birth of Prince Leka, the position of [[heir presumptive]] was held by [[Tati Esad Murad Kryziu]], Prince of [[Kosovo|Kosova]], who was born on the 24th of December 1923 in Tirana, and who was the son of the King's sister, Princess Nafije. He became an honorary General of the [[Royal Albanian Army]] in 1928, at age five. He was made Heir Presumptive with the style of His Highness and title of "Prince of Kosova" (''Princ i Kosovës'') in 1931. After the royal house's exile, he moved to France, where he died in August 1993, aged 69.

==Life in exile and death==

The royal family fled to the [[Kingdom of Greece]]. Zog, speaking a few days after his arrival there, characterized Hitler and Mussolini as madmen facing "two fools who sleep": [[Neville Chamberlain|Chamberlain]] and [[Edouard Daladier|Daladier]]. Zog went on to declare, "We prefer to die, from the littlest child to the oldest man, to show our independence is not for sale." The world, aware that Zog and his entourage had carried off most of the Albanian treasury's gold, was not impressed.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=April 12, 1939 |title=The comments of King Zog |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=Fr8DH2VBP9sC&dat=19390412&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |journal=The Montreal Gazette |volume=168 |issue=87 |pages=8 |via=Google news}}</ref> After a short stay in [[Greece]], the Zog party went to [[Istanbul]] in [[Turkey]], then fled through [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]], [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]], [[Latvia]], [[Sweden]], [[Norway]], and [[Belgium]] to [[Paris]]. Zog and his family lived for a time in France and fled when the [[Battle of France|Germans invaded]]. Their escape from France was helped by [[Mehmed Orhan|Prince Mehmed Orhan Osmanoğlu]] from the [[Ottoman dynasty|Ottoman Imperial Dynasty]], who was [[aide-de-camp]] of Zog I.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bardakçı|first=Murat|title=Son Osmanlılar – Osmanlı Hanedanının Sürgün ve Miras Öyküsü|publisher=Hürriyet|year=2006|isbn=978-6257231206|location=Istanbul|pages=24|language=Turkish}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2011-10-22|title=Oldest Ottoman to come home at last|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/oldest-ottoman-to-come-home-at-last-1534796.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220507/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/oldest-ottoman-to-come-home-at-last-1534796.html |archive-date=7 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=2021-11-02|website=The Independent|language=en}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

The royal family then settled in England. Their first residence was at [[The Ritz London Hotel|The Ritz]] in London. This was followed in 1941 by a brief stay at Forest Ridge, a house in the [[South Ascot]] area of [[Sunninghill, Berkshire|Sunninghill]] in [[Berkshire]], near where Zog's nieces had been at school in [[Ascot, Berkshire|Ascot]]. In 1941 they moved to Parmoor House, [[Parmoor]], near [[Frieth]] in [[Buckinghamshire]], with some staff of the court living in locations around Lane End.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.aim25.ac.uk/cgi-bin/search2?coll_id=7010&inst_id=58 | title = Naçi collection | date = January 2003 | work = AIM25, Archives in London and the M25 area | publisher = AIM25 | access-date = 27 January 2007 | archive-date = 4 December 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081204002713/http://www.aim25.ac.uk/cgi-bin/search2?coll_id=7010&inst_id=58 | url-status = dead }}</ref>

[[File:Grave-Zog.jpg|thumb|200px|right|The grave of former King Zog I at the [[Cimetière de Thiais]] near Paris]]

In 1946, Zog and most of his family left England and went to live in [[Kingdom of Egypt|Egypt]] at the behest of [[King Farouk]]. In 1951, Zog bought the [[Knollwood estate]] in [[Muttontown, New York]], [[Long Island]], but the sixty-room estate was never occupied; it quickly fell into ruin and Zog sold the estate in 1955. Farouk [[Revolution of Egypt|was overthrown in 1952]], and the family left for France in 1955.

He made his final home in France, where he died at the [[Foch Hospital]], [[Suresnes]], Hauts-de-Seine, on 9 April 1961, aged 65, of an undisclosed condition.{{Citation needed|date=June 2020}} Zog was said to have regularly smoked 200 cigarettes a day, giving him a possible claim to the title of the world's heaviest smoker in 1929,<ref>{{cite web|title=King Zog|url=http://www.albanianroyalcourt.al/pages/kingzog|publisher=Albanian Royal Family|access-date=21 November 2016|archive-date=27 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180227190323/http://www.albanianroyalcourt.al/pages/kingzog|url-status=dead}}</ref> but had been seriously ill for some time. He was survived by his wife and son, and was initially buried at the [[cimetière parisien de Thiais]], near Paris. On his death, his son Leka was pronounced H. M. King Leka of the Albanians by the exiled Albanian community.<ref name=Geraldine-obit>{{cite news | url = https://www.economist.com/obituary/2002/11/07/queen-geraldine-of-albania | title = Queen Geraldine of Albania: Geraldine Apponyi, a queen for 354 days, died on October 22nd, aged 87 | date = 7 November 2002 | newspaper = [[The Economist]] | department = Obituary | access-date = 18 April 2018}}</ref>

His widow, Geraldine, died of natural causes in 2002 at the age of 87<ref name=Geraldine-obit/> in a military hospital in [[Tirana]].

==Political legacy==

{{one source section|date=July 2025}}
[[File:Zogu I Boulevard (BLGU Spring School 2013).jpg|thumb|right|Statue of Zog on the eponymous [[Zogu I Boulevard]] in [[Tirana]], Albania]]

During [[World War II]], three resistance groups were [[World War II in Albania|operating in Albania]]: the [[Balli Kombëtar|nationalists]], the [[Legality Movement|royalists]] and the [[National Liberation Movement (Albania)|communists]]. Some of the Albanian establishment opted for [[German occupation of Albania|collaboration]]. The communist partisans refused to co-operate with the other resistance groups and eventually [[Democratic Government of Albania|took control of the country]]. They were able to defeat the Nazi remnants and had full control of Albania in November 1944.

Zog attempted to reclaim his throne after the war. However, when the communist government, successful in its partisan movement, seized power, one of its first acts was to ban Zog from ever returning to Albania. It formally deposed him in 1946.

In 1952, his representatives met with the representatives of the Yugoslavian government over possible collaboration.<ref>{{cite web |title=Meeting of Representatives of King Zog and Marshall Tito |url=https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP82-00457R014500130010-0.pdf |website=CIA.gov |publisher=CIA Reading Room |access-date=25 September 2021}}</ref>
Sponsored by [[Secret Intelligence Service|MI6]] and the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]], some forces loyal to Zog attempted to mount [[Albanian Subversion|infiltrations into the country]], but most were ambushed due to intelligence sent to the [[Soviet Union]] by spy [[Kim Philby]].

A referendum in 1997{{snd}}seven years after the end of Communist rule{{snd}}proposed to restore the monarchy in the person of Zog's son [[Leka Zogu]] who, since 1961, had been styled "Leka I, King of the Albanians". The official but disputed results stated that about two-thirds of voters favoured a continued republican government. Leka, believing the result to be fraudulent, attempted an armed uprising: he was unsuccessful and was forced into exile, although he later returned and lived in Tirana until his death on 30 November 2011. A main street in Tirana was later renamed "[[Zogu I Boulevard|Boulevard Zog I]]" by the Albanian government.

==Repatriation to Albania==

In October 2012, the government of Albania decided to bring back the remains of the former king from France, where he died in 1961. Zog's body was exhumed from the [[Cimetière parisien de Thiais|Thiais Cemetery]], Paris on 15 November 2012.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20347253 Remains of King Zog repatriated from France to Albania]. Retrieved 2012-11-16.</ref> A [[guard of honour]] was provided by the French President, in the form of [[French Foreign Legion|French Legionnaires]] in ceremonial dress.

Zog's remains were returned in a state ceremony on 17 November 2012, coinciding with celebrations for [[100th Anniversary of the Independence of Albania|Albania's independence centennial]]. The bodies of the king and his family members now lie in the reconstructed [[Mausoleum of the Albanian Royal Family|royal mausoleum]] in the capital Tirana.<ref>[http://seattletimes.com/html/nationworld/2019449413_apeualbaniakingsremains.html Albania to bring home exiled king's remains] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203213022/http://seattletimes.com/html/nationworld/2019449413_apeualbaniakingsremains.html |date=3 December 2013 }}. Retrieved 2012-10-18.</ref> The interment was attended by the government of Albania, including the President and Prime Minister, and representatives of the former royal families of Romania, Montenegro, Russia and Albania.

==Honours and awards==

In Albania:{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

* [[File:Decoration_without_ribbon_-_en.svg|60px]] Sovereign Head of the Royal Albanian Collar of Honour<ref>[https://albanianroyalcourt.al/royal-orders-of-the-house-of-zogu/ Royal Orders of the House of Zogu]</ref>
* [[File:ALB Order of Fidelity (1939) - Grand Cross BAR.png|60px]] Sovereign Head of the [[Order of Fidelity]]
* [[File:ALB Order of Skanderbeg - Grand Cross BAR.png|60px]] Sovereign Head of the [[Order of Skanderbeg]]
* [[File:ALB Order of Fidelity BAR.png|60px]] Sovereign Head of the Order of Bravery & Military Merit: First Class or Hero, breast star
* [[File:ALB National Flag Order.png|60px]] [[National Flag Order]] (posthumous)<ref>[http://president.al/?p=3278 Presidenti Nishani dekoron Naltmadhninë e Tij Zogun I, Mbretin e Shqiptarëve (Pas vdekjes) me "Urdhrin e Flamurit Kombëtar"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807203350/http://president.al/?p=3278 |date=7 August 2016 }}, Presidenti.al, 2012-11-17 (in Albananin)</ref>

From other countries:
* [[File:Ord.Franz.Joseph-COM.png|60px]] Commander of the [[Order of Franz Joseph]] with Swords ([[Austrian Empire]], January 1917)
* [[File:Legion Honneur GC ribbon.svg|60px]] Grand Cross of the [[Legion of Honour]] ([[France]], 1926)
* [[File:Order of the Most Holy Annunciation BAR.svg|60px]] Knight of the [[Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation]] ([[Kingdom of Italy]], 14 December 1928 by [[Vittorio Emanuele III]])<ref>[https://www.ordinidinasticicasasavoia.it/site/wp-content/uploads/ELENCO_Ordine-Santissima-Annunziata_21.07.2023.pdf. Elenco dei Cavalieri dell'Ordine supremo della Santissima Annunziata]</ref>
* [[File:Cavaliere di gran Croce Regno SSML BAR.svg|60px]] Knight Grand Cordon of the [[Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus]] (Kingdom of Italy, 14 December 1928)
* [[File:Cavaliere di Gran Croce OCI Kingdom BAR.svg|60px]] Knight Grand Cross of the [[Order of the Crown of Italy]] (Kingdom of Italy, 14 December 1928)
* [[File:Ordre du Lion d'Or de la Maison de Nassau ribbon.svg|60px]] Knight of the [[Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau]] ([[Netherlands]])
* [[File:Order of Muhammad Ali (Egipt) - ribbon bar.gif|60px]] Collar of the [[Order of Muhammad Ali]] ([[Kingdom of Egypt]])
* [[File:OrderofCarolI.ribbon.gif|60px]] Grand Cross with Collar of the [[Order of Carol I]] ([[Kingdom of Romania]], 1928)
* [[File:SRB-SHS-YUG Orden Karađorđeve zvezde VKrst BAR.svg|60px]] Knight Grand Cross of the [[Order of the Karađorđe's Star]] ([[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]])<ref>{{Cite book|last=Acović|first=Dragomir|title=Slava i čast: Odlikovanja među Srbima, Srbi među odlikovanjima|year=2012|location=Belgrade|publisher=Službeni Glasnik|pages=129}}</ref>
* [[File:GRE Order Redeemer 1Class.svg|60px]] Knight Grand Cross of the [[Order of the Redeemer]] ([[Kingdom of Greece (Glücksburg)|Kingdom of Greece]])
* [[File:BEL - Order of Leopold - Grand Cordon bar.svg|60px]] Grand Cordon of the [[Order of Leopold (Belgium)|Order of Leopold]] ([[Belgium]], 4 November 1929){{citation needed|date=June 2020}}
* [[File:Bg1ocm.png|60px]] Grand Cross of the Order of Civil Merit of Bulgaria ([[Kingdom of Bulgaria]])
* [[File:POL Order Orła Białego BAR.svg|60px]] Knight of the [[Order of the White Eagle (Poland)|Order of the White Eagle]] ([[Poland]])
* [[File:CZE Rad Bileho Lva 3 tridy BAR.svg|60px]] Member 1st Class with Collar of the [[Order of the White Lion]] ([[Czechoslovakia]])
* [[File:AUT Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria - 1st Class BAR.svg|60px]] Grand Star of the [[Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria]] ([[Austria]])
* [[File:Ordre du Lion d'Or de la Maison de Nassau ribbon.svg|60px]] Knight of the [[Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau]] ([[Luxembourg]])
* [[File:Ord.S.Stef.Ungh. - GC.png|60px]] Knights Grand Cross of the [[Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary]] ([[Hungary]], 1938)
{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

==Cultural references==

Zog's name was in use by 1972 in the English language [[palaeontological]] [[mnemonic]] for the names of [[Index fossils|zonal index fossils]] in part of the [[Carboniferous System|Lower Carboniferous System]] of Great Britain (namely '''C'''leistopora, which geologists decided to call 'zone k', '''Z'''aphrentis, '''C'''aninia, '''S'''eminula and '''D'''ibanophylum): "'''K'''ing '''Z'''og '''c'''aught '''s'''yphilis and '''d'''ied".<ref>{{cite book|title=A Dictionary of Mnemonics|year=1972|publisher=Eyre Methuen, Psychology Library Editions|page=32}}</ref>

In the [[James Bond]] novel ''[[The Man with the Golden Gun (novel)|The Man with the Golden Gun]]'', [[Ian Fleming]] writes of the villainous [[Francisco Scaramanga]] telling his compatriots that the [[Rastafari]] of [[Jamaica]] "believes it owes allegiance" to the King of [[Ethiopia]], this "King Zog or what-have-you." Fleming had been assigned with the task of escorting Zog when in exile after Albania was annexed by Italy.{{citation needed|date=February 2017}}

In ''[[Aria (1987 film)|Aria]]'', a 1987 British anthology film, Zog was a character in the first of ten short self-contained segments, each by a different director and each featuring a different opera aria. This segment, entitled '[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092580/ Un ballo in maschera]' after the [[Giuseppe Verdi]] opera, was directed by [[Nicolas Roeg]], with actor [[Theresa Russell]] playing King Zog during a fictionalized account of his visit to Vienna in 1931 and the assassination attempt on the steps of that city's opera house (as noted earlier, Zog had actually seen a performance of 'Pagliacci' before the real attack).

In the "new" [[Doc Savage]] pulp fiction novel, The Whistling Wraith (July 1993, Bantam/Spectra), from the original notes of [[Lester Dent]] (primary writer of the sagas) but now completed as a novel by Will Murray, the life & person of Zog, as well as Albania's political problems and foreign policy issues with Mussolini's Italy are key to the plot. The story slots into the Doc Savage timeline in 1938 (a few weeks after The Motion Menace, per p.&nbsp;61). Egil Goz the First is clearly standing in for King Zog I, for both are Muslims and both were first president before being the first king of their Balkan nation. (Italy is Santa Bellanca, which is behaving badly in Africa in the work, a tie to the invasion and conquest of Ethiopia.)

In episode 13 of [[Monty Python's Flying Circus]] he is mentioned as a reporter for made-up news show called ProbeAround but suddenly dies.

==See also==

*[[House of Zogu]]
*[[Royal Albanian Army]]
*[[Zogist salute]]
*[[Legality Movement]]
*[[History of Albania]]
*[[Self-proclaimed monarchy]]
*[[European interwar dictatorships]]

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist|1=20em}}
===Bibliography===

* Fischer, Bernd. ''King Zog and the Struggle for Stability in Albania'', (East European Monographs, Boulder, 1984).
* Pearson, O.S. [http://www.ibtauris.com/ibtauris/display.asp?K=510000000646194&cid=ibtauris&sf_01=CAUTHOR&st_02=king+zog&sf_02=CTITLE&sf_03=KEYWORD&m=1&dc=1 ''Albania and King Zog'']{{dead link|date=July 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} [[I.B. Tauris]]. 2005 ({{ISBN|1-84511-013-7}}).
* Robyns, Gwen. ''Geraldine of the Albanians'' ({{ISBN|0-584-11133-9}}).
* Tomes, Jason. ''King Zog, Self-Made Monarch of Albania'', 2003 ({{ISBN|0-7509-3077-2}}).
* Rees, Neil. ''A Royal Exile – King Zog & Queen Geraldine of Albania including their wartime exile in the Thames Valley and Chilterns'', 2010 ({{ISBN|978-0-9550883-1-5}}).
* Patrice Najbor. "La dynastie des Zogu", 2002.
* Patrice Najbor. "Histoire de l'Albanie et de sa Maison Royale 1443–2007", 2008 ({{ISBN|978-2-9532382-1-1}}).

==Further reading==

* Bobev, Bobi. "The Dictatorship of Ahmed Zogou." ''Etudes Balkaniques'' 29, no. 2 (1993): 16–33.
* Fischer, Bernd J. "Albanian Highland Tribal Society and Family Structure in the Process of Twentieth Century Transformation." ''East European Quarterly'' 33, no. 3 (1999): 281–301.
* Tomes, Jason. "The Throne of Zog." ''History Today 51'', no. 9 (2001): 45–51.
* Patrice Najbor. "Les réalisations du roi Zog", "Monarkia Shqiptare 1928–1939", 2011, {{ISBN|978-9994317219}}.

== External links ==

{{Commons category|Zog I of Albania}}
* [http://www.albanianroyalcourt.al Albanian Royal Court Official Site]
* [http://albania.dyndns.org/ Maison Royale d'Albanie – Site officiel en français]
* [http://albania.dyndns.org/najbor.htm Histoire de l'Albanie et de sa Maison Royale 1443–2007]
* [http://albania.dyndns.org/najbor_albanie_juifs.htm L'Albanie et le sauvetage des Juifs]
* [http://www.albanianroyalcourt.al/pages/kingzog King Zog] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180227190323/http://www.albanianroyalcourt.al/pages/kingzog |date=27 February 2018 }}
* {{PM20|FID=pe/042371}}

{{S-start}}
{{S-hou|[[House of Zogu]]|8 October|1895|9 April|1961}}
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{{S-pre}}
|-
{{S-new|loss|reason=Italian invasion, communist regime}}
{{S-tul|title=[[King of the Albanians]]|years=1939–1961|reason=}}
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{{s-end}}

{{Heads of state of Albania}}
{{Prime ministers of Albania}}
{{Royal Albanian Army}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zog of Albania}}
[[Category:Zog I| ]]
[[Category:1895 births]]
[[Category:1961 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Albanian people]]
[[Category:20th-century monarchs in Europe]]
[[Category:Albanian emigrants to England]]
[[Category:Albanian emigrants to France]]
[[Category:Albanian monarchs]]
[[Category:Albanian royalty]]
[[Category:Kings of Albania]]
[[Category:Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I]]
[[Category:Dethroned monarchs]]
[[Category:Field marshals]]
[[Category:Galatasaray High School alumni]]
[[Category:Governments in exile during World War II]]
[[Category:Presidents of Albania]]
[[Category:Government ministers of Albania]]
[[Category:Prime ministers of Albania]]
[[Category:Royal Albanian Army]]
[[Category:House of Zogu]]
[[Category:Self-proclaimed monarchy]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of the White Lion]]
[[Category:Albanian Sunni Muslims]]
[[Category:People from Mat (municipality)]]
[[Category:Albanian expatriates in Egypt]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus]]
[[Category:All-Albanian Congress delegates]]
[[Category:Activists of the Albanian National Awakening]]
[[Category:Burials at the Mausoleum of the Albanian Royal Family]]
[[Category:Albanian exiles]]
[[Category:Pretenders]]
[[Category:Royal reburials]]