Albanian Kingdom (1928–39)
| Kingdom of Albania | ||||||||||
| Mbretëria Shqiptare | ||||||||||
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Motto "Atdheu mbi te gjitha" "Homeland above all" |
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Anthem Himni i Flamurit Hymn to the Flag |
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.svg) The Kingdom of Albania in 1935.
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| Capital | Tirana | |||||||||
| Languages | Albanian | |||||||||
| Religion |
Sunni Islam Roman Catholicism Albanian Orthodoxy Bektashism |
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| Government | Constitutional monarchy | |||||||||
| King | ||||||||||
| • | 1928–1939 | Zog I | ||||||||
| Prime Minister | ||||||||||
| • | 1928–1930 | Kostaq Kota | ||||||||
| • | 1930–1935 | Pandeli Evangjeli | ||||||||
| • | 1935–1936 | Mehdi Frashëri | ||||||||
| • | 1936–1939 | Kostaq Kota | ||||||||
| Legislature | Constitutional Assembly | |||||||||
| Historical era | Interwar period | |||||||||
| • | Established | 1 September 1928 | ||||||||
| • | Italian invasion | 7 April 1939 | ||||||||
| • | Government exiled | 9 April 1939 | ||||||||
| Area | ||||||||||
| • | 1930 | 28,748 km² (11,100 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | ||||||||||
| • | 1930 est. | 1,003,097 | ||||||||
| Density | 34.9 /km² (90.4 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Currency | Franga | |||||||||
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The Albanian Kingdom (Gheg Albanian: Mbretnija Shqiptare, Standard Albanian: Mbretëria Shqiptare) was the official name of Albania between 1928 and 1939. Albania was declared a monarchy by the Constituent Assembly, and President Ahmet Bej Zogu was declared King Zog I. The kingdom was supported by the fascist regime in Italy, and the two countries maintained close relations until Italy's sudden invasion of the country in 1939. Zog fled into exile and never saw his country again. The Communist Party of Labor of Albania gained control of the country toward the end of World War II, installed a Communist dictatorship, and formally deposed Zog.
In 1928, Zogu secured the parliament's consent to its own dissolution. A new constituent assembly amended the constitution making Albania a kingdom and transforming Zogu into Zog I, "King of the Albanians". International recognition arrived forthwith. The new constitution abolished the Albanian Senate creating a unicameral Assembly. Although nominally a constitutional monarch, in practice King Zog retained the dictatorial powers he had held as President Zogu. Civil liberties remained more or less nonexistent, and political opponents were frequently imprisoned and killed. Thus, for all intents and purposes Albania remained a military dictatorship.
Soon after his coronation, Zog broke off his engagement to Shefqet Vërlaci's daughter, and Verlaci withdrew his support for the king and began plotting against him. Zog had accumulated a great number of enemies over the years, and the Albanian tradition of blood vengeance required them to try to kill him. Zog surrounded himself with guards and rarely appeared in public. The king's loyalists disarmed all of Albania's tribes except for his own Mati tribesmen and their allies, the Dibra. Nevertheless, on a visit to Vienna in 1931, Zog and his bodyguards fought a gun battle with would-be assassins on the Opera House steps (see Zog I of Albania § Assassination attempts).
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