Eqrem Vlora
Eqrem bey Vlora | |
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Born | |
Died | 30 March 1964 | (aged 78)
Other names | Ekrem Vlora, Eqrem bej Vlora |
Occupation | Scholar, writer, politician |
Known for | Assembly of Vlorë Defense of Vlorë, 1912–1913 |
Signature | |
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Eqrem or Ekrem Bey Vlora (1 December 1885 – 30 March 1964) was an Albanian lord, politician, writer, and one of the delegates to the Assembly of Vlorë, which proclaimed the Albanian Declaration of Independence in November 28, 1912.[1][2]
Early life[]
He was born in Vlora, the son of Syrja Bey Vlora, member of one of the wealthiest landowning families of the south. He was related both to Ismail Qemali and also to his main political opponent Esad Pasha, who were both his uncles from his father's and mother's side respectively. He was educated at the Theresianum in Vienna, 1899–1903, and studied law and religion in Istanbul, 1904. After working for the Ottoman Foreign Ministry for a time, including a three-month tour of duty at the Ottoman embassy in St. Petersburg in 1907,[3] and years of travel in Europe, Albania and the Orient, he joined his uncle Ismail Qemali in the movement for Albanian independence. During these travels he met some of the most important personalities of the time, including Herbert Kitchener, Franz Conrad von Hotzendorf, several Arab sheikhs[3] who would become the monarchs of the Arab countries and also a young lieutenant, Mustafa Kemal, who would eventually become the president of Turkey. According to Vlora's memoirs, members of his family were de facto (not de jure) sanjakbeys of Sanjak of Avlona in period 1481—1828.[2]
Balkan Wars[]
![]() | This article includes a list of general references, but it remains largely unverified because it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (March 2020) |
In mid-October, Vlora arrived in Vienna after being sent on a mission by Albanian notables of middle and south central Albania to seek support from Austro-Hungarian officials regarding Albania's future and its borders especially along the Kalamas river and the inclusion of Chameria up to Preveza.[4] During the Balkan Wars, he was given the rank of reserve major and the command of a territorial battalion (composed of Albanians) for the defense of Vlora by the Ottoman Empire commander in Ioannina. After several skirmishes with the Greek forces in the area of Himarë, he was recalled to Vlora by his uncle, Ismail bey.
Albanian state[]
![]() | This article includes a list of general references, but it remains largely unverified because it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (March 2020) |
In 1912, he was made deputy president of the senate. He was sent in Neuwied to meet the Prince Wilhelm of Wied, chosen to rule Albania. Later, he served in the Foreign Ministry during the Prince's reign and was distinguished as the commander of a volunteer artillery battery during the attack of peasant rebels on Durrës. He also received the Order of the Eagle for gallantry shown during the siege. He was a known supporter of the Central Powers during World War I for which reason he kept under arrest in Italy during most of the war but subsequently became a promoter of close relations between Italy and Albania. He was friendly towards the Italian commanders during the Italian invasion of Vlora in 1920. Vlora was elected to parliament in 1924, representing a conservative wing and, in 1925, became a senator for a short period of time. His relations with Ahmet Zogu were tenuous, though he served the latter on various diplomatic missions abroad. He was a close friend of the Bavarian baroness Marie Amelie, Freiin von Godin, with whom he translated the Kanun of Lekë Dukagjini into German.[citation needed]
Collaboration[]
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Vlora welcomed the Italian invasion of April 1939 and had close links to the Italian fascists. In 1942, Mustafa Merlika-Kruja appointed him Minister for Kosovo, the western half of which had been incorporated to Albania. His anti-Slavic policies, however, gave rise to widespread resistance among the Serbs and Montenegrins.[citation needed] In the summer of 1944, he was made Foreign Minister and Minister of Justice before going into Italian exile during the communist takeover. He died in Vienna and was buried at the Neustift am Walde Cemetery till 30 March 2014. Since 30 March 2014 his remains were reinterred in Vlorë.[5]
Writer[]
As a writer, Eqrem bej Vlora is remembered for his monograph Aus Berat und vom Tomor: Tagebuchblätter ('From Berat and Tomorr: Pages of a Diary', Albanian: Nga Berati në Tomorr dhe kthim : ditar[6]), Sarajevo 1911, and, in particular, for his two-volume German-language memoirs, published posthumously as Lebenserinnerungen ('Memoirs'), Munich 1968, 1973, which provide insight into the world of an early 20th-century Albanian nobleman. They have recently been translated into Albanian as Kujtime ('Memoirs'), Tirana 2002, and Turkish as Osmanli Arnavutluk'undan anilar, 1885-1912 ('Notes from Ottoman Albania, 1885-1912'), Istanbul 2006. Unpublished remains his monumental 1200-page typescript Beiträge zur Geschichte der Osmanienherrschaft in Albanien: eine historische Skizze ('Contributions to the History of Ottoman Rule in Albania: an Historical Sketch'), from which this account of the noble families of Medieval Albania is taken.[citation needed]
References[]
- ^ Michael Schmidt-Neke (16 November 1987), Entstehung und Ausbau der Königsdiktatur in Albanien (1912-1939): Regierungsbildungen, Herrschaftsweise und Machteliten in einem jungen Balkanstaat (in German), Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag, p. 320, ISBN 978-3486543216
- ^ Jump up to: a b Vlora, Eqrem (1968), Lebenserinnerungen, 1, archived from the original on 4 March 2016, retrieved 28 December 2011,
The members of his family held this position almost without interruption from 1481 to 1828, hereditarily not de jure, but de facto.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Elsie, Robert (19 March 2010). Historical Dictionary of Albania. Scarecrow Press. pp. 474, 475. ISBN 978-0-8108-7380-3.
- ^ Skendi, Stavro (1967). The Albanian national awakening. Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 453–455. ISBN 9781400847761.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 27 November 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- ^ WorldCat Catalog entry
Sources[]
- This article includes the text from Robert Elsie's personal site with explicit permission of the site author to use it under GNU FDL.
- "History of Albanian People" Albanian Academy of Science. ISBN 99927-1-623-1
- 1885 births
- 1964 deaths
- Albanian diplomats
- 20th-century Albanian politicians
- 20th-century Albanian writers
- People from Vlorë
- People from Janina Vilayet
- 20th-century Albanian military personnel
- Foreign ministers of Albania
- Civil servants of the Ottoman Empire
- 20th-century Ottoman military personnel
- Albanian collaborators with Fascist Italy
- Albanian orientalists
- 20th-century historians
- Albanian non-fiction writers
- 19th-century Albanian people
- German-language writers
- Albanian male writers
- German–Albanian translators
- 20th-century translators
- Albanian–German translators
- All-Albanian Congress delegates
- Ambassadors of Albania to Greece
- Ambassadors of Albania to the United Kingdom
- 20th-century male writers
- Vlora family
- Istanbul University Faculty of Law alumni
- Male non-fiction writers