KING OF ALBANIA

Southland Times, Issue 22993, 12 September 1936, Page 7

KING OF ALBANIA

PLOT AGAINST LIFE REPORTED. 4 (United Press Assn.—Telegraph Copyright.) Athens, September 10. A plot against the life of King Zog of Albania is reported to have been discovered. Previous attempts have been made on the King’s life and once it was reported that he had been assassinated. It was in 1928 that a constituent assembly, called for the purpose, amended the constitution of Albania to change the Government into a monarchy and on September 1 of that year Colonel Ahmed Zog, a Moslem, who had been president since 1925, was proclaimed King as Zog. King Zog is a native of the country, in the central part of wiiich he owns much land. He first came into prominence after the end of the Great War, when under his leadership the Albanians drove out the foreign troops which had been occupying the country. But his political career really began after the murder of Esad Pasha in 1920. when he became leader of a Conservative People’s party which upheld the old Albanian constitution and was friendly to Jugoslavia, in contrast to the Democratic Progressive party under Fan Noli, which had strong leanings towards Italy. At the end of 1923 Zog overthrew Fan Noli's Cabinet, which had been in power since late in 1921. but which had been prevented by a military clique from carrying out the reforms it had promised and so had lost ground. In March, 1924, the shortlived Shefket-Verlaci Cabinet took office and in June Zog was ousted by Fan Noli with the aid of the Italians. Zog fled to Belgrade, where he organized a force consisting of his Albanian adherents, Serbs and the remnant of General Wrangel’s army. With these he invaded Albania in December 1924, and drove out Fan Noli. He then settled the question of Albania's constitution. Hitherto a Regency Council had ruled in place of Prince William (of Wied) who was not allowed to govern, but who had not abdicated. A Constituent Assembly met on January 21, 1925, to proclaim a republic and on February 2 elected Zog President for a term of seven years and also Premier.

King Zog was reported in December 1929, to be seriously ill with a throat affection and specialists flew to Tirana from Rome. In January 1931, he went to Vienna to consult a specialist, who found that he was free from organic disease, but was suffering from nerve trouble as the result of excessive smoking. The physician ordered him to spend a few weeks in the Austrian Alps. His disregard of this advice exposed him to an attempt on his life on February 20. He had remained in Vienna because he had fallen in love with the Austrian Baroness Marie Janko, who arrived in the capital with her sister soon after the monarch. While he was leaving the Opera after a performance of "Pagliacci,” two men fired a number of shots at the royal party. An A.D.C. who threw himself in front of the King was hit twice. The monarch caught him as he fell mortally wounded. The Albanian Minister in Vienna was also badly wounded. Zog was uninjured. He and his entourage returned the fire of the would-be assassins. The two Albanians—one of them a major of artillery—were arrested and later several others. Police investigations revealed that the attempt was a carefully arranged plot on the part of Albanian exiles who had never forgiven Zog for owing his position to Italy’s support. A blow at the monarch was therefore a blow at Italian influence.

In June there was a rumour that the King had been assassinated.