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House of Zogu

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
House of Zogu
CountryAlbanian Kingdom
Founded
  • 20th century
    • 1 September 1928; 96 years ago (1928-09-01) as a royal house
FounderKing Zog I
Current headPrince Leka II
Final rulerKing Zog I
Titles
Estate(s)Burgajet Castle, Mati
Dissolution1939
Websitewww.albanianroyalcourt.al

The House of Zogu, or Zogolli during Ottoman times and until 1922, is an Albanian dynastic family whose roots date back to the early 20th century. The family provided the first president and the short-lived modern Albanian Kingdom with its only monarch, Zog I of Albania (1928–1939).

History

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The dynasty was founded by Zogu Pasha, who migrated to the region of Mat in north-central Albania during the early 13th century.[citation needed]

The Zogu family’s roots are tied to the Mati region of Albania, where they established prominence following the Ottoman conquest over four centuries ago. According to local legend, their rise began with a warrior from the village of Zogaj who intervened during a moment of crisis. An Ottoman official, Gazi Bey, sought to humiliate the families of Mati by demanding their unmarried daughters perform degrading acts. Outraged by this, the warrior from Zogaj rallied the people of Mati, leading a rebellion that ended with the defeat of Gazi Bey. In gratitude, a local chief offered the warrior his daughter’s hand in marriage, laying the foundation for the family’s legacy in Mati. The family name, “Zogolli,” reflects a blend of Albanian and Ottoman influences. It derives from the warrior’s village, Zogaj, with the addition of the Turkish suffix “-oglu,” meaning “son of.” This naming custom was typical under Ottoman rule. Another, less substantiated theory suggests a connection to a German crusader duke (Herzog) who settled in Mati and adopted the name "Zog," but this narrative is largely dismissed as speculative.[1]

The most famous member of the dynasty is Zog I, who in 1928 proclaimed himself King of the Albanians and ruled until he was deposed by Victor Emmanuel III of Italy following the Italian invasion of 1939. Victor Emmanuel subsequently assumed the Albanian throne.

Members of the House of Zogu.

With the death in exile of King Zog in 1961, he was succeeded as claimant to the throne and head of the House of Zogu by his only son Leka, Crown Prince of Albania (born 1939), who was proclaimed King of the Albanians by the Albanian National Assembly in exile.[2] Leka I remained head of the house and claimant to the throne until his death in 2011 when he was succeeded by his only son, Leka II.

Leka II has no sons and is the only living male descendant of King Zog. The current heir presumptive to Prince Leka is Skënder Zogu, his first cousin once removed.[3]

Situation as of 2024

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Prince Leka II, the only living male descendant of King Zog I and the head of the royal house as of 2020, has no sons. The current heir presumptive to Prince Leka is Skënder Zogu, his first-cousin once removed.[4] After him the following currently living male members of the Zogu family could also become heirs[citation needed]:

Family tree

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Bibliography

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  • Patrice Najbor, Histoire de l'Albanie et de sa maison royale (5 volumes), JePublie, Paris, 2008, (ISBN 978-2-9532382-0-4).
  • Patrice Najbor, La dynastie des Zogu, Textes & Prétextes, Paris, 2002.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Tomes, Jason (2011). King Zog Self-Made Monarch of Albania. History Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-7524-7087-0. ... Old songs related how the Zogolli had come to preside in Mati over four hundred years ago, shortly after the Turks first conquered Albania. A warrior from a village called Zogaj chanced to be crossing the valley at the time of a Turkish outrage. Gazi Bey, an Ottoman official set on humiliating the families of Mati, ordered that their unmarried daughters must come and dance naked before him. Horrified at this, the young man from Zogaj inspired the Mati to fight for their honour. The evil Gazi Bey was slain, and a grateful chief rewarded the stranger with the hand of his daughter in marriage. An alternative story, sometimes repeated by foreigners, concerns a putative German duke (i.e. Herzog), who settled in Mati after the crusades, dropping the Her and keeping the Zog. This sounds like journalistic invention. By contrast, the man from Zogaj followed Albanian custom when he used his village as a surname. The form Zogolli incorporated a corruption of the Turkish suffix -oglu, meaning 'son of. Zog the Great (as he became known) was most likely a Roman Catholic on his arrival in the valley. Either he or his successor converted to Islam in order to appease the Turks, for, by the time of his grandson, Zog the Small, the head of the family was recognised as Hereditary Governor of Mati. This expedient change of faith was not at all exceptional. Where the sword is, there lies religion', states an Albanian proverb. The Ottomans imposed a poll tax on Christians and especially persecuted Catholics. In course of time, nearly three-quarters of Albanians had opted to become Muslims. Most were Sunni, like the Turks, but a minority belonged to the heterodox Bektashi sect. Islam was strongest in the central regions. In the south, the Greek Orthodox Church kept Christianity alive. The far north (outside Shkodra) stayed nominally Roman Catholic, because all it ever saw of the Turks was an occasional punitive raid...
  2. ^ Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh (1977). Burke's Royal Families of the World, volume 1: Europe & Latin America. Burke's Peerage. pp. 7–8.
  3. ^ Niget, Florian (5 December 2012). "Chantilly : à 79 ans, il peut devenir roi d'Albanie". Le Parisien. Retrieved 19 December 2012.
  4. ^ Niget, Florian (5 December 2012). "Chantilly : à 79 ans, il peut devenir roi d'Albanie". Le Parisien. Retrieved 19 December 2012.
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