Dashnor Kaloçi
The fourth part
Memorie.al publishes the unknown story of the assassination attempt on King Zog on February 20, 1931 while he was in Vienna for treatment, by a group of Albanian political emigrants living in the Austrian capital, led by Ndok Gjeloshi, Aziz Çami, two former officers of the Albanian Army who had taken part in the June 1924 Uprising, as well as Qazim Mulleti and Angjelin Suma, who after being ambushed at the main gate of the Vienna Opera House, shot several times with their revolvers against Zog and his adjutants, while he was getting into his vehicle that was waiting for him nearby, leaving Major Llesh Topallaj killed on the spot and injuring the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Albania, Ekrem bej Libohova . How was that news and the whole story of the assassination of King Zog that miraculously escaped untouched by the assassins’ bullets, in the biggest newspapers in Europe and the USA, such as: “The New York Herald”, ” Daily Telegraph, Daily Express, Chicago Tribune, Moring Post, Universal, Daily Herald, The Christian Science Monitor, etc., which found the opportunity and published for several months on the pages of with dozens of articles, where in addition to the event in question, devoted many articles to King Zog’s friendship with the Austrian baroness Maria de Janko and her sister, Franciscka de Janko, who had been for some time in Tirana and with Zog’s visit to Vienna, they had also gone there to be accommodated in the Hotel “Regina”, where the King of Albanians during all those days, often frequented them and went out with them for walks in the most beautiful parks of Vienna.
“A savage attack on the King of Albania Zog, took place late tonight in Vienna where the King had come to recover from Neurasthenia and nicotine poison. King Zog with his suite and some Austrian officials had just left the Opera House where he was playing “The Legend of Joze”, contacted by Richard Strau, and as he was taking his place in the car waiting for him outside the opera, revolver blasts were heard. on both sides of the car. The assailants, two people dressed well in their clothes at night, fired rifles at the car windows from a close distance. Zog’s men surrounded the car and pulled the revolvers out of their belts and fired at the catapults with a coolness, presumably at the top of the mountains in the heart of Albania and not near the great Vienna Opera. Major Topallaj, one of the King’s suites, together with a braver minister, sacrificed their lives to bravely face the rain of bullets in order to save their King. Topallaj fired four times with a revolver before falling to the ground before a bullet hit him. The Major, his minister, Marshall Libohova, who has a large body, fell to the ground in front of the King and continued to lie on the benches, which were repulsed until he received a bullet in the dagger. Twelve more were made upon the King, and his salvation seemed a marvelous thing. The Katilas, unable to achieve their goal, tried to retaliate, but the people of Vienna, angered by the use of the generosity of their city, seized the Katilas and beat them badly, until the police arrived. Both cats were sent to a prison and are now being questioned. “King Zog, who kept his composure during this event, took a car and went to the Imperial Hotel on the Ring Strasse where he has lived since he came to Vienna.”
This is what is written, among other things, in the British newspaper “Daily Express” dated February 21, 1931, which in its main pages gave the news of the assassination of King Zog by a group of Albanian political emigrants led by : Ndok Gjeloshi, Aziz Çami, Qazim Mulleti and Angjelin Suma, who lived as asylum seekers in the Austrian capital, who after making the plan to kill Zog, that day had ambushed in front of the main entrance of the Vienna Opera House, where the King of Albanians accompanied by his adjutant, Major Llesh Topollaj, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ekrem bej Libohova, were watching the performance of the opera “Legenda e Joze”, and the moment they got out and got into the vehicle waiting for them near the gate of the Opera House, they fired several bullets from their revolvers, leaving dead the King’s adjutant, Major Llesh Topollaj, and wounding the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ekrem bej Libohova, who with your body j defended Zog, who with his revolver, fired several times at the assassins.
Regarding this event which became public only after the ’90s, Memorie.al has provided a voluminous file from the Archive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana, (which is published for the first time), where there is a correspondence of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Zog Monarchy with the Albanian Consulate in Vienna, which, among other things, sent to Tirana all the photocopies of the most famous newspapers of Europe and the USA, which for several months, devoted much writing to the event in question. All these articles translated at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana as well as various archival documents about the event of the assassination of King Zog, Memorie.al is publishing them in several issues in a row, starting from today’s article and giving them with the written language of that time, without any changes as occurring in the relevant file.
Continued from the previous issue
The world press on the event of the assassination of King Zog in Vienna
Taken from the notebook “La Republique”
Istanbul, 4 March 1931
How was King Zog assassinated?
Vienna, 22
Multitude, who was leaving the opera on Friday evening, witnessed, in front of the theater door, a real drama, while inside the theater there was a completely different part. Two former Albanian officers tried to kill Ahmed Zogu, the King of the Albanians. One of the King’s adjutants died and another was wounded. King Zog escaped for divine miracles.
That night I was also at the opera, and in this way, they managed to get me to follow closely the details of the assassination. We should not be surprised at the favors that fate once reserves for people. Think a little. Two good marks, shoot at the King from two sides and the King from this terrible thing come out safe and sound.
King Zog in operas
In enter-acts, I met a friend of mine, a newspaper correspondent, and after we talked about other things, he told me:
Have you seen Ahmed Beun?” He is here.
Without asking who Ahmed Bey is, she said:
The King of Shqypnia, Ahmed Bey Zogu, and I continue like this:
It is found here of 28 kallnuer for health reasons. Apparently, he enjoys opera and comes here almost every night.
Since the King of the Albanians until that time was of little interest to me, there was no question of him.
Letter from the Albanian consulate in Vienna to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana
KONIGLICH ALBANISCHES KONSULAT VIENE
CONSULAT ROYAL D’ALBANIE VIENE
Nr. 142 / II 15.IV.1931
Abbreviation: “Wiener Mittags-Zeitung”, about the two ministers confused in the assassinations of King Zog I
Honest
Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In Tirana
We have the honor to report that the local socialist notebook “Wiener Mittags-Zeitung”, with today’s date publishes sub. No.79 the following news:
Two ministers got involved in assassinations against King Zog I.
The King revolver cannot be surrendered.
We are informed by the court that the investigations of the Court on the assassination attempt against the King of the Albanians, Zog I, are always going on. Serious obstacles are being brought by the investigations, which are carried out on the persons of criminals as well as the various diplomatic correspondences, therefore these will last for several months, but it is expected that the process will not be before the middle of June.
Investigations are underway into the felony murder against the King’s Adjutant as well as attempted murder against the King.
It is interesting to know that the King’s revolver, with which the King fired, was not handed over to the court, although such a prayer was made by the police. We are also informed that, among the seven culprits are two former Albanian ministers, i.e., the Minister of Agriculture and the Minister of Education” (Sejfi Vallmasi and Rexhep Mitrovica)
According to the information we have from the investigating judge Dr. Karl Fryda, it turns out, that the news of the notebook in question has no official character, and has not left the court, but as it was ascertained by us, was declared by two opposing lawyers Dr. Prwessburger and Dr. Fishauer.
With special honors
Consulate General
“DAILY TELEGRAPH”, 18.6.1931
GOALS OF ITALY IN ALBANIA
Put another in place of King ZOG
BAHET THE NAME OF A MALAYSIAN PRINCE
BELIGRAD, Wednesday
King Zog i Shqipnies is alive with all the “rumors” that Katile, who have tried to kill him many times before, had ended this time his life of peace. But according to the news received in Belgrade, ay asht tuj die (“un home mourant”), even in Yugoslavia there is a lot of alarm now that it is remembered that the strong fist over his country, over his country is weakening.
In the counties here, which are usually well informed it is freely spoken that the Italians, whom King Zog has served, intend to replicate it. It is said that before they had thought with vue on the throne, Tuptino, an Albanian important and in favor of Italy, but the growth of those who are not noble with the King dog, has its disadvantages and now it is said that the Montenegrin Prince Mihal, who is 23 years old and is educated in England, he has succeeded Zogu who was once strong.
Prince Mihal is the son of Prince Mirko, who died in 1916 and is the healer of the marriage to the old Serbian family, Obrenovitch.
The current rulers of Yugoslavia belong to the Karageorgevitch family, old rivals of Prince Mihal’s family, and one can better imagine how the Yugoslav reaction could be described if Prince Mihal, who is a progressive boy with cosmopolitan ideas, takes over Zog!, with his Mohammedan appearance.
YUGOSLAV VIGILANCE
The Yugoslavs fully appreciate the danger of their current position, and are ready to make an immediate and strong appeal to the League of Nations if Italy were to try to oust King Zogu and put Mihali on his side and support this demand. send troops to the Albanian border.
Italian influence, it is said here, is dominant in Albania. The army is trained by Italians and has Italian officers. Finances are controlled by Rome. Italian engineers hit roads and harbors. There is strong news of dissatisfaction in Albania and for any turmoil of peace, according to the conditions of the Tirana pact, the cause for an attack (invasion) of the Italian armies would be enough to restore peace.
In addition to these it is said that another burden has been added to the Samaritan camel, the offer of the Italians for a loan of F.2.000.000 with the condition that 10,000 Italian settlers be allowed to take the best land of Shqypnies South and be installed there with all their families. These settlers will enjoy full autonomy – their judiciary, militia, gendarmerie, and their special system of taxes and incomes. REUTER /Memorie.al
Continues in the next issue
