Memorie.al / European diplomacy played the Albanian card to facilitate secret agreements at the expense of the Albanian people. Since the Albanian captains – Çerçiz Topulli, Isa Boletini, Ded Gjo Luli, Ahmet Zogu, Sali Butka, Namik Delvina, Themistokli Gërmenji, and others – had aligned themselves with Austro-Hungary, its opponents, France and Italy, decided to reactivate Esat Pashë Toptani. On August 20, 1914, World War I officially began, turning Albanian soil once again into a battlefield between the warring powers representing the Entente and the Central Powers. By late August, Greek bands of about 300 men entered Berat. Meanwhile, the pro-Turkish Albanian rebel forces had extended their dominion between the Mat and Vjosa rivers.
Under the conditions following the outbreak of World War I, the rebels entered into negotiations with several Albanian leaders who had stood by Wied. They were joined by Mehmet Pashë Dërralla, Ibrahim Temo, and others. Meanwhile, Hasan Prishtina, Bajram Curri, and Isa Boletini refused and remained loyal to the King. The Prince made efforts to negotiate with the rebels but failed to reach any agreement with their leaders.
Seeking a way out, the King charged the Prime Minister with visiting European capitals to secure military aid. Turhan Pasha returned without any promises. On the day the rebels headed toward Vlora, Pasha Toptani left Naples for Paris, where he reached an agreement with the French government to enter the war against the “Axis” alliance. To fulfill his mission, Esat traveled from Paris to Athens, where he also reached an understanding with the Greek government.
He then moved to Serbia, where he met with Pašić. During his stay in Serbia, Esat Toptani signed agreements with Pašić and the enemies of Albania, closing the cycle of secret bargains to the detriment of Albania, based on which he secured the aid of said governments to come to power. To implement his plans, Esat Pasha left Serbia for Thessaloniki, awaiting orders to enter Albania through Kapshtica. By late August, the rebels prepared to attack Vlora, but its residents sought to avoid war.
For this purpose, they sent a delegation which met with rebel leaders in Cakran on August 31. After the failure of negotiations, on August 30, the insurgent troops – led by Mustafa Ndroqi, Osman Bali, and Dervish Biçakçiu – passed through Myzeqe and entered Vlora on September 1, 1914.
Mustafa Ndroqi, chairman of the “General Rebel Committee,” after the rebel forces (encouraged by Young Turk segments, Greek military forces, and Italian agents) occupied Vlora – the Albanian capital of Independence – in the presence of Mohammedan believers kneeling and broken in spirit, “lowered the Albanian flag and raised the Ottoman flag.” With the gesture of an Anatolian charlatan, he declared the rebels’ demands: 1. The departure of the European Prince. 2. The appointment of an Ottoman Prince to the Albanian throne. After the fall of Vlora, the political-military situation was entirely in the hands of the rebels.
The Departure of Ismail Qemali, Wied, and Fan Noli
On September 1, 1914, the “Committee of Public Safety” was dissolved. Under the conditions of Vlora’s occupation by rebel troops, Ismail Qemali fled the city. Rebel combat units surrounded Durrës. With the departure of the Dutch military mission, Wied’s fragile power weakened even further. To strengthen his position against the rebels, the Prince turned to Vienna for help, which in turn demanded that he declare war on Serbia.
Wied did not accept the conditions for war; consequently, he lost Vienna’s support. On September 3, 1914, Prince Wied was forced to leave the Throne and Albania. In the ensuing situation, Father Theofan Noli left Durrës and returned to Boston. Upon his return to America, Fan Noli transitioned from Priest to Politician, and to fulfill this mission, he transformed the “Vatra” Pan-Albanian Federation, which he led, into a “Government in Exile.”
The Testament of Alexander the Great
The renowned Italian scholar Lucia Nadin, “The Testament of Alexander the Great,” (Nacional Newspaper, December 15-22, 2013):
“I, Alexander, son of Philip, King of the Macedonians, the embodiment of the monarchy, creator of the Piraean Empire, son of Zeus, interlocutor of the Brahmins and the Trees, of the Sun and the Moon, vanquisher over the kingdom of the Persians and Medes, lord of the World from where the sun rises to where it sets, from North to South, scion of the illustrious seed of the Illyrian peoples, of Dalmatia and Liburnia and other peoples of the same tongue who inhabit the Danube and the central zone of Thrace, bring you my love, peace, and greetings.
Since you have always proven faithful, strong, and invincible in the battles fought by my side, I grant and deliver into your free possession the entire space of Aquilon reaching to the edge of Southern Italy. Let no one else but you dare to settle there, except as your slave, and his descendants shall be slaves to your descendants.
Written in the Citadel of the city of Alexandria, founded by me on the banks of the magnificent Nile River. By the will of the gods honored in my kingdoms – Zeus, Mars, Pluto, and Minerva, the god of gods. Witnesses to this act are: Atleti, my Logothete, and 11 other princes, whom I name as my heirs and heirs to the whole World, as I am dying without leaving descendants.”
Dr. Koço Kota: In Shkodra, the Metropolis of the North
On the very day the King departed, a portion of Albanian patriots emigrated from Albania. Two prominent figures from Korça, Pandeli Cale and Pandeli Evangjeli, went to Bucharest, the capital of Romania, while Dr. Koço Kota went to Shkodra. Upon stepping onto Shkodran soil, he felt the emotions of legends. In the year 326 BC, Alexander the Great had left his testament to the Illyrian people of Shkodra.
The testament written by the most powerful man in the world at that time was not respected by any succeeding power. Illyria was ruled first by the Romans, and later by the Byzantines, Slavs, Turks, and Greeks. Now, the city of Shkodra and its regions – once the glory of world and Illyrian history – had been placed under the administration of International Powers since the borders of the Albanian state were established on August 11, 1913, by the Conference of Ambassadors of the Six Great Powers in London.
The “Vatran” and co-founder of the political organization “Krahu Kombëtar” (The National Wing) walked the dusty streets of the city, where the people of Queen Teuta moved in silence and humiliation. He had come to meet his Albanian brothers of Shkodra and Kosovo to establish the “Krahu Kombëtar” organization for Shkodra and the “National Defense of Kosovo” Committee. To fulfill this mission, Sejfi Vllamasi and Sotir Peci arrived in Shkodra on September 4, 1914, along with several other members of “Krahu Kombëtar.”
The two “Vatrans,” Peci and Kota, in cooperation with Sejfi Vllamasi and many Albanians from Shkodra and Kosovo, created the political organization “Krahu Kombëtar” for Shkodra. Referring to researcher Eugen Shehu, Koço Kota immediately began efforts in the city of Shkodra to carry out major educational reforms. Here, he was welcomed by Terenc Toçi, Sali Gjuka, and other Shkodran patriots, who saw in the young man from Korça not only organizational skill in the field of education but, above all, the unquenchable fire of his Albanianism.
Marela Guga: “The Prefecture of Berat” 1920-1939
“A shameful and brutal act was that of Trush Beçi and a group of fanatics coming from Lushnja, who beat to death and dragged through the streets the patriot Babë Dudë Karbunara. In many villages, the rebels burned the houses of nationalists who had assisted the government and looted those that were abandoned. On September 27, 1914, with the permission of the insurgent council, a civic commission was formed under the chairmanship of Dr. Dhimitër Kajana, Shyqyri Fuga, and Arshin Perisnaka to stop the ‘Vorio-Epirotes’ from advancing toward Berat.
While the commission and the council were awaiting a response from the center, the ‘Vorio-Epirotes’ approached from the Vakëf neighborhood, taking two directions: one part toward the Fortress to raise the Greek flag and the other toward the prefecture offices. In the Fortress, the ‘Vorio-Epirotes’ stabbed Zejnel Staraficka – a Cham immigrant returned from Greece who was grazing livestock in the Fortress square – and threw him off the wall. The Greek Andartes… led by Leontakanaqis, began to retreat.
During the retreat, they massacred eight men in Lapardha, slaughtering them one by one. Following the departure of the ‘Vorio-Epirotes’ from Berat, the rebel insurgents began looting. Christian families sought refuge in Muslim ones out of fear. However, in May 1915, Baki Gjebrea was executed in front of the prison in Berat, while Ismail Klosi was executed on the outskirts of the city. On the same day, Musa Qazimi sentenced Dr. Dhimitër Kajana to death by hanging on the charge of collaborating with the ‘Vorio-Epirotes’.”
The Rebels Occupy Durrës
In Durrës, the ICC (International Commission of Control) entered into negotiations again with the insurgents regarding the future of power. However, the rebels had not changed their goals and presented a program demanding the “Independence” of Albania while refusing to recognize the role of the ICC. Mustafa Ndroqi, in an interview given to the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero on September 3, 1914, emphasized: “The Turkish flag is the symbol of the General Council.” Before the ink had dried on the paper, two thousand rebels, on September 5, 1914, entered the country’s capital, Durrës. Musa Qazimi entered the Royal Palace and raised the Ottoman flag.
The insurgents expelled Prince Wied’s administration and established their own councils, taking control of the administration of both city and countryside. The city and village councils were subordinate to the General Council of the Insurrection. The diplomatic missions of Austria-Hungary, Germany, Italy, and Bulgaria departed from Albania. In Durrës, on September 23, 1914, the General Council of the Insurgents – with Mustafa Ndroqi as chairman and Musa Qazimi as vice-chairman, stationed at the Royal Palace where the Albanian flag had been removed and the Ottoman flag was flying – demanded the following measures:
- The re-entry of the country into the Ottoman Empire;
- The voting of a declaration drafted by Musa Qazimi emphasizing the “Ottoman character” of the Albanians;
- The sending of a delegation to Istanbul, headed by Haxhi Aliu, to appoint an Ottoman Prince. Esat Pasha stayed for three days at Zogu’s house and then departed.
Sejfi Vllamasi: “Political Confrontations in Albania”
The man from Dibra asked the man from Mat for participation, but Zogu replied: “Look, uncle, since you have started this business, I am raising my hands and saying, Inshallah! When I hear that you have reached your goal, I will say Mashallah.” With large Dibran forces and supported by Xhelal Zogu with 1,000 men from Mat, after many vicissitudes, ambushes, and opposition from the highlanders of Tirana, he entered Tirana without firing a shot. After three days, he left Tirana and directed the volunteer forces toward Durrës. The General Council of Durrës (self-styled as the senate), meeting at Mr. Bumçi’s house with leaders loyal to Esat, under the threat of the forces…
Esat Pashë Toptani: Bargains with Belgrade and Athens
Esat Pashë Toptani, after securing the support of the Greek government and the Serbian Prime Minister Pašić, through the mediation of the Serbian prefect of Dibra, Jusuf Dohoçishti – who had organized an autonomous government – arrived in the city of Dibra. In agreement with the local elite and with the support of Xhelal Zogu, he formed a force of over 3,000 men. He paid the leaders according to their positions and gave the volunteers two napoleons each. During the march from Dibra to Tirana, he encountered armed local forces led by rival local chiefs. Nevertheless, with his superior forces, he entered Tirana through the Tujan Pass.
A few days later, the Esatist military forces marched from Tirana to Durrës, where they clashed at Man Picari’s inn with a large rebel force commanded by Man Picari, which they crushed and decimated. With his usual cunning, he managed to persuade the elite of Shijak to cooperate and entered the city without a fight. After a fratricidal war, on October 2, 1914, where he faced ambushes set by local residents reinforced with volunteers from Shijak and Kavaja, he subjugated Rushbull. On October 3, 1914, Esat Pashë Toptani returned to Durrës, openly revealing his “deceitful” character.
He had previously declared he was renouncing his political aims. The General Council of Durrës, meeting at Mr. Bumçi’s house with leaders loyal to Esat, under the threat of the Dibran forces, entered the Assembly Palace and was forced to elect Esat as Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the army.
After decreeing the government, Prime Minister Toptani, without losing time, formed a political court with Xhelal Zogu as chairman, Ilia Llavda as prosecutor, and Hysen Myshqeta as investigator. In implementation of the agreement reached with the French government, Esat Toptani declared war on Austria. The Pasha from Dibra, supported by the governments of the Entente Bloc, felt extremely secure and extended his rule beyond the Shkumbin River, as far as Berat.
Without losing time, he dissolved the city council of Durrës, placed Tofik Mandiqi at the head of the prefecture, and installed his most trusted men in the administration. Even in other cities where he extended his power, he announced the dissolution of revolutionary (rebel) bodies and appointed new prefects. Esat organized the power structures to strike at his political opponents and enemies. On October 17, 1914, Esat ordered the arrest of Qamil Haxhifejza, whom he considered his main enemy.
To weaken the economic power of political opponents, the “Toptani Government” on October 21, 1914, announced the Agrarian Reform and immediately issued an order confiscating the properties of about 50 wealthy individuals, such as the Vloras, Toptanis, Biçakçis, Vrionis, Cakranis, etc. Meanwhile, to present himself as a reformer and his government as engaged in work, he promoted several economic, social, and territorial measures. The government of Esat Pasha was implicated in secret agreements with neighbors. Esat Toptani lied without the slightest hesitation when he ordered:
- To counter the Greek occupation of Southern Albania, following the Greek declaration of October 27, 1914 (he took no counteraction).
- To compile lists of those wounded in the war for Shkodra and the uprising against Wied (no list was compiled).
- To begin work on drafting the land registries burned by the insurgents (no registry was drafted for the victims).
Regarding the issues of Albanian education, Esat Toptani displayed the tendencies of a Turcoman. For this purpose, he removed from circulation the unified primer from the Congress of Monastir of November 1908, suspended writing in Latin characters, and allowed the publication of Hafiz Ali Korça’s primer. Against these anti-national reforms, the “Krahu Kombëtar” organization – composed of the most patriotic elements of those years, among which the two “Vatrans” Sotir Peci and Koço Kota stood out – undertook a broad propaganda campaign to unmask Prime Minister Toptani and organized people in several spontaneous protests.
On November 3, 1914, Turkey entered the war on the side of the Central Powers and declared war on the Toptani government. Accused of being a traitor, as he still held the imperial rank of general in the Ottoman army, the Ottoman military court sentenced him to death. Now, both the Turcophiles and the Young Turks turned against Esat. To quell their opposition, Esat ordered the arrest of many opponents, including Musa Qazimi and Haxhi Qamil, whom he later released.
The government of Esat Pasha was supported by certain beys, the Dibran force, and the Greek, Serbian, Montenegrin, Italian, and French governments. The situation changed again to Esat’s disadvantage. Turcophile and Young Turk leaders joined Haxhi Qamil, and on November 6, 1914, they decided to fight Esat and surrounded him in Durrës. Haxhi Qamil and his comrades declared themselves not only against Esat Pasha but also against the beys, the Austrians, and the Young Turks.
The rebels of Central Albania, who had collaborated with Esat to remove Wied and supported him in returning to Durrës and appointed him Prime Minister, were disillusioned by him and organized once more to seize their lost positions. On November 23, 1914, the insurgent peasants began the overthrow of Esat Toptani’s power. Italy, which had sent a humanitarian mission to Vlora composed of officers, doctors, military personnel, and naval units – seeing the first victories of the Austrian armies against Serbia and suspecting they might arrive in Vlora before them – rushed to occupy it itself and entered Vlora on December 24, 1914. The Italian command lowered the Turkish flag, raised the Albanian and Italian flags, and released political prisoners.
The rebels, after quickly vacating Vlora, retreated beyond the Vjosa River. Surrounded by the insurgents, the Toptani government sought help from his Dibran supporters and allied governments. Esat’s foreign allies, to keep the rebels under pressure, carried out constant attacks in all territories controlled by the insurgents: the Italians from the Vjosa side, the Greeks with Epirote bands from the Berat side, and the Serbians from the Pogradec side. On December 29-30, 1914, in the battles fought near Kruja between Esatist volunteers and Haxhiqamilist ones, the Pasha’s forces were crushed.
Esat Toptani miraculously escaped and, using a boat belonging to Maliq Gjyli, returned to Durrës with 200 Dibrans. With Turkey’s entry into the war against the Entente, the Young Turks began to follow a pro-Austrian policy and sent commissions to Albania to advise the insurgents to demand an “Independent Albania” and recognize Wied as King. Under the conditions of a new fratricidal war, the situation worsened on the northern border, where Montenegrin and Serbian armies threatened Albanian lands and were lined up to occupy them. / Memorie.al
