Collapse of the Principality of Albania

Collapse of the Principality of Albania
Depiction of the border crossing between the Senate of Central Albania and the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus in September 1914.
Date 28 February 1914[d] – 2 August 1920[e] Location Principality of Albania Result Gradual reunification of Albania after the end of World War I Albania regains independence with the end of the Vlora War Establishment of the Albanian Republic under Ahmet Zogu in 1925
Belligerents
Principality of Albania[a] ICC International Gendarmerie Dutch forces German forces Austro-Hungarian forces Romanian volunteers Catholic Albanian tribes Shkodër autonomous council Mirdita region Delvina Government	Senate of Central Albania[b] Toptani Government Serbia Italy Italian-occupied Albania Government of Durrës France Autonomous Province of Korçë Montenegro	Pro-Ottoman Albanian Muslim rebels General Council Senate of Central Albania[c] Union of Krujë Central Powers Ottoman Empire Austria-Hungary Bulgaria	Northern Epirus Greece

In early 1914, the newly established Principality of Albania entered a period of violent political collapse, sometimes described as a civil war.^[1][2]

An independent, but deeply unstable Albanian state had been established in the aftermath of the Balkan Wars and was set to transition into a monarchy as a result of the arrangements of the European Great Powers. Immediately after Albania formally became a monarchy under Prince Wilhelm of Wied in February 1914, debilitating mass conflict erupted in the country.^[3][4][5] Wilhelm's failure to maintain control led to his departure from Albania that September, resulting in a political vacuum and the end of any remaining central authority.^[5][6]

The collapse, which eventually became intertwined with the Balkans theatre of World War I, involved various factions that asserted control as the country split along religious and ethnic^[f] lines; multiple countries also intervened and occupied the recognized territory of Albania.^[1][7] The country's fragmented situation would not be resolved until after the end of the war.

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