protectorate · Balkans and Hungary

Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943)

1939 CE – 1943 CE · capital Tirana

Albania under Italian occupation, joined to Italy in a personal union under King Victor Emmanuel III and used as a base for the invasion of Greece.

Origins

Italy invaded Albania on 7 April 1939, forcing King Zog of the Albanian Kingdom into exile. A constituent assembly summoned in Tirana offered the crown to Victor Emmanuel III, creating a personal union with Italy. Shefqet Vërlaci, a large landowner and rival of Zog, became prime minister under an Italian lieutenant-general, Francesco Jacomoni.

Rule and society

Real power lay with Italian officials: Albania's army and foreign service were merged into Italy's and an Albanian Fascist Party was created. Italy launched its invasion of Greece from Albanian soil in October 1940, and after the conquest of Yugoslavia in 1941 Kosovo and western Macedonia were added, forming a Greater Albania. Resistance grew, including Enver Hoxha's Communist Party, founded in 1941.

Decline and legacy

When Italy capitulated in September 1943, German troops occupied Albania and created the Albanian Kingdom (1943-1944), a nominally independent state under German control. Victor Emmanuel III formally renounced the Albanian crown in 1943, and the union with Italy was never restored.

Lineage

Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943)Albanian Kingdom (1943-1944) 1943 CE – 1944 CE

Connections (2)

Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943) in personal union with Kingdom of Italy1939 CE – 1943 CE
Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943) was a protectorate of Kingdom of Italy1939 CE – 1943 CE

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Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943). In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/albanian-kingdom-1939-1943
MLA: “Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943).” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/albanian-kingdom-1939-1943. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943).” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/albanian-kingdom-1939-1943.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Albanian Kingdom (1939-1943)’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/albanian-kingdom-1939-1943 (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻