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Revision as of 19:12, 14 September 2010
The Occupation of territories that would be incorporated into the newly formed Albanian state, at December 1913, occurred by the Balkan League member states: Serbia, Montenegro, and Greece during the Balkan Wars in 1912-1913.
Background
Main article: Albanian National RevivalProvisional Government of Albania
Main article: Albanian Declaration of IndependenceIn 1912, with the outbreak of the First Balkan War, the Albanians rose up and declared the creation of an independent Albania, which included what are now Albania and Kosovo. In August 1912, the Porte recognized the autonomy of Albania. In October 1912, the Balkan states feeling that their national aspirations would be in jeopardy by the autonomy of Albania, jointly attacked the Ottoman Empire and during the next few months partitioned nearly all of Rumelia (Ottoman territories in Europe), including those inhabited by the Albanians.
Campaings of Balkan League members in Ottoman Albania
Serbian campaing
The Serb army first entered the Ottoman territory inhabited by ethnic Albanians in November 1912 as part of its campaign in the then-ongoing First Balkan War. The Kingdom of Serbia occupied most the Albanian-inhabited lands including Albania's Adriatic coast. Serbian general Božidar Janković was the Commander of the Serbian Third Army during the military campaign in Albania. The Serbian army was met with strong Albanian guerrilla resistance, led by Isa Boletini, Azem Galica and other military leaders. During the Serbian occupation, General Jankovic forced notables and local tribal leaders to sign a declaration of gratitude to King Petar I Karađorđević for their "liberation by the Serbian army".
During the occupation, the Serbian army committed numerous crimes against the Albanian population "with a view to the entire transformation of the ethnic character of these regions." The Serbian government has officially denied reports of war crimes.
Albanian politician Esad Pashë Toptani collaborated with Serbian government during the occupation. He created a puppet state based in Durrës, called the Republic of Central Albania and fought against the Provisional Government of Albania.
Following the Treaty of London in May 1913 that had awarded new lands to Serbia including most of the former Vilayet of Kosovo, Belgrade agreed to withdraw its troops from outside of its territory. This allowed for an unimpeded Albanian state to exist peacefully. The final withdrawal of Serb personnel from Albania was in October 1913.
Montenegrin campaign
Shkodër and its surrounding had long been a territorial ambition of Montenegro, although its inhabitants were overwhelmingly ethnic Albanians. The Siege of Shkodër took place on April 23, 1913 between forces of the Montenegro and Serbia against forces of Ottoman Empire and the Provisional Government of Albania.
Montenegro took Shkodër on April 23, 1913, but when the war was over, the Great Powers didn't give the city to the Kingdom of Montenegro which was compelled to evacuate it in May 1913, in accordance with the London Conference of Ambassadors. The army's withdrawal was forced when a small naval flotilla of British and Italian gunboats moved up the Bojana river and across the Adriatic coastline.
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Greek campaign
Main article: Greece in the Balkan WarsThe Greek Army controlled parts that would be later incorporated to the Albanian state even before the declaration of Albanian Independence in Vlore. On November 18, 1912, after a successful uprising and 10 days prior to the Albanian Declaration of Independence, the local major Spyros Spyromilios expelled the Ottomans from Himara region. The Greek Navy also shelled the city of Vlora on 3 December 1912.
The Greek Occupation of southern Albania lasted until March 1914. After the Great Powers agreed on the terms of the Protocol of Florence in December 1913, Greece had to relinquish southern Albanian territories, including Korçë, Gjirokastër and Sarandë.
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Aftermath
Under a strong international pressure, Balkan neighbors in the 1913 were forced to withdraw from the territory of the internationally recognized state of Albania. The newly Principality of Albania included only about half of the ethnic Albanian territory, while a large number of Albanians remained in neighboring countries.
See also
- Albanian National Revival
- Massacres of Albanians in the Balkan Wars
- Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus
- Serbian-Albanian conflict
- Siege of Shkoder
References
- Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia at peace and at war: selected writings, 1983 - 2007, by Sabrina P. Ramet
- Balkan studies, Volume 25 Author Hidryma Meletōn Chersonēsou tou Haimou (Thessalonikē, Greece) Publisher The Institute, 1984 p.385
- The case for Kosova: passage to independence Author Anna Di Lellio Publisher Anthem Press, 2006 ISBN 1843312298, 9781843312291 p.55
- Balkan studies, Volume 25 Author Hidryma Meletōn Chersonēsou tou Haimou (Thessalonikē, Greece) Publisher The Institute, 1984 p.387
- The Ottoman Empire and Its Successors, 1801-1927 Author William Miller Edition revised Publisher Routledge, 1966 ISBN 0714619744, 9780714619743 p.498
- ^ Report of the International Commission to Inquire into the Causes and Conduct of the Balkan War (1914)
- Miranda Vickers, The Albanians: a modern history
- ^ Leo Freundlich: Albania's Golgotha
- The policy of ethnic cleansing
- SERBIAN GOVERNMENT AND ESSAD PASHA TOPTANI
- ^ Robert Elsie, Essad Pasha Toptani Cite error: The named reference "Elsie" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- Edith Durham, The Struggle for Scutari (Turk, Slav, and Albanian), (Edward Arnold, 1914)
- Kondis Basil. Greece and Albania, 1908-1914. Institute for Balkan Studies, 1976, p. 93.
- The Balkan Wars, 1912-1913: prelude to the First World War, by Richard C. Hall
- The Albanians: a modern history, by Miranda Vickers (Page 69)
- The Albanians: a modern history, by Miranda Vickers (Page 80)