German Albania

Shqiperia gjermane
German Albania

←

1943–1944

→

Anthem
Himni i Flamurit
Hymn to the Flag

Capital

Tirana

Government

Kingdom under Fascist dictatorship

King

- 1943-1944

Vacant

Fuhrer

- 1943-1944

Adolf Hitler

History

- September 8, 1943

German takeover

- May 24, 1944

Establishement of Communist Albania

Currency

Lek

Fascist Italy

Albania

v

German Albania was a client state of Nazi Germany.

Background

The German occupation of Albania occurred between 1943 and 1944 during World War II. Before the armistice between Italy and the Allied armed forces on 8 September 1943, Albania had been in a de jure personal union with and was de facto under the control of the Kingdom of Italy. After the armistice and the Italian exit from the Axis, German military forces entered Albania and it came under German occupation, creating the client-state, the Albanian Kingdom (Albanian: Mbretëria Shqiptare; German: Königreich Albanien).

The Germans favoured the nationalist Balli Kombëtar over King Zog I's Legalists and the occupation was marked by collaboration between them and the Germans. Albania under German occupation retained control of the areas it had received during Italian rule, including most of Kosovo, as well as Western Macedonia, the town of Tutin in Serbia and a strip of Eastern Montenegro. It was the policy of the Balli Kombëtar to have all Albanian populated territories under one state.^[1]