Principata shqiptare dhe qëndrimi i Greqisë (marsprill 1914)
The Albanian Principality and the Attitude of Greece (March - April 1914)

Summary/Abstract: On July 29th 1913, the Conference of London declared Albania as an autonomic principality, inherited sovereignty, under the guarantee of the six Powers. On March 7th 1914, the Prince of Albania, Wilhelm of Wied, arrived in Durrës. The Greek position towards him was conditioned by the position kept by the Great Powers and that of the homologues in the Balkans. In the beginning of March, the Greek Prime Minister admitted that Greece would accept the decision of the Great Powers on Albania. This declaration creates the impression that the Greek government was formally engaged to accomplish its duties towards the Great Powers, by withdrawing its armies from the territories of the Albanian country, within the deadline, and not to support the "Northern Epirus Movement". The impression created during the first days of March, that the Greek army would withdraw from the Albanian territories quickly and without incidents, did not last long. Declarations and reality were two different things in the relations between the two neighbors, just as they had been in the past. As a result of the tragic events of Korça, the Greek - Albanian correlations deteriorated even more. Greece continued not respecting the southern Albanian border, by violating the sovereignty of the Albanian government. Meanwhile, violence covered the entire Southern Albania. A considerable number of villages were burnt and destroyed completely, while a large part of the population, especially the Muslims, was massacred. The human and material cost was high for the Albanians and their future government. At the same time, the psychological trauma experienced by the populations of these regions left deep and undeniable traces on their historic memory. Even if the Greek high officials did not admit their direct responsibility for the organization of this policy, it is difficult not throw responsibility on them. The massive emigration and extreme violence against the population, especially of the Muslim one, evidently accompanied the process of creation of religiously clean areas, which according to the Greek concept, implicated ethnic purity too. This was the process that was followed by the armies and their supporters over the entire Balkans, during the Balkan Wars. It is hard to believe that such policy was local, spontaneous and random. Leaving aside the exaggeration of the application on the field, this policy was a large enterprise, which certainly enjoyed the political support. Under this difficult situation, the contact between Albanians and Greek was diminished and their relations couldn't but get harsh and extremely aggravated.

• Details
• Contents