Ismail Qemali
Ismail Qemali [ ismail cɛma ː li] (real name Ismail Bey Vlora Qemali; born January 16, 1844 in Avlonya, Rumelia, the Ottoman Empire, today Albania, † January 24, 1919 in Perugia, Italy Kingdom ) was an Albanian politician and publicist. He is the most important figure of the political independence of Albania, called on 28 November 1912 in his native city of Vlora Albania 's independence and became its first Prime Minister.
Life
Ismail Qemali came from a wealthy family, who belonged to the Muslim elite in southern Albania. His parents were Mahmud Bey Vlora and Hedije Libohova. Qemali visited some years the Greek secondary school " Zosimea " in Janina, before his family moved to Istanbul in 1859. There he joined at the age of 19 years in the public service of the Ottoman Empire, a; he served there until 1900 a number of different positions. In Istanbul Most of the time he was there working. He also participated in the cultural and political activities of Albanian patriots, led by the brothers Frashëri. When the Ottoman government from the 19th to the 20th century, the desire for autonomy of minorities began to pursue sharply at the turn, even Qemali was targeted by the police. He therefore went on for some years in exile in Western Europe, where he attention to the situation of the Albanians made by lectures and newspaper articles, but with little success.
As part of the Young Turk revolution, he returned and was elected in 1908 as MP for Berat into the Ottoman Parliament. He campaigned for the decentralization of administration and an autonomous district for the Albanians within the empire. As the Young Turk regime turned into a military regime with Turkish nationalist trains after 1909, to Qemali joined the Albanian independence movement, which passed into an open armed revolt in 1910/11 against Ottoman rule. At the outbreak of the First Balkan War Qemali traveled through Bucharest to Austria - Hungary. In Budapest he received from Foreign Minister Count Leopold Berchtold, the commitment that the monarchy would support the establishment of an independent Albanian state.
On an Austrian ship Ismail Qemali returned on November 19, 1912 back to Albania and led the National Assembly in Vlora. As chairman, he played a central role in the proclamation of the independence of Albania. Together with Isa Boletini and Luigj Gurakuqi he hoisted on a balcony in Vlora, the red flag with Skanderbegs double-headed eagle as a symbol of national independence of Albanians.
Qemali was chairman of the first Albanian government, which had to contend with great difficulties, but had to contend primarily to the recognition of the country. After the Great Powers the Germans had appointed William of Wied as King of Albania, Qemali resigned on 22 January 1914. He left Albania and died in Italy five years later.