The Question of the Albanian Throne in 1913 and the Conspiracy of Bekir Grebene

On July 29, 1913, after long talks at the Conference of Ambassadors in London, it was finally decided on the status of Albania. This decision gave Albania its independence, with the guarantee of protection from the six Great Powers. With the proposal of Austria-Hungary and Italy, they appointed the German Wilhelm zu Wied as Prince of Albania. The Ottoman Empire, which had recently relinquished sovereignty over Albania, planned to install an Ottoman Prince of Muslim descent on the throne in order to maintain its influence while countering Serbia and Greece’s growing influence. Another significant development was the attempt at an alliance between Albania and Bulgaria’s attempt to form an alliance, which was linked to the Beqir Grebene conspiracy. The purpose of this study is to address the efforts made by the Great Powers and the Ottoman Empire regarding the appointment of the leader of the new Albanian state. Based on an analysis of information obtained from archives and documentary sources, we aimed to highlight the challenges faced by Albania in order to maintain independence and build the structures of the new state. Through this study, an overview of international and local dynamics is presented based on archival sources.