Tajar Zavalani known later in his life as Thomas-Henry Zavalani (1903–1966) was an
Albanian historian, publicist, and writer.
Life
Zavalani was born on 15 August 1903 in
Monastir,
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
, today's Bitola in
North Macedonia
North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...
, or
Korça,
today's
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
. He was the son of Albanian activist and nationalist
Fehim Zavalani
Fehim bey Zavalani (1859-1935) was an Albanian landowner from the Kolonjë area, journalist and activist of the Albanian National Awakening. He was also the editor of ''Bashkimi i Kombit'' (Nation's Unity), one of the most important Albanian new ...
and Qerime Frashëri from
Korçë
Korçë (; sq-definite, Korça) is the eighth most populous city of the Republic of Albania and the seat of Korçë County and Korçë Municipality. The total population is 75,994 (2011 census), in a total area of . It stands on a plateau som ...
.
His father had settled in Monastir, very active within the Albanian patriotic circles of
Monastir Vilayet, close cooperator of the
Kyrias family
Kyrias family ( sq, Familja Qiriazi) were a prominent Albanian family from Manastir (today's North Macedonia). They were educators, translators, publishers, and public figures of the Albanian National Awakening period. They are remembered for th ...
, and participant in the
Congress of Monastir (1908) and
Congress of Dibra
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ad ...
(1909). The Congress of Monastir was held in a hotel owned by him.
Tajar Zavalani took his first studies in the
Marist Brothers
The Marist Brothers of the Schools, commonly known as simply the Marist Brothers, is an international community of Catholic religious institute of brothers. In 1817, St. Marcellin Champagnat, a Marist priest from France, founded the Marist Brothe ...
French
Catholic School, and after the bombardment of Monastir during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
he left for
Salonica
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
, where he enlisted in the French
lyceum
The lyceum is a category of educational institution defined within the education system of many countries, mainly in Europe. The definition varies among countries; usually it is a type of secondary school. Generally in that type of school the t ...
. He
studied literature there.
Zavalani came in
Tirana
Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...
in 1922. He started working for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, initially as a secretary of the Commission for the Border Delimitation headed by
Ali Pasha Kolonja. The commission was part of task-force commissions throughout post-World War I Europe for delimiting disputable border segments, as decided by
Paris Peace Conference of 1919.
In
June 1924, he took part in the uprising of
Vlora as a member of the "Bashkimi" (Unity) Organization of the recently assassinated
Avni Rustemi
Avni Rustemi (22 September 1895 – 22 April 1924) was an Albanian patriot, militant, teacher, activist and member of the Albanian parliament. Rustemi was the leader of both democratic organisations "Atdheu" and "Bashkimi", and also a member ...
. These events led to
Fan Noli and his supporters coming to power. After the return of
Ahmet Zogu in power by December 1924, Zavalani fled to Italy. The
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
Union offered to let him study in Russia as a "victim of
counterrevolution
A counter-revolutionary or an anti-revolutionary is anyone who opposes or resists a revolution, particularly one who acts after a revolution in order to try to overturn it or reverse its course, in full or in part. The adjective "counter-revoluti ...
". After a year in Moscow, despite his hobby of
electrotechnics
Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...
, he attended the
Marxist–Leninist school in Leningrad. In the summer of 1929, he returned to Moscow and worked at the
Agrarian Institute, specialising in economics. In November 1930, he managed to get out of Soviet Union with his perception of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
being altered by the
collectivisation campaign. He settled in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
, and soon-after in
Leysin
Leysin is a municipality of the canton of Vaud in the Aigle district of Switzerland. It is first mentioned around 1231–32 as ''Leissins'', in 1352 as ''Leisins''.
Located in the Vaud Alps, Leysin is a sunny alpine resort village at the easte ...
, near
Montreux
Montreux (, , ; frp, Montrolx) is a Swiss municipality and town on the shoreline of Lake Geneva at the foot of the Alps. It belongs to the district of Riviera-Pays-d'Enhaut in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland, and has a population of approxima ...
in Switzerland. There he was treated for
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...
.
In January 1933, Zavalani returned to Albania, where he was active in the translation of literary works, mostly from Russian and
French literature
French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than F ...
, and as a publicist. Among other translations was ''
The mother'', a novel of
Gorky which was banned by the authorities.
In 1935 he was Director of State Lyceum in
Tirana
Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...
, later director of "Malet T'ona" College, and chaired Tirana branch of the
Vllaznija Literary Society. Meanwhile, his brother Hysen, who had also settled in the Soviet Union, would be executed by the Soviets due to involvement in some turmoils in
Saratov (1938). From a bearer of the Communist ideas,
he abandoned the Communist movement, and actually became an
anti-communist.
In 1936, he married Selma Vrioni (1915–1995), also known as Maria Selma, daughter of
Kahreman Vrioni (1889–1955), a rich
bey
Bey ( ota, بك, beğ, script=Arab, tr, bey, az, bəy, tk, beg, uz, бек, kz, би/бек, tt-Cyrl, бәк, translit=bäk, cjs, пий/пек, sq, beu/bej, sh, beg, fa, بیگ, beyg/, tg, бек, ar, بك, bak, gr, μπέης) is ...
from
Fier
Fier (; sq-definite, Fieri) is the seventh most populous city of the Republic of Albania and seat of Fier County and Fier Municipality. It is situated on the bank of Gjanica River in the Myzeqe Plain between the Seman in the north, the Vjos ...
area, and Emine Frashëri (daughter of
Abdyl Frashëri).
After the
Italian invasion of 1939, he was interned in northern Italy, from where he escaped with his wife, who was a former
lady-in-waiting to former
Queen Geraldine, reaching former
King Zog
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the t ...
's party and settling to England in 1940. In November 1940, he was given a job in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's Albanian-language
service. With his friend
, and his BBC colleagues Dervish Duma and Anton Logoreci, he appealed to the British authorities and to King Zog for monetary support for establishing a "Free Albanian" committee which would serve like a government in exile. Although the idea was supported by the British albanophiles, it did not make it to light due to Zogu's rejection. Ahmet Zogu replied that "his position as the Head of State of Albania and could not be affected by the attitude of few lads in London".
Zavalani worked for BBC for the rest of his life. He was a member of
branch of London.
Zavalani died in an accident in 1966.
after his death.
Zavalani published:
*''How Strong Is Russia'', London: Hollis and Carter, 1951.
*''Histori e Shqipnis'' (History of Albania), London, volume I in 1957, volume II in 1963.
*''Land of Eagles: A History of Albania from Illyrian Times to the Present Day'', the English-language version of "History of Albania", remains unpublished.
Zavalani supported the theory of a non-forced islamisation of Albanians during the Ottoman times.