Leka, Prince of Albania (Leka Anwar Zog Reza Baudouin Msiziwe Zogu, born 26 March 1982) is the current head of the

House of Zogu The House of Zogu, or Zogolli during Ottoman Albania, Ottoman times and until 1922, is an Albanian people, Albanian dynastic family whose roots date back to the early 20th century. The family provided the first president and the short-lived modern ...

, the former royal family of

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

. At the time of his birth on 26 March 1982, the

South African government The Government of South Africa, or South African Government, is the national government of the Republic of South Africa, a parliamentary republic with a three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a parliamentary ...

, by order of

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

P. W. Botha Pieter Willem Botha, ( , ; 12 January 1916 – 31 October 2006) was a South African politician who served as the last Prime Minister of South Africa from 1978 to 1984 and as the first executive State President of South Africa from 1984 until ...

, declared his maternity ward extraterritorial land, to ensure that Leka was born on Albanian soil. Leka is the only child of

Leka, Crown Prince of Albania Leka, Crown Prince of Albania (Leka Skënder Zogu; 5 April 193930 November 2011) was the only son of King Zog I and Queen Geraldine of Albania. He was called Crown Prince Skander at birth. After his father's death in 1961, Leka was the pretende ...

and his wife Susan, Crown Princess of Albania. He is the only grandchild of King Zog I of the Albanians, succeeding as head of the royal house upon the death of his father in 2011. He has worked as an official at the country's interior and foreign ministries. He also served as a political advisor to the Albanian President from 2012 to 2013. In May 2010, Leka became engaged to Elia Zaharia, an Albanian actress and singer. They married on 8 October 2016 in

Tirana Tirana ( , ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in Albania, 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 ov ...

. In January 2024, they revealed they were getting a divorce. Great Arms of HRH Prince Leka II of the Albanians

Early life

Leka is the son of the

pretender A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term may often be used to either refer to a descendant of a deposed monarchy or a claim that is not legitimat ...

to the defunct throne of

, Crown Prince Leka, and his Australian wife Crown Princess Susan. He was named in honour of Egyptian president

Anwar El Sadat Muhammad Anwar es-Sadat (25 December 1918 – 6 October 1981) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the third president of Egypt, from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by fundamentalist army officers on 6 O ...

, his grandfather

King Zog I Zog I (born Ahmed Muhtar Zogolli; 8 October 18959 April 1961) was the leader of Albania from 1922 to 1939. At age 27, he first served as Albania's youngest ever Prime Minister (1922–1924), then as president (1925–1928), and finally as King ...

, Emperor Mohammed Reza of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, and Baudouin I,

King of the Belgians The monarchy of Belgium is the Constitutional monarchy, constitutional and Inheritance, hereditary institution of the monarchical head of state of the Kingdom of Belgium. As a popular monarchy, the Belgian monarch uses the title king/quee ...

. Msiziwe is a Zulu term meaning 'the one who was assisted'. Leka is a member of the

Education and activities

Leka was educated in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

at St Peter's College, Johannesburg, and in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

at the

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academy, military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial Commissioned officer, officer train ...

, where he was named Best Foreign Student of the academy, being congratulated by the Albanian Minister of Defence. He was also educated at the Skanderbeg Military Academy in

, at the Università per Stranieri in

Perugia Perugia ( , ; ; ) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area. It has 162,467 ...

, where he studied the

Italian language Italian (, , or , ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family. It evolved from the colloquial Latin of the Roman Empire. Italian is the least divergent language from Latin, together with Sardinian language, Sardinian. It is ...

, and in

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

, where he studied

international relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

. On 5 April 2004, Leka accepted the Mother Teresa Medal on behalf of his late grandmother, Queen Géraldine, for her humanitarian efforts. Leka is known to have worked with youth organizations, like MJAFT!, and supported a wide range of humanitarian efforts in Albania, but he maintains that he only supports self-help projects to stimulate Albanian and Kosovar economic growth, Gazeta Sot. Leka is known as a supporter of Kosovar independence from

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

and has close ties to the Kosovar leadership in

Pristina Pristina or Prishtina ( , ), . is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and District of Pristina, district. In antiquity, the area of Pristina was part of the Dardanian Kingdo ...

. Leka founded the youth leadership of the Movement for National Development, which was a movement created by his father in 2005 to change the political face of Albania. On 24 June 2010, Prince Leka unveiled a

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...

at Parmoor House in

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

, United Kingdom, which was the home of King Zog during his wartime exile.

Public service

On 21 August 2007, Foreign Minister Lulzim Basha announced that Leka had been appointed to his office. The prince intended to pursue a career in diplomacy. After three years he was transferred to the office of the Minister of Interior. After the

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

of Bujar Nishani as president in 2012, Leka was appointed as political adviser to the President. Leka was rumoured to be a candidate in the 2022 Albanian presidential election though no candidates were disclosed and the position ultimately went to

Bajram Begaj Bajram Begaj (born 20 March 1967) is an Albanian politician and military officer who has been President of Albania since 2022. Having had a long career in the Albanian army, he served as the 26th Chief of General Staff of the Albanian Armed Fo ...

Personal life

Leka met Elia Zaharia in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, and in May 2010 they were engaged. Since then she accompanied him on most of his visits and meetings with members of royal families. She is also head of the Queen Geraldine Foundation, which is a humanitarian, charitable and non-profit organisation, created by the Royal Court. The foundation aims to be close to Albanian families who need help and to children who need care. It has reconstructed numerous schools and kindergartens in northern Albania, especially in the Mat District, from where the Zogu Family comes. On 27 March 2016 it was announced by Skënder Zogu (born 1933), a member of the Zogu family, that the couple would be married on 8 October 2016 in the

Royal Palace This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent. Africa Americas Asia Europe Oceania {, class="wikitable" width="95%" , - bgcolor="white" !align=center, Residence !align=center, Photo !align=center, City !align=cen ...

in Tirana.

Wedding

Leka was married on Saturday 8 October 2016 in Tirana. The ceremony was a semi-official ceremony, held in Tirana in the Royal Palace, with many guests including members of other noble and royal families. The event was a civil wedding officiated by the Mayor of Tirana,

Erion Veliaj Erion Veliaj (born December 17, 1979) is an Albanian politician who has served as the 42nd mayor of Tirana since 2015. Beginning as an activist and the leader of MJAFT!, Veliaj joined the ranks of the Socialist Party of Albania in 2011, where h ...

. A blessing was given by the five religious leaders of Albania representing the faiths of Sunni Islam, Bektashi, and the Christian traditions of Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant. This tradition of the Albanian royal family is part of the tradition of

religious tolerance Religious tolerance or religious toleration may signify "no more than forbearance and the permission given by the adherents of a dominant religion for other religions to exist, even though the latter are looked on with disapproval as inferior, ...

in Albania. Wedding guests included friends and relatives from around the world including relatives of his mother from Australia. Guests also included members of other royal families from neighbouring countries and further afield. These included

Queen Sofía of Spain Sofía (Sophia Margaret Victoria Frederica; Μαργαρίτα Βικτώρια Φρειδερίκη, romanized: ''Sofía Margaríta Bictória Freideríki''; born 2 November 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who was Queen of Spai ...

and

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

and

Princess Michael of Kent Princess Michael of Kent (born Baroness Marie-Christine Anna Agnes Hedwig Ida von Reibnitz, 15 January 1945) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Michael of Kent, who is a grandson of George V, King George V. Prince ...

. Prince Michael of Kent is a first cousin of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

and his wife Princess Michael of Kent is related to Prince Leka through her mother, Countess Marianne Szapáry, who was a 5th cousin of Queen Géraldine and had been a bridesmaid at her wedding to King Zog in 1938. Other royal guests included Empress Farah of Iran, Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

, Crown Princess Margareta of Romania, Custodian of the Crown and

Prince Radu of Romania Prince Radu of Romania (born Radu Duda on 7 June 1960, formerly known as Prince Radu of Hohenzollern-Veringen from 1999 to 2007) is the husband of Margareta of Romania, who is the head of the House of Romania and a disputed pretender to the f ...

, Nicholas, Prince of Montenegro,

Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg (''Guillaume Marie Louis Christian''; born 1 May 1963) is the third son and youngest child of Grand Duke Jean and Grand Duchess Josephine-Charlotte of Luxembourg. Life Prince Guillaume was born in Betzdorf ...

together with Princess Sibilla,

Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia (born 10 June 1976, as ''Georg Friedrich Ferdinand Prinz von Preußen'') is a German heir who is the current head of the Prussian branch of the House of Hohenzollern, the former ruling dynasty of the German Em ...

Princess Léa of Belgium Princess Léa of Belgium (born Léa Inga Dora Wolman; 2 December 1951) is the widow of Prince Alexandre of Belgium. She is an aunt by marriage of King Philippe of Belgium. Early life She was born on 2 December 1951 as the daughter of Sigismun ...

and other members from the royal families of

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Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

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and members of other noble families. Heads of state of Albania also attended the ceremony.

Divorce

It was announced on their Instagram page on 15 January 2024 that Prince Leka and Elia would be getting a mutual divorce as their marriage was no longer functioning. Leka confirmed plans for the divorce two days prior on his personal Instagram page as well. They divorced on 25 April 2024.

Children

Elia gave birth to a daughter on 22 October 2020 at Queen Geraldine Maternity Hospital in Tirana, on the 18th anniversary of Leka's grandmother Queen Geraldine's death. Their daughter was named Geraldine in her honour. On 28 January 2023, on the day of her baptism, her full name is Geraldine Sibilla Francesca Susan Marie, and her godparents are Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg and Thomas Frashëri, a family friend.

Honours and awards

Honours

National dynastic honours

: Highest Holder of the Grand Collar of Honour of Albania *

: Grand Master of the Order of Fidelity *

: Grand Master of the Order of Skanderbeg *

: Grand Master of the Military Order and Medal of Bravery

Foreign honours

Italian Royal Family The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

: Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus * Two Sicilian Royal Family: Knight Grand Cross of the

Royal Order of Francis I The Royal Order of Francis I (properly 'The Royal Order of Francis I of the Two Sicilies' ) was an extinct order of merit of the former Kingdom of the Two Sicilies which was annexed in 1861 by the King of Italy (until 1860 King of Piedmont and S ...

Russian Imperial Family The House of Romanov (also transliterated as Romanoff; , ) was the reigning imperial house of Russia from 1613 to 1917. They achieved prominence after Anastasia Romanovna married Ivan the Terrible, the first crowned tsar of all Russia. Ni ...

: Knight Grand Cross of the Imperial Order of Saint Andrew * : Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

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Awards

* – Honored Citizen of the City of Burrel (2012) * – Honored Citizen of the Commune of

Bërdicë Bërdicë is a former municipality in the Shkodër County, northwestern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Shkodër. The population at the 2011 census was 5,773. Settlements There are 7 settl ...

(2012) * – Key to City of

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

(2011) * – Honorary Mayor of the City of

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

References

Bibliography

* Patrice Najbor, Histoire de l'Albanie et de sa maison royale (5 volumes), JePublie, Paris, 2008, (). * Patrice Najbor, la dynastye des Zogu, Textes & Prétextes, Paris, 2002 * ''Geraldine of the Albanians''; Robyns, Gwen – * Rees, Neil: ''A Royal Exile – King Zog & Queen Geraldine of Albania including their wartime exile in the Thames Valley and Chilterns'', 2010 ()

External links

Official website of the Albanian Royal CourtSite Officiel de la Maison Royale d'Albanie
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leka, Prince Of Albania 1982 births Living people People from Johannesburg Princes of Albania Albanian people of American descent Albanian people of Hungarian descent House of Zogu Graduates of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Università per Stranieri di Perugia alumni Recipients of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Australian people of English descent Albanian royalty