Predecessor Crown Prince Leka I Spouse Elia Zaharia (m. 2016) | Mother Susan Cullen-Ward House House of Zogu | |
Period 30 November 2011 - present Born 26 March 1982 (age 34)
Johannesburg, South Africa ( 1982-03-26 ) Father Crown Prince Leka I of Albania Education Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Parents Leka I, Crown Prince of Albania, Susan of Albania Grandparents Zog I of Albania, Geraldine of Albania, Alan Robert Cullen-Ward, Phyllis Dorothea Murray-Prior Similar Elia Zaharia, Zog I of Albania, Geraldine of Albania, Susan of Albania, Yllka Mujo Profiles | ||
Prince Leka of Albania (Leka Anwar Zog Reza Baudouin Msiziwe Zogu, born 26 March 1982) is the only child of the first Leka, Crown Prince of Albania, and Susan Cullen-Ward. Prince Leka was an official at the Albanian Ministry of Interior and in the past has served at the Albanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Presidency. The prince is referred by some Albanian monarchists as King Leka II since the death of his father, whom they referred to as Leka I. On 30 November 2011, he succeeded as head of the House of Zogu, titular King of the Albanians upon the death of his father.
Contents
- Early life
- Education and activities
- Career in Albanian leadership
- Personal life
- Wedding
- National honours
- Foreign honour
- References
In May 2010, the Prince became engaged to Elia Zaharia, an Albanian actress and singer. They married on 8 October 2016 in Tirana.
Early life
Leka is the son of the pretender to Albania's throne, Crown Prince Leka I, and his Australian wife Susan Cullen-Ward known as Queen Susan.
At the time of his birth in 1982, the South African government declared his maternity ward temporarily Albanian territory to ensure that Leka was born on Albanian soil, although the Albanian government would not have recognised it as such. He was named in honour of Egyptian president Anwar El Sadat, his grandfather King Zog I, Emperor Mohammed Reza of Iran, and Baudouin I, King of the Belgians. Msiziwe is a Zulu honorific. Leka is a member of the Zogu dynasty founded by King Zog and also is a hereditary bey (Albanian tribal chieftain and traditional land owner) of the Gheg clan.
Education and activities
Leka's secondary school education took place at St Peter's College, an Anglican school in Johannesburg. In December 2006, he graduated from Sandhurst Military Academy, United Kingdom, as did his father before him. Prince Leka was the “Best foreign student of the Academy”. He was subsequently congratulated by the Albanian Minister of Defence for this achievement. He also has completed studies at the Università per Stranieri in Perugia, Italy, in the Italian language. He subsequently also completed training at the Albanian Military Academy Skanderbej. He is studying international relations.
Prince Leka has featured in different magazines over the years. He resides in Tirana, and speaks Albanian and English, and also speaks some Zulu and Italian. He owns boxer dogs and his personal interests include martial arts, volleyball and swimming. He is also fond of wildlife and has taken part in mountain climbing, abseiling and target shooting.
On 5 April 2004 Prince Leka accepted the Mother Teresa Medal in behalf of his late grandmother, Queen Géraldine, for her humanitarian efforts.
Prince Leka is known to have worked with youth organizations, like MJAFT!, and supported a wide range of humanitarian efforts in Albania, but maintains that he only supports "self-help" projects to stimulate Albanian and Kosovar economic growth, Gazeta Sot.
Prince Leka is also known as a supporter of Kosovo independence from Serbia and has close ties with the Kosovo leadership in Pristina. Iliria Royal University in Prishtina and Tirana is styled as regal and functions with some reference to him.
Prince Leka also 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 at Parmoor House in Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom, which was the home of King Zog during his wartime exile.
Career in Albanian leadership
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 two years he transferred to the office of the Minister of Interior. After the election of Bujar Nishani as President in 2012, Leka was appointed as political adviser to the President.
Personal life
Prince Leka met Elia Zaharia in Paris, and in May 2010 they got engaged. Since then she has accompanied the Prince on most of his visits and meetings with members of other 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 the 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, a member of the Albanian Royal Family, that the couple would get married on 8 October 2016 in the Royal Palace in Tirana.
Wedding
Prince Leka got 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. A blessing was given by the five religious leaders of Albania representing the faiths of Sunni Islam, Bektashi, and the Christian denominations of Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant. This tradition of the Albanian royal family is part of the tradition of religious tolerance in Albania.
Wedding guests included friends and relatives from around the world including relatives of Queen Susan's from Australia. Guests also included members of other royal families from neighbouring countries and further afield. These included Queen Sofia of Spain and Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. Prince Michael of Kent is a cousin of Queen Elizabeth II and his wife Princess Michael of Kent is related to Prince Leka through her mother Countess Marianne Szapáry who was a cousin to Queen Geraldine and had been a bridesmaid at her wedding to King Zog in 1938. Other royal guests included Farah Pahlavi of Iran, Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of Yugoslavia, Crown Prince Nikoli of Montenegro, Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg together with Princess Sibilla, Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia, Princess Léa of Belgium and other members from the royal families of Russia, Liechtenstein, Romania, Greece, Georgia, Morocco and members of other noble families. Also heads of state of Albania attended the ceremony.