Tefik Selim Mborja (6 November 1891 – 1 July 1954) was an

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 ...

n politician and lawyer. He served as the general secretary of the

Albanian Fascist Party The Albanian Fascist Party ( sq, Partia Fashiste Shqiptare, or PFSh) was a fascist organisation active during World War II which held nominal power in Albania from 1939, when the country was invaded by Italy, until 1943, when Italy capitulated to ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

.Fischer, Bernd Jürgen.
Albania at War: 1939-1945
'. London: Hurst, 1999. pp. 45-46

Biography

Tefik Mborja was born in 1888, in

Mborje Mborje is a settlement in the Korçë County, southeastern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Korçë. It is a southeastern suburb of Korçë. History The Holy Resurrection Church ( sq, Kisha e Ris ...

, Vilayet of 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

). Mborja was a member of parliament during the

interbellum In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relative ...

years. A staunch opponent of Ahmet Zogu, he supported Fan Noli. Mborja was served as Noli's representative in Rome from 1924. He was assigned to establish the diplomatic relations with

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, ...

, and for this reason he communicate with Soviet representative in Rome Konstantin Juranev. In Italy, he befriended the family of Count

Galeazzo Ciano Gian Galeazzo Ciano, 2nd Count of Cortellazzo and Buccari ( , ; 18 March 1903 – 11 January 1944) was an Italian diplomat and politician who served as Foreign Minister in the government of his father-in-law, Benito Mussolini, from 1936 until 1 ...

. He studied

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...

in Rome. With the invasion of Albania by Italian forces in 1939, Mborja was appointed new Prefect of the province of

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 ...

by the Albanian Provisional Committee. When the

was founded within a month of the invasion, Mborja was appointed general secretary of the party by

Victor Emmanuel III The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

. The main criteria behind his nomination were the links with the Ciano family that he had cultivated in the 1920s. As the general secretary of the Albanian Fascist Party Mborja was included in the Albanian government as an ex-officio minister. Mborja was able to exercise a certain degree over political influence over government policies through his position in the government. However the Italian fascists retained veto rights over the actions of the Albanian party, and Mborja's work was supervised by Giovanni Giro (inspector-general of the party and a close associate of Benito Mussolini). In theory, according to his official biography, Mborja was supposed to be included in the leadership of the Italian Fascist Party, although was unclear in what function. On May 29, 1939 he was appointed as member of the Italian Chamber of Fasces and Corporations as well as the Central Council of Corporative Economy.Pearson, Owen.
Albania and King Zog: Independence, Republic and Monarchy 1908-1939. Albania in the twentieth century, v. 1
'. London: Centre for Albanian Studies in association with IB Tauris Publishers, 2004. p. 481 He was arrested in December 1944 by Albanian Communists and sentenced with 20 years by the Special Court of Spring 1945. He was poisoned while in prison and died in 1954.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mborja, Tefik Albanian Fascist Party politicians Ambassadors of Albania to Italy People from Korçë People from Manastir vilayet 19th-century Albanian politicians 20th-century Albanian politicians Albanian collaborators with Fascist Italy Albanian politicians Political party leaders of Albania 19th-century births 1954 deaths Members of the Chamber of Fasces and Corporations Prisoners who died in Albanian detention