Mustafa Osman Alibegu, OSK, (1893,

Ulqin Ulcinj () is a town in the Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro and the capital of Ulcinj Municipality. It has an urban population of 11,488. As one of the oldest settlements in the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coast, it was founded in 5th ...

– December 25, 1977,

Shkodër Shkodër ( , ; sq-definite, Shkodra; historically known as Scodra or Scutari) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, fifth-most-populous city of Albania and the seat of Shkodër County and Shkodër Municipality. Shkodër has been List of o ...

) known as Cafo Beg Ulqini, was a soldier, nationalist and politician. He served as the first Albanian mayor of Ulcinj for two decades, and deputy of Ulcinj in the Albanian Parliament. He was appointed as member of the

High Council of Regency The High Council of Regency () was a political collegial body that served as the de facto head of state of Albania in two separate time periods: * ''The High Regency Council of the Principality of Albania from January 30, 1920 until January 31, ...

in 1944. On April 16, 2016, he was posthumously recognized by Albanian President,

Bujar Nishani Bujar Faik Nishani (; 29 September 1966 – 28 May 2022) was an Albanian politician. He served as the president of Albania from 24 July 2012 to 24 July 2017. Nishani was the youngest person to have been chosen as president of Albania, taking of ...

, with the title "Knight of the

Order of Skanderbeg Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * H ...

.Presidenti Nishani dekoron Cafo Beg – Ulqinin (pas vdekjes) me Titullin “Kalorës i Urdhrit të Skënderbeut”
– president.al

Biography

Cafo Beg Ulqini (1893 – December 24, 1977) was an Albanian politician and activist born into the noble Alibegu family in the city of

Ulcinj Ulcinj () is a town in the Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro and the capital of Ulcinj Municipality. It has an urban population of 11,488. As one of the oldest settlements in the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coast, it was founded in 5th ...

. His family's lineage, which can be traced back over 350 years, moved from Durres to Shkodra and eventually settled in Ulcinj in the 1690's. Originating from ancient Illyrian roots, the Ulqinaks were renowned sailors and, at times, pirates who terrorized the Adriatic, earning the moniker "Dulcignotes" in Italian documents during the Golden Age of

Albanian piracy A period of Albanian piracy () occurred from the 15th to the 19th centuries, during which Albanian pirates plundered and raided ships. These pirates were based mainly in Ulcinj, but were also found in Bar and Ragusa (now Dubrovnik), and had con ...

from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Ulcinj's strategic location atop a coastal mountain made it a key node for controlling maritime trade routes. During his early years, Cafo showed great skill in sailing. The First World War brought significant changes to the region, with the Austro-Hungarian occupation of Montenegro in 1916 leading to the occupation of Ulcinj, which had been under Montenegrin control since 1880. This occupation was welcomed by the Albanians who had suffered under Slavic rule. However, with the end of the war and the establishment of the Serbo-Croatian-Slovenian Kingdom in 1918, the situation for Albanians outside their homeland became dire, marked by persecution, exile, and ethnic cleansing. In response to these challenges, Cafo Beg Ulqini, serving as a sailor in the Yugoslav fleet, advocated for Albanian rights and joined the

People's Radical Party The People's Radical Party (, abbr. NRS) was a populist political party in Serbia and later Yugoslavia. Led by Nikola Pašić for most of its existence, its ideological profile has significantly changed throughout its history, shifting from ...

in 1922. He proposed that the Mayor of Ulcinj should be Albanian, a suggestion met with resistance from Montenegrin nationalists. Undeterred, Cafo Beg Ulqini became the Mayor of Ulcinj on August 26, 1923, making history as the first Albanian to lead the municipality. He served in this capacity for 20 years, focusing on the development of agriculture, livestock, trade, and tourism. However, Yugoslav policies remained discriminatory towards the Albanian population, particularly in education. Despite these challenges, Cafo Bej Ulqini was elected as a member of the Presidency of the Islamic Municipality of Yugoslavia, a position he held until 1938. By 1927, Ulcinj had a population of 3,704 inhabitants, predominantly Albanian. The outbreak of the Second World War brought further turmoil to the Balkans. While Yugoslavia was handed over to Hitler in April 1941, Albania was annexed by the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

. During this time, Cafo successfully brought Ulcinj to the Albanian state, raising the Albanian flag for the first time on June 14, 1941. Cafo was elected a member of the

of the Albanian Kingdom in 1944. As

Regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

of the Kingdom, throughout these tumultuous years, Cafo Beg Ulqini tirelessly worked to protect borders, national interests, and persecuted individuals, like Jews who fled persecution from the occupying

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

forces. Following the communist takeover on November 29, 1944, Cafo and his family lived in exile in Shkodra, while his brother Hodo Beg Ulqini, was executed by

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

in Montenegro in 1948. Cafo Beg Ulqini passed away on December 24, 1977, at the age of 84, and was buried in Shkodra. His legacy as a champion of Albanian rights and a defender of his homeland continues to be celebrated in Albania.

Honours

(

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 ...

, 26 April 2016) – decorated by President of Albania

: Knight of the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulqini, Cafo Beg 20th-century mayors of places in Albania 1893 births 1977 deaths Mayors of places in Montenegro Mayors of places in Yugoslavia Albanian nobility People from Ulcinj Albanian nationalism Albanians in Montenegro Albanian collaborators with Fascist Italy Albanian collaborators with Nazi Germany