Syrja Vlora (1860–1940), usually referred as Syrja Bey Vlora ( tr, Avlonyalı Süreyya Bey), was an Ottoman Albanian politician, an active figure of the

Albanian Declaration of Independence The Albanian Declaration of Independence ( Albanian: ''Deklarata e Pavarësisë'') was the declaration of independence of Albania from the Ottoman Empire. Independent Albania was proclaimed in Vlorë on 28 November 1912. Six days later the Ass ...

in 1912 and one of the delegates of the

Assembly of Vlorë The Assembly of Vlorë ( sq, Kuvendi i Vlorës) was an Albanian assembly constituted during the All-Albanian Congress in Vlorë, on November 28, 1912. Background The All-Albanian Congress or ''Albanian National Congress'' or ''Albanian Ind ...

Biography

Syrja Bey was born in

Vlorë Vlorë ( , ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the third most populous city of the Republic of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surrounded by the foot ...

, back then

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) ...

, in 1860. He was a member of the distinguished wealthy landowning Vlora family, historically successful through the ranks of Ottoman administration and military for almost 4 centuries. He was the brother of the Grand Vizier Avlonyalı Ferid Paşa (1851-1914) and both were sons of Mustafa Pashë Vlora. Vlora was also related to

Ismail Qemali Ismail Qemal bey Vlora, mostly known as Ismail Qemali (; 16 January 184426 January 1919), was an Albanian diplomat, politician, rilindas, statesman and the Founding Father of modern Albania, and one of the most famous Southern Albanian person. ...

, both being political rivals at the same time. He was married to the sister of

Essad Toptani Essad Pasha Toptani or Esad Pasha Toptani ( sq, Esad Pashë Toptani; 1863/4 or 1875 – 13 June 1920), mainly known as Essad Pasha, was an Ottoman army officer who served as the Albanian deputy in the Ottoman Parliament. He was a prominent ...

. During the late Ottoman period, Vlora served as economic advisor to sultan

Abdul Hamid II Abdülhamid or Abdul Hamid II ( ota, عبد الحميد ثانی, Abd ül-Hamid-i Sani; tr, II. Abdülhamid; 21 September 1842 10 February 1918) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 31 August 1876 to 27 April 1909, and the last sultan to ...

. Before the creation of the new Albanian state, he also held the positions of General Director of the Customs of the Ottoman Empire, and was a representative in the Ottoman Parliament from 1908. Vlora thought that Albanians were not ready for independence and favored a future autonomous Albania becoming a protectorate under

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in the advent of collapse of the Ottoman Empire. In 1911 Vlora wrote a chapter on Albanian history focusing on the Ottoman era and subjects like

Skanderbeg , reign = 28 November 1443 – 17 January 1468 , predecessor = Gjon Kastrioti , successor = Gjon Kastrioti II , spouse = Donika Arianiti , issue = Gjon Kastrioti II , royal house = Kastrioti , father ...

and

Ali Pasha of Yanina Ali Pasha of Ioannina (1740 – 24 January 1822), was an Albanian ruler who served as pasha of a large part of western Rumelia, the Ottoman Empire's European territories, which was referred to as the Pashalik of Yanina. His court was in Ioannina, ...

in an edited book titled ''Musaver Arnavud'' (The Illustrated Albanian) in

Ottoman Turkish Ottoman Turkish ( ota, لِسانِ عُثمانى, Lisân-ı Osmânî, ; tr, Osmanlı Türkçesi) was the standardized register of the Turkish language used by the citizens of the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed exten ...

Dervish Hima Dervish Hima (1872–1928), born Ibrahim Mehmet Naxhi, was a 19th-century Albanian politician and one of the delegates who participated at the Albanian Declaration of Independence. A publisher, he travelled from country to country, promoting Al ...

. In 1912 during the

Albanian revolt The Albanian Revolt may refer to: *The Albanian Revolt of 1432–36 *The Albanian Revolts of 1833–39 *The Albanian Revolt of 1843–44 *The Albanian revolt of 1845 *The Albanian Revolt of 1847 *The Albanian Revolt of 1910 *The Albanian Revol ...

and aftermath of the Ottoman parliamentary elections, Syrja Vlora parliamentarian for

Berat Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and east of Fier. Berat is located i ...

and Essad Toptani for

Durrës Durrës ( , ; sq-definite, Durrësi) is the second most populous city of the Republic of Albania and seat of Durrës County and Durrës Municipality. It is located on a flat plain along the Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast between the mouths of the ...

represented the Albanian side in a parliamentary discussion with the Young Turks. Both called for the cessation of government force and implementation of good governance to alleviate the situation in Albanian lands. After the Declaration of Independence of Albania during November 1912 in his home town, where he was a delegate for the

Përmet Përmet (; sq-definite, Permeti) is a city and municipality in Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. The municipality of Përmet consists of the administrative units of Çarçovë, Frashër, Petran, Qendër Piskovë and Përmet. The total p ...

region, he held minor political positions, known mainly as the Albanian Ambassador in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1914. He was the father of the Albanian politician and scholar Ekrem Bey Vlora. Together they had negotiated for Albanian independence in Austria during the pre-independence European tour of Ismail Qemali. He died in 1940.

References

Albanian politicians Albanian diplomats 1860 births 1940 deaths People from Vlorë Politicians of the Ottoman Empire 19th-century Albanian politicians 20th-century Albanian politicians All-Albanian Congress delegates Vlora family {{Albania-bio-stub