In April 1938, having given up hope of finding a “real princess”, Zog married Countess Geraldine Apponyi de Nagy-Appony (1915-2002), a Roman Catholic aristocrat who was half-Hungarian and half-American. Hence one would assume that the Albanian Royal family has no family connections at all to the rest of Royal dynasties in Europe. Not so!
The key individual here is Queen Geraldine’s father’s mother’s father’s mother’s mother, Princessss Agnes of Anhalt-Dessau, Freiherrin von Loën (1744-1799). This Anhalt lady has a most illustrious ancestry, not only involving minor principalities such as the houses of Dessau, Bernburg and Köthen, but also major players like Hessen-Kassel, Württemberg, Holstein, Denmark, Nassau-Orange and Hohenzollern. Through all these connections, I dare say the Tirana bridegroom, Crown Prince Leka, is related to each and every Royal family in Europe, even the one in Monaco ...
Monaco! How? Well, let’s see... Who was the father’s mother’s father’s mother of the present Prince, Albert II? Lady Mary Douglas-Hamilton (1850-1922), of course. Her mother was Princess Marie of Baden (1817-1888) whose parents were Grand Duke Karl and Stephanie de Beauharnais - by the grace of Napoleon a French Princess.
Behind Grand Duke Karl there are myriads of Badens, Hesses, Nassaus, Württembergs and all the others. I believe Prince Albert was present for the wedding in Tirana, but did he know that the bridegroom was a cousin of his ...?
Ted Rosvall
Articles about the Albanian Royal family can be found in:
RDQ 4/2007 Zog I [Zkopinski]
RDQ 4/2010 The Zogu Princesses [Zkopinski]
RDQ 1/2012 King Leka I of the Albanians [Rees]
RDQ 1/2015 An Englishman in Durazzo [Zkopinski]