Who was Ismail Kemal, the controversial figure of the nation who died 100 years ago?

Ismail Kemal Vlora was Albanian politician and publicist who served as president, prime minister and first foreign minister of Albania from 1912 to 1914. It is widely considered, writes Periscopi, to be one of the founding fathers of modern Albania, having written and read the country's Declaration of Independence.

He was born in Vlora, into a well-known Albanian family of members, including renowned Vezir Mehmed Ferid Psaha and politician Syja Vlora.

He was educated in Janina and Istanbul as he married a Greek woman with whom he had seven children, whom he also educated in Greece.

Kemal was close to the author of the Ottoman Constitution [1876] Midget Pasan, who when he left power from the Sultan, also hurt Ismail Kemal's career that had been sent to Anandol. Kemal in 1892 had introduced the sultan with a plan for a Balkan Confederation. But what's strange is that Kemal did not consider either Albania or Macedonia as independent states within this Confederate, but as part of Turkey.

Between 1902 and 1903, it had become a stick to Sultan Adbulhamid 2 / 1 Part of it was Ismail Kemal, who had even received the most difficult part of this plan in implementation. He held a unit in Paris. During that time, he had traveled many times to Western countries to get support. His efforts, however, failed.

In 1907 he had made arrangements with the Greek government to support Albania's bid for independence. He in an interview for an Italian media medium had called for union of Balkan peoples. It is seen with much suspicion the cause of strong ties he had with the British and the Greeks.

After Albania's declaration of Independence, Kemal lived on the island in Paris, the cause of lack of money. His memoaries, published in the prestigious Daily Mail, are the only biography of an Ottoman statesman written in English. The causes of his death are not officially known because he had a heart attack on January 24, 1919, in Peruja. Many suspect that he has been poisoned even though it is not known by whom at the time he was a marginalised politician and out of office.