The Vlora War ended Italian occupation of Vlorë and confirmed Albanian sovereignty while initiating Italian diplomatic influence over Albania.
Key Facts
- Year of conflict
- 1920
- Italian occupation began
- 1914
- Albanian attacks on Vlorë
- 4 attacks
- Treaty confirmed by
- Conference of Ambassadors, League of Nations
- Island retained by Italy
- Saseno
- Italian PM who negotiated
- Giovanni Giolitti
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Italy had occupied Vlorë since 1914 and sought to establish a mandate over Albania. Albanian nationalists resisted Italian control, while domestic unrest during the Biennio Rosso led Bersaglieri troops in Ancona to refuse deployment to Albania, weakening Italy's military position and political will to maintain the occupation.
Albanian nationalists attacked the Italian-held city of Vlorë four times in 1920. Italian forces repelled the assaults but were severely hampered by malaria outbreaks and could not receive reinforcements. Italian Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti, viewing the occupation as both costly and unpopular, entered negotiations with Albanian representatives to resolve the standoff diplomatically.
Italy abandoned its plans for an Albanian mandate and withdrew from Vlorë, while retaining diplomatic protection over Albania and annexing the island of Saseno. The armistice was later confirmed by the League of Nations' Conference of Ambassadors. The 1920 Treaty of Tirana, the first of several such treaties, gradually drew Albania into the Italian sphere of influence.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Giovanni Giolitti.
Side B
1 belligerent