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Albania witnesses second royal wedding since 1938

Xinhua, October 9, 2016 Adjust font size:

Prince Leka II, the grandson of Albania's first King Zog I, married actress Elia Zaharia in a royal wedding ceremony held Saturday at the former Royal Palace in Tirana.

This is the second ever royal wedding taking place in Albania since the one of King Zog I in 1938 with Hungarian princess Geraldine Apponyi.

About 20 royal families, over 100 aristocrats and dignitaries from all over the world as well as high Albanian state officials were present at the royal wedding.

Although the Albanian royal family currently has no special status or official role, its members are invited to state ceremonies and paid high respect, which has been proved by the attention paid to the wedding ceremony.

Tirana Mayor Erjon Veliaj and the heads of religious communities in Albania were present at the ceremony to give their blessings to the marriage.

Prince Leka II was born in 1982 in South Africa to Leka I of Albania and Australian Susan Cullen-Ward while Elia Zaharia was born in 1983 to Gjergj Zaharia and Yllka Mujo.

The couple first met in Paris and announced their engagement in 2010.

Currently, Leka II is an advisor to Albanian President Bujar Nishani while Elia Zaharia is the head of the Queen Geraldine Foundation which serves people in need.

The Albanian royal family of King Zog I who ruled Albania from 1928 to 1939 was exiled from the country following the Italian invasion in 1939. After more than 60 years in exile, the royal family returned to Albania in 2002. Endi