The Order of Skanderbeg was instituted in 1925 as an Order of Merit

Order of Merit

The Order of Merit is a British dynastic order recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture...

 of the Republic of Albania

Albania

Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...

. It was abolished the Communist government in 1945 and replaced by a newaward of the same name. Skanderbeg

Skanderbeg

George Kastrioti Skanderbeg or Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu , widely known as Skanderbeg , was a 15th-century Albanian lord. He was appointed as the governor of the Sanjak of Dibra by the Ottomans in 1440...

 is the national hero

Folk hero

A folk hero is a type of hero, real, fictional, or mythological. The single salient characteristic which makes a character a folk hero is the imprinting of the name, personality and deeds of the character in the popular consciousness. This presence in the popular consciousness is evidenced by...

 of the Albanian people.

Description

The Communist version of the Order was created on 13 October 1945 with three classes. The medal design incuded an image of Skanderbeg on a five pointed star and the ribbons were red with 1 to 3 blue stripes according to class of award.

It was awarded to officers of the Albanian Peoples Army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs as a recognition of services to the country and the people for the organization, modernisation and reinforcement of the armed forces.

History

The president and later king of Albania, Ahmet Zogu

Zog of Albania

Zog I, Skanderbeg III of the Albanians , born Ahmet Muhtar Bey Zogolli, was King of the Albanians from 1928 to 1939. He was previously Prime Minister of Albania and President of Albania .-Background and early political career:...

 founded the order as an order with four grades. After the Italian annexation

Annexation

Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...

 of Albania his successor, Victor Emanuel III

Victor Emmanuel II of Italy

Victor Emanuel II was king of Sardinia from 1849 and, on 17 March 1861, he assumed the title King of Italy to become the first king of a united Italy since the 6th century, a title he held until his death in 1878...

, King of Italy

King of Italy

King of Italy is a title adopted by many rulers of the Italian peninsula after the fall of the Roman Empire...

 and of Albania

King of Albania

While the medieval Angevin Kingdom of Albania was a monarchy, it did not encompass the entirety of the modern state of Albania. The latter has been a kingdom on two occasions. The first time was after it was declared independent in 1912...

, Emperor of Ethiopia

Emperor of Ethiopia

The Emperor of Ethiopia was the hereditary ruler of Ethiopia until the abolition of the monarchy in 1974. The Emperor was the head of state and head of government, with ultimate executive, judicial and legislative power in that country...

, added a fifth grade, Officer, in 1940.

In 1945 the People's Republic of Albania decided to abolish the order. In that same year a new order with the same name was founded, along the lines of the Socialist Orders of Merit

Socialist Orders of Merit

After the October Revolution, in which the Bolsheviks seized power in Russia, the first Socialist Orders of Merit were founded. After World War II, communists came to power in many other countries and this type of order spread all over the world...

, with three grades. It was awarded until the fall of Albanian Communism in 1990. Another honorary award bearing Skanderbeg's name, Skanderbeg's Order

Skanderbeg's Order

Skanderbeg's Order is an honorary decoration given in Albania to Albanian and foreign citizens that have made an important contribution to the defence, reinforcement and development of Albania and is awarded by the Albanian President....

, has been instituted by the current Albanian Republic

Albania

Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...

.

Recipients

• Xhemal Aranitasi
  Xhemal Aranitasi
  Xhemal Aranitasi - was a general and commander in chief of the Royal Albanian Army....
  
  , former commander in chief of the Royal Albanian Army
• Julian Amery
• Sir Edward Boyles
• 1930 Lt-Col Edward Cuthbert de Renzy-Martin (Commander)
• 1930 Lt-Col Herbert John Mackenzie (Commander)
• 1930 Lt-Col Walter Francis Stirling (Grand Cordon)
• 1934 Edwin Cripwell (Commander), Hon Albanian Consul in London
• 1937 Lt-Cmder Conway Vivian Dodgson (Commander)
• 1937 Captain Walter Edwin Bredin (Commander)
• Sir Jocelyn Percy