TIRANA, Jan. 16, 2024 – Crown Prince Leka, grandson of the late King Zog of Albania, and his wife, actress Elia Zaharia, have announced in separate statements that they have started divorce proceedings.
The announcements come after weeks of speculation in the Albanian press after the couple did not appear to have celebrated their daughter’s birthday together and moved to edit their social media to exclude each other.
Prince Leka, 41, said in a statement that although he had great respect for family values, “the marriage has lost its function, and they have decided to end it with mutual consent by starting the necessary legal procedures.”
The statement added that the two parents will now focus “the values of respect and mutual understanding” with the aim of “raising and educating” their daughter, Princess Geraldine.
In her statement, Zaharia, 40, noted: “Sometimes separation is the only solution,” adding that she had not wanted to raise her daughter with divorced parents. “This is by no means a reality that makes me happy, as I believe in the values of the family as the most precious thing,” she wrote.
Albanian media is rife with rumors that the prince is in a new romantic relationship with a woman in her 20s who had served as an official photographer for the royal family.
Albania abolished its monarchy after World War II, and the communist regime regarded the exiled King Zog as enemy number one. He died in exile in France in 1961.
After the fall of communism, his family moved back to Albania, where his grandson is the only surviving member today.
South Africa-born UK-educated Prince Leka has served in advisory roles in Albania’s former center-right government and is a regular commentator in the international press on Albanian issues.
He had married Zaharia in a lavish ceremony in Tirana in October 2016. Members of around 20 royal families from around the world attended the historic event, which was Albania’s second-ever royal wedding.
