Essad Pasha (c. 1875-1920)

Albanian chieftain. He joined the Young Turk revolution in 1908, and from then until 1912 represented Durazzo in the Turkish parliament. When William of Wied became mpret (Albanian ruler) in 1914, Essad became his minister of war and of the interior and virtually ruled the country. After William left Albania, Essad made himself head of the Albanian Provisional government on 5 October 1914, and sided with the Allies in the First World War.

During the Balkan War (1912-13), Essad defended Scutari against the combined Montenegrin and Serb forces. When the Sultan had his brother, Gani, put to death, Essad became the sworn enemy of the Hamidean regime. When enemy forces drove him from Albania during World War I, he retired to Salonika. His Serbian sympathies made him unpopular with the Italians and he was not allowed to return to Albania. He was murdered in Paris by an Albanian student.