Albania 1943-44. I began this in last week’s edition with rare images of German military presence in the country and I close this with the photographs of this edition, which show the beginning and the end of the occupation in Albania. Berlin had sensed as early as in June-July of 1943 that things were not well with Italy and that perhaps, one fine day, it could perhaps join the side of the Anglo-Americans, or disappear off the stage of the war altogether via some kind of separate peace treaty. The Italians went one further: on 8 September, they capitulated. This was precisely the reason why the Germans had begun to line up their garrisons alongside those of the Italians at all the strategic points throughout the zones of Italian occupation in Albania, Greece, and Yugoslavia and in Northern Africa. In these countries, throughout the airports, ports, bridges and important crossing points, alongside Italian forces, troops of the surly German allies also appeared. I the photograph on this page, two German soldiers stand guard during the very first days of their entrance into Albania, in the autumn of 1943. They are deployed somewhere on the shore of the Lake of Pogradec, looking east. Behind them you can see the barrier of the road bloc, whilst more to the background you can see the reeds in the waters of the lake. The soldiers are SS troops (plainly discernable markings on the side of the helmets) and they have been issued 0.38 rifles. On their backs they carry the cylindrical anti-gas containers, one of the most unnecessary pieces of equipment issued during World War Two. In fact none of the belligerent parties used them on any of the endless fronts of the war. However, this does not seem to stand as a reason, because these two soldiers have slung them over their backs, in conformity with the Rules, even in this forgotten corner of the mountains in the Balkans.
In the photograph on the following page, you can see the closing days of the German occupation of Albania. It is night, the small hours of the 17th of November 1944, the Germans withdrew from Tirana leaving behind as final evidence of their presence, these army road signs. These signs sprung up all over Europe, serving the mobile military divisions, directing them through unknown country and territory. They were always written with Gothic lettering in German, and in endless code that only the army topographers understood. If you look carefully, you can see that our road signs are on the corner of the Mosque of Ethem Bey, where, behind it you can see the portico of the mosque, and further on the corner of the building which is the City Hall today. The road signs have arrows pointing towards the road which leads to the center of the city, towards 28 November Street and further on towards Elbasan Street. They directed units that moved from North to South and, also the troops that converged on Skenderbe Square via Kavaja and Durres streets. These street signs would show them the land routes south towards Elbasan, Korca and on to Greece. On the other side of the square, at the entrance to Durres Street, road signs had been posted to direct forces coming from Elbasan Street and which were heading North towards Shkodra.
