Albanian Crown Prince Leka II and Princess Elia announce the 'end of their marriage' after eight years

Crown Prince Leka II and Princess Elia of Albania have announced the end of their marriage, saying the union has “lost its function.”

The former couple, who married in 2016 and share three-year-old daughter Princess Geraldine, declared their separation via an official statement shared on Instagram.

Despite laying claim to a now-defunct throne after the dissolution of the Albanian monarchy in 1943, the 43-year-old prince and his glamorous wife, 40, had captured the hearts of the public from the moment they entered the country eight years ago. got married.

The lavish ceremony was attended by more than twenty royal families from around the world, including Prince Michael of Kent, King Charles's great-nephew.

In a translation statement, a spokesperson claimed Princess Geraldine remained the center of her parents' attention, while also pleading with “well-wishers” to respect the family's privacy.

The message read: 'Hello friends and well-wishers, through this message I officially inform you that Prince Leka and Elia Zaharia have agreed to end their marriage.

“Since marriage has lost its function, they saw a way to resolve it by mutual consent by initiating the necessary legal procedures.

'Despite the confidence in the institution of the family, Prince Leka believes that the values ​​of mutual respect and understanding will form the basis of the relationship in its continuity, which will have as its driving force the growth and education of Princess Geraldine!!!

'[Her] The girl's spiritual and physical well-being will remain the focus of their attention, committed to ensuring a happy and safe life for Geraldine.”

The statement posted yesterday also said the prince would make no further comment at this time – and asked that his 'right to privacy in this matter would be respected'.

The couple, who married in 2016 in the European nation's second ever royal wedding and the first since the end of communism, welcomed their daughter in 2020 at the Queen Geraldine Maternity Hospital in Tirana.

They named their daughter Geraldine – a meaningful tribute to her paternal great-grandmother, Queen Geraldine, who died on October 22, 2002, 18 years before her namesake's birth.

Queen Geraldine was married to King Zog I, Albania's first monarch after it gained independence from the Ottoman Empire, but fled his homeland in 1939 when Italian fascists occupied the Balkan state.

The former couple married in 2016 and share three-year-old daughter Princess Geraldine. Take a photo together in 2021

Despite the monarchy being dissolved, Zog's son, King Leka I, remained head of the House of Zogu and claimed the throne until his death in 2011 and was succeeded by his only son, Leka II.

The crown prince, who attended the Royal Military College Sandhurst and has worked as an adviser to the Albanian president, took over from his father as head of the House of Zogu and titular king of the Albanians.

Since Leka II currently has no sons, his current heir presumptive is Skënder Zogu, his first cousin once removed.

Leka II and Elia, who were engaged in Paris in 2010, also chaired the Queen Geraldine Foundation.

Albanian Crown Prince Leka II and Crown Princess Elia announced the birth of their first child, a girl named Geraldine, in October 2020. The couple pictured in 2016

Princess Elia, Prince Leka and Crown Prince Nicolas of Montenegro pictured at the 80th birthday celebration of King Simeon of Bulgaria in 2017

The prince has also worked as an advisor at the Albanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Interior and the Albanian President's Office, while the princess works at the Albanian National Theater.

Albania's royal family was expelled from the country in 1939 after it was invaded by Italian fascists.

After World War II, when the communists took over the country, King Zog and his family were considered traitors and completely stripped of power and erased from the history books.

After their exile, the Albanian royal family spent time in Greece and Turkey before settling in England, where they briefly lived at The Ritz in London.

King Zog and his family then moved to Egypt before the monarch spent the rest of his life in France.