The Legaliteti were an Albanian

Albanians

Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...

 royalist

Royalist

A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of government, but not necessarily a particular monarch...

 and pro-monarchy

Monarchy

A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...

 faction founded in
1941. It was led by Abaz Kupi

Abaz Kupi

Abaz Kupi or Abas Kupi also known by his nom de guerre as Bazi i Canës, was an Albanian politician, leader and fighter, known mostly for his role during World War II. A royalist, he created the Legality Movement in Albania which promoted the return to the throne of Zog of Albania...

.

Ideology

The Legaliteti sought the return of King Zog, who
had fled the country on the eve of the Italian invasion

Italian invasion of Albania

The Italian invasion of Albania was a brief military campaign by the Kingdom of Italy against the Albanian Kingdom. The conflict was a result of the imperialist policies of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini...

. The Legaliteti consisted of supporters from mostly the northern mountain tribes, particularly the Mati

Mat District

The District of Mat is one of the thirty-six districts of Albania, part of Dibër County. It is named after the Mat River, that flows through the district. It has a population of 48,803 , and an area of 1,029 km². Its capital is Burrel...

 region.
The Legaliteti were anti-communist. Despite being nationalistic, the Legaliteti were
against the Balli Kombetar

Balli Kombëtar

Balli Kombëtar was an Albanian nationalist, anti-communist and anti-monarchy organization established in October 1939. It was led by Ali Këlcyra and Mit’hat Frashëri...

 as the Balli Kombetar were the patriots

Patriotism

Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...

 and pro-republic

Republic

A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...

 while the Legaliteti were loyalists and royalists. The Balli Kombetar believed that the cession of Sveti Naum

Sveti Naum

The Monastery of Saint Naum is an Eastern Orthodox monastery in the Republic of Macedonia, named after the medieval Saint Naum who founded it. It is situated along Lake Ohrid, south of the city of Ohrid....

 to Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....

 by King Zog to be a criminal act. The Legaliteti believed in the ideas of King Zog and Essad Pasha, while the Balli Kombetar believed in the ideology from the likes of Naim Frasheri

Naim Frashëri

Naim Frashëri was an Albanian poet and writer. He was one of the most prominent figures of the Albanian National Awakening of the 19th century, together with his two brothers Sami and Abdyl...

, Avni Rustemi, Fan S. Noli

Fan S. Noli

Theofan Stilian Noli, better known as Fan Noli was an Albanian-American writer, scholar, diplomat, politician, historian, orator, and founder of the Albanian Orthodox Church, who served as prime minister and regent of Albania in 1924.Fan Noli is venerated in Albania as a champion of literature,...

 and Luigj Gurakuqi

Luigj Gurakuqi

Luigj Gurakuqi was an Albanian writer and politician. He was an important figure of the Albanian National Awakening and was honoured with the People's Hero of Albania medal.- Life :...

.

History

The negative action of the Albanian Communists on the Kosovo

Kosovo

Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...

 issue alienated a significant number of its adherents from that border region. Following November 1943, Abaz Kupi, until the Mukaj agreement, was a member of the Central Council of the NLM, withdrew with others to form the Legaliteti. Kupi was a respected Gheg chieftain who had commanded King Zog's troops in Durres

Durrës

Durrës is the second largest city of Albania located on the central Albanian coast, about west of the capital Tirana. It is one of the most ancient and economically important cities of Albania. Durres is situated at one of the narrower points of the Adriatic Sea, opposite the Italian ports of Bari...

 when the Italians invaded Albania. In the early 1940s, three new political factions emerged within Albania after the Italians were defeated: the Albanian Communists, Balli Kombetar

Balli Kombëtar

Balli Kombëtar was an Albanian nationalist, anti-communist and anti-monarchy organization established in October 1939. It was led by Ali Këlcyra and Mit’hat Frashëri...

(National Front), and Legaliteti (Legality). The Allied forces

Allies of World War II

The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...

 originally supported the Legaliteti. Being the smallest faction with no significant influence in Albania, the Allies broke aid with the Legaliteti and aided the Yugoslav partisans, who in turn backed the Albanian communists. In 1945, the Albanian communists assumed control over Albania at the end of World War II. Most Legaliteti members were executed or had escaped to the west.