have met and whom I remember with the greatest pleasure, Faik Bey Konica is one of the most unusual". He recalls: Political activities and death Konica organized the Albanian Congress of Trieste, held 27 February – 6 March 1913. Konica went to the US city of Boston in autumn of 1909 where he took over as chief-editor of Dielli newspaper, published by Besa-Besën society, a political-cultural organization of Albanian-American diaspora. With the creation of Vatra, the Pan-Albanian Federation of America, his role inside the Albanian community of US grew and he became general-secretary of Vatra. Konica was a close collaborator of Fan Noli and one of the main figures in Vatra's and Dielli history. In 1911, he published Trumbeta e Krujes (Kruja's trumpet), a very short lived newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. On 17 November 1912, Vatra held a mass gathering in Boston and Konica was the main speaker rallying the Albanian diaspora in the US to oppose any partition of Albania, due to the Balkan Wars. He got disappointed with the Austro-Hungarian authorities and Ismail Qemali personally, after Qemali's approval for the creation of an Austro-Italian bank (though named Bank of Albania - ), which was feared amongst Albanians as having been created for massive purchasing of land properties and controlling the future economy of Albania. Konica was one of the main organizers of the Albanian Congress of Trieste in 1913. On 20 November 1913 he went in conflict with Essad Pasha and left Durres together with his collaborator Fazil Pasha Toptani. In 1921, he went back to the US where he became president of Vatra, and a columnist in Dielli. In 1929, Ahmet Zogu – newly proclaimed King Zog I of Albania would appoint him as Albanian ambassador to the United States despite his very low opinion on Zogu. He carried this duty until 1939 when Fascist Italy invaded Albania. Konica was a harsh critic of King Zog's decision to abandon Albania on the eve of the Italian invasion. He died in Washington on 15 December 1942 and was buried in Forest Hills Cemetery in Boston. In 1998 his remains were transferred to Tirana and interred at the Tirana Park on the Artificial Lake. References Further reading External links Robert Elsie's introduction to Faik Konitza (pdf) "Faïk Konitza – Selected Correspondence 1896–1942" "Albanian Articles of Faik Konitza at shqiperia.com" Luan Starova: "Faik Konitza and Guillaume Apollinaire" Faik Konica,