Queen Susan, 63; Her Husband Claimed Albanian Throne

Queen Susan, 63, wife of Leka Zog, the self-proclaimed heir to the Albanian throne, died of lung cancer Saturday at her home in the capital city of Tirana.

Born in Australia, the former Susan Cullen-Ward married Zog in 1975 and lived with him in exile, mostly in France, until two years ago. Her husband is the son of King Ahmet Zog, who died in Paris in 1961.

The Zogs fled Albania in 1939 when Italy’s fascist regime occupied their country. The Communists who took over Albania after World War II abolished the monarchy in 1946.

Throughout its exile, the royal family insisted that Ahmet Zog and, later, Leka Zog I were the nation’s legitimate rulers. The family was invited to return to Albania in 2002 by 74 members of the nation’s parliament.