King Peter I of Serbia (1844-1921) and Princess Zorka of Montenegro (1864-1890)

[Blog Real]

King of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes:
Reign: 1 December 1918 – 16 August 1921
Successor: Alexander I Karađorđević
Regent: Alexander (1918–1921)
King of Serbia:
Reign: 15 June 1903 – 1 December 1918
Coronation: 21 September 1904
Predecessor: Alexander I Obrenović
Regent: Alexander (1914–1918)
Born: 11 July [O.S. 29 June] 1844
Belgrade, Serbia
Died: 16 August 1921 (aged 77)
Belgrade, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
Burial: St. George′s Church
Spouse: Princess Zorka of Montenegro
​(m. 1883; died 1890)​
Issue:
Helen, Princess of Russia
Princess Milena
George, Crown Prince of Serbia
Alexander I of Yugoslavia
Prince Andrew
House: Karađorđević
Father: Alexander Karađorđević
Mother: Persida Nenadović
Religion: Serbian Orthodox

Peter I (Serbian Cyrillic: Петар I Карађорђевић, romanized: Petar I Кarađorđević; 11 July [O.S. 29 June] 1844 – 16 August 1921) reigned as the last king of Serbia (1903–1918) and as the first king of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (1918–1921). Since he was the king of Serbia during a period of great Serbian military success, he was remembered by the Serbian people as King Peter the Liberator, and also as Old King.

Peter was Karađorđe's grandson and third son of Persida Nenadović and Prince Alexander Karađorđević, who was forced to abdicate. Peter lived with his family in exile. He fought with the French Foreign Legion in the Franco-Prussian War. He joined as a volunteer under the alias Peter Mrkonjić in the Herzegovina Uprising (1875–77) against the Ottoman Empire.

He married Princess Zorka of Montenegro, daughter of King Nicholas, in 1883. She gave birth to his five children, including Prince Alexander. After the death of his father in 1885, Peter became head of the Karađorđević dynasty. After a military coup d'état and the murder of King Alexander I Obrenović in 1903, Peter became King of Serbia.

As king, he advocated a constitutional setup for the country and was famous for his liberal politics. The rule of King Peter was marked with the great exercise of political liberties, freedom of the press, national, economical and cultural rise, and it is sometimes dubbed a "golden" or "Periclean age".

King Peter was the supreme commander of the Serbian army in the Balkan wars. Because of his age, on 24 June 1914, he proclaimed his son, Alexander, heir-apparent to the throne, as regent. In the First World War he and his army retreated across the Principality of Albania.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_I_of_Serbia

https://royalfamily.org/dinasty/hm-king-peter-i-of-the-serbs-croats-and-slovenes/

 

[Blog Real]

Princess Zorka of Montenegro

Born: 23 December 1864
Cetinje, Montenegro
Died: 16 March 1890 (aged 25)
Cetinje, Montenegro
Burial: St. George's Church, Topola, Serbia
Spouse: Prince Peter Karađorđević
​(m. 1883)​
Issue:
Helen, Princess of Russia
Princess Milena
George, Crown Prince of Serbia
Alexander I of Yugoslavia
Prince Andrew
Names:
Ljubica Petrović-Njegoš
House: Petrović-Njegoš
Father: Nicholas I of Montenegro
Mother: Milena Vukotić

Princess Zorka of Montenegro (Serbian Cyrillic: Кнегиња црногорска Зорка; 23 December [O.S. 11 December] 1864 – 16 March [O.S. 4 March] 1890) was the eldest child of the Montenegrin monarch Nicholas I and his wife Milena. Her name and title at birth was Ljubica Petrović-Njegoš, Princess of Montenegro.

In 1883, she married prince Peter Karađorđević and she changed her name to Zorka (and her surname to Karađorđević). She died in childbirth while giving birth to Prince Andrija on 16 March 1890. Prince Andrija died shortly thereafter.

Her husband Prince Peter went on to become King of Serbia in 1903, thirteen years after her death.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Zorka_of_Montenegro

 

[Blog Real]

Photos:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipe..._head-and-shoulders_portrait,_facing_left.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Petar_Karadjordjevic_1865.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Petar_Karadjordjevic_1875.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Petar_arsen_zorka.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipe...ter_I_after_coronation,_21_September_1904.jpg

 

[CyrilVladisla]

Princess Zorka at her dressing table
http://i.pinimg.com/originals/42/2d/e6/422de6a5eaa2e4c9534d8f1756009437.jpg

 

[CyrilVladisla]

circa 1886: Queen Zorka as Princess Zorka
http://www.gettyimages.com/license/3287434

 

[CyrilVladisla]

1915 War Illustrated King Peter I of Serbia confers with British Officer
http://www.maryevans.com/history/11960980

 

[Blog Real]

102nd anniversary of King Peter I Death
https://royalfamily.org/102nd-anniversary-of-king-peter-i-death/#

 

[MarcBgd]

circa 1886: Queen Zorka as Princess Zorka
http://www.gettyimages.com/license/3287434

Unfortunately for her, she never became the Queen.

It is often quoted that her last words were: "He will be the King."