The Marriages of Five Princesses of Montenegro
The Petrovic-Njegos Dynastic Unions of King Nikola I's Daughters
Aug 20, 2009
King Nikola I was the first and only king of the small Balkan country of Montenegro, and as such did not ever have an impressive place among European royalty. But he and his wife Queen Milena did have many beautiful daughters, and through these princesses Montenegro was able to forge important ties with powerful royal houses. The marriages of five Montenegrin princesses united the Petrovic-Njegos dynasty with the royal houses of Serbia, Italy, and Russia, and distantly related them to German and British royalty.
Princess Zorka of Montenegro and Prince Peter Karadjordjevic of Serbia
Although he would later become King Peter I of Serbia, at the time of his marriage Prince Peter Karadjordjevic was not an impressive suitor. His family had been deposed and replaced with a rival dynasty in Serbia, and he was relatively poor as he campaigned to place his family back in power. But Princess Zorka of Montenegro liked the friendly and jovial prince, and he was charmed by her beauty and intelligence. King Nikola approved of the marriage and even supported Peter’s efforts in Serbia.
After their 1883 wedding, Zorka and Peter lived in Montenegro near the palace. They had four children, and when Zorka died in childbirth after a mere seven years of marriage Peter was devastated. Twenty years later he became King Peter I of Serbia, and Zorka’s Montenegrin legacy lived on in their son Alexander, who as King Alexander I would oversee the union of Serbia and Montenegro in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
Princess Elena of Montenegro, Queen Elena of Italy
When the future King Vittorio Emanuele III began to look for a wife, the Italian government thought that a Montenegrin princess would make a good choice and arranged a meeting with Princess Elena of Montenegro. Elena liked Vittorio’s kindness and intelligence, and he was charmed by her high-spiritedness and intelligence. Although their families got along well and approved of the marriage, there was some controversy when Elena had to convert to Catholicism before their 1896 wedding.
This happy couple was crowned King Vittorio Emanuele III and Queen Elena of Italy in 1900. They had five children, including the future King Umberto II and Princess Giovanna, who would later marry King Boris of Bulgaria. The Italians particularly loved their kind queen, but the growing problem of fascism led to the monarchy being deposed in 1946, and Vittorio Emanuele died in exile a year later.
Princesses Anastasia and Milica of Montenegro, Russian Grand Duchesses
Many Russians were pleased about their Russian princes marrying fellow Slavs instead of German princesses, as had been the custom among Romanovs, and supported these marriages to Montenegrin princesses. However, Anastasia and Milica may have led to the downfall of the Romanov dynasty, as they were the ones who introduced Rasputin to the royal family.
Princess Anastasia of Montenegro first married George Romanovsky, Duke of Leuchtenberg and a grandson of Tsar Nicholas I through his mother. They had two children before divorcing in 1906. The next year, Anastasia married another grandson of Nicholas I, Grand Duke Nicholas Nicholaevich, who distinguished himself as the supreme commander of the Russian forces during WWI. Princess Milica of Montenegro had married Nicholas’s brother Grand Duke Peter Nicholaevich in 1889, and together they had three children.
Princess Ana of Montenegro and Prince Franz Joseph of Battenberg
The Battenbergs were the result of a morganatic marriage by a prince in the Hesse ducal family. Although of a lesser status than other royals, the Battenberg family was related to the German, British, and Russian royal families, as their good looks, charm, and lack of political controversy helped them secure favorable royal marriages.
Princess Ana of Montenegro was beautiful and vivacious, and Prince Franz Joseph of Battenberg was handsome, likable, and well educated. After the couple got permission from Queen Victoria and the Russian court, they had both Orthodox and Protestant wedding ceremonies in Montenegro in 1897. Although Ana and Franz Joseph never had any children, they had a happy marriage and remained very popular with their families.
King Nikola I of Montenegro as the “Father-in-Law of Europe”
King Nikola I of Montenegro earned the nickname “father-in-law of Europe” through the marriages of five of his daughters, uniting the Petrovic-Njegos dynasty with important European royal families. Princess Zorka married the future King Peter I of Serbia and bore the future King Alexander I of Yugoslavia. Princess Elena married King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy and was the mother of King Umberto II and mother-in-law of King Boris of Bulgaria. Princesses Anastasia and Milica married important Russian Grand Dukes of the Romanov dynasty. And Princess Ana made a happy marriage to the well-connected Prince Franz Joseph of Battenburg.
Sources:
Houston, Marco. Nikola & Milena: King & Queen of the Black Mountain. London: Leppi Publications, 2003.
Opfell, Olga S. Royalty Who Wait: The 21 Heads of Formerly Regnant Houses of Europe. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2001.
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