Prince Michael of Montenegro

Infobox_pretender
English name = Prince Michael Petrović-Njegos


birth_date = birth date|1908|9|14
birthplace = Podgorica
death_date = death date and age|1986|3|24|1908|9|14
deathplace = Paris
regnal =
title = Grand Duke of Grahovo and Zeta
throne = Montenegro
pretend from = March 7, 1921 – 1929
year = 1918
king = Nicholas
relationship = Grandson
house = Petrović-Njegoš
father = Prince Mirko of Montenegro
mother = Natalija Konstantinović
spouse =
children =
predecessor = Crown Prince Danilo
successor = Prince Nicholas
footnotes =

Prince Michael Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro (September 14, 1908, Podgorica - March 24, 1986, Paris) was the third (but eldest surviving) son of Prince Mirko Petrović-Njegoš, Grand Voivode of Grahovo and Zeta (1879-1918), and Natalija Konstantinović, a cousin of Aleksandar Obrenović of Serbia. He was pretender to the throne of Montenegro. He held the title Grand Duke of Grahovo and Zeta, in succession to his father. King Nikola I Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro was Michael's grandfather.

Early life

Michael was born the son of Prince Mirko of Montenegro in Cetinje in 1908. In 1916 the defence of Montenegro against the invasion by Austria-Hungary in the First World War collapsed and he alongside the rest of the Royal Family were forced to flee to Italy. Here, he briefly attended a boarding school in Naples before joining his mother who had taken up residence in Eastbourne, England where he completed his primary education.

Ascession

After his grandfather Nikola died in 1921 the defunct throne was inherited by Danilo, Crown Prince of Montenegro. However, Danilo unexpectedly abdicated a few days later, his nephew the young Michael (who succeeded him as "pretender") "reigned" as "King Mihaijlo I" under the guidance of the regent. In 1929 the Regency of General Anto Gvozdenovic ended and Mihaijlo renounced his dynasty's claim to the defunct throne of Montenegro and declared allegiance to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The King of Yugoslavia, in thanks, rewarded "Prince Mihaijlo" with a pension from the Civil List.

The Axis Proposition

In 1941 following the Fall of France, Prince Mihaijlo and his wife were arrested by the German occupation authorities. They were transferred to Germany and were held at a castle on the shores of Lake Constance. It was here that they were visited by Count Galeazzo Ciano and Joachim von Ribbentrop and were offered the throne of a new, independent Kingdom of Montenegro—but under Italian and German protection and guidance. He rejected this offer and remained imprisoned by the Germans until his aunt, the Queen of Italy (Elena of Montenegro), secured their release in 1943. He returned to France only to be arrested by the German authorities and transferred to a concentration camp(1/) in eastern Germany. It was in this camp that his son Prince Nicholas of Montenegro was born in 1944.1/ ...transferred to a "internment" camp at castle of Jezeri (Eisenberg,the pearl of the baroque building of the Europe) near by city Most in Czech republic.During II.WW it was knowed as the area of Sudeten land.

The Communist Proposition

At the end of the war Michael, his wife and infant son were released and returned to France, taking up residence in Paris. Shortly after this he began talking to Marshall Tito of newly socialist Yugoslavia and was invited to come to the country. In 1947 the young family took up residence in Belgrade and Prince Mihaijlo accepted the position of "Head of Protocol" at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Prince Mihajlo was able to visit Montenegro which he had not seen since 1916, and realized that the memory of his dynasty was still alive in the population, which must have displeased Tito. But, disappointed by Titoism, the princely family came back to France after one year in June 1948.

Later Life and Death

Following this break from the government of Yugoslavia, the little money he received from the civil list was cut off. After this, he and his wife divorced and he remained in exile until his death in 1986. His son and heir was brought up by his wife. Prince Mihaijlo is buried in the Serbian Orthodox Church cemetery in Paris.

Marriage and Children

Michael married Geneviève Prigent in Paris, France on January 27, 1941 and they divorced on August 11, 1949 in Paris. They had one child:

*Prince Nikola of Montenegro (July 7, 1944 - )

Works

* Njegoš's Chapel on Lovćen - Serb Sacred Place (Serbian:Његошева Капела На Ловћену Српска Светиња)

External links

* [http://www.njegoskij.org/menu_history/subArts_2006/subArtHI_05006.php The Njegoskij Fund Public Project] : Biography of Prince Michel of Montenegro (1908-1986).
* [http://www.njegoskij.org/menu_history/subArts_2006/subArtHI_05008.php The Njegoskij Fund Public Project] : Biography of Genevieve Prigent, Militant Princess and French Resistant (1919-1990).