Danilo, Crown Prince of Montenegro

Danilo
Crown Prince of Montenegro
Pretendence	1 March 1921 – 7 March 1921
Predecessor	King Nicholas
Successor	Prince Michael
Spouse	Duchess Jutta of Mecklenburg
Father	Nicholas I of Montenegro
Mother	Milena Vukotić
Born	29 June 1871(1871-06-29) Cetinje, Ottoman Empire
Died	24 September 1939(1939-09-24) (aged 68) Vienna, Germany
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Danilo Aleksandar Petrović-Njegoš (29 June 1871 – 24 September 1939) was the Crown Prince of Montenegro. He was eldest of the son of King Nikola I Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro and Queen Milena Vukotić. During the Balkan Wars and World War I he led the Montenegrin Army with his father, King Nicholas I of Montenegro, Janko Vukotić, and Mitar Martinović. From 1 March 1921 – 7 March 1921 Danilo was the self-assumed King of Montenegro leading an unrecognised government-in-exile. On 7 March 1921, for reasons that are still unclear, Danilo abdicated his royal claims and headship of the royal house in favour of his nephew, Prince Michael Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro. His reputation was undermined by announcing his abdication on 5 March only to publicly retract this the following day, before re-affirming it the day after that. His decision was met with much dismay amongst the Montenegrin expatriate community.

Prince Danilo was married to Duchess Jutta of Mecklenburg (1880–1946) the daughter of Adolf Friedrich V, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, but the marriage was childless. After he abdicated in 1921, he spent most of his life living in Nice.

Prince Danilo resurfaced in 1934 when he sued Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for libel and collected $4,000 in a Paris court for the false depiction of him in the first version of the film The Merry Widow. In the film "Prince Danilo of Montenegro" seduces a commoner and then rejects her because it could impoverish the royal treasury. He then regrets his actions and tries to win her back but fails to convince her of his true love. The film bears no relation to reality. The film was re-shot and addition to demoting the Prince to a Captain, they were careful to change the date of the action from 1905 to 1885, when the real Prince was a young boy.

Danilo died in Vienna (which had recently been annexed by Nazi Germany) in 1939 without issue.

Danilo is famous as a one-time composer, composing the music for the Serb patriotic song of his predecessor King Nikola Onamo, 'namo!, which he published in Prague.

External links

• Family of King Nikola Petrovic Njegos
• New Pictures, Time Magazine

Danilo, Crown Prince of Montenegro House of Petrović-Njegoš Born: 29 June 1871 Died: 24 September 1939
Titles in pretence
Preceded by King Nikola I	— TITULAR — King of Montenegro 1–7 March 1921 Reason for succession failure: Montenegro declared union with Serbia in 1918	Succeeded by Prince Mihail

Persondata
Name	Danilo Of Montenegro
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	29 June 1871
Place of birth	Cetinje
Date of death	24 September 1939
Place of death	Vienna