Nicholas, Prince of Montenegro (born 1944): Difference between revisions
I literally gutted this. It didn't just read like pro-monarchist propaganda it was repetitive and annoying. Still needs much NPOVing. |
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King Nikola I was succeeded on his death by his son, Danilo II, who abdicated after one week, and then by his grandson, King Michael I (father of the present heir) who remained in exile until his death in 1986. King Michael I became prisoner in a [[Nazi]] [[concentration camp]] during [[World War II]] after refusing to return to the throne as a puppet King. |
King Nikola I was succeeded on his death by his son, Danilo II, who abdicated after one week, and then by his grandson, King Michael I (father of the present heir) who remained in exile until his death in 1986. King Michael I became prisoner in a [[Nazi]] [[concentration camp]] during [[World War II]] after refusing to return to the throne as a puppet King. |
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==Ancestry== |
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==Bound to his Ancestry== |
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As head of the Royal House and heir to the thrown, the Crown Prince has always known that one day he would become next in the long succession of monarchs. |
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For more than 600 years the name Petrović Njegoš has been linked to the Montenegrin monarchy. It is characteristic for our age that the name Nikola is the same as the first King of the dynasty, the founder of the modern democratic State and the Sovereign that introduced peace and a unified nation. |
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The history of the Montenegrin Monarchs is also the history of Montenegro in recent times – from a past rife with feuds for power and territory, to the present where the monarch is a logical part of a democratic Montenegro, which has its own place in the international community. |
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If one looks back to the line of descendant [[vladika]]s, [[princes]] and [[kings]], one meets all the Crown Prince’s forefathers and predecessors who have actually reformed and improved the kingdom. Their problems with everything from the treasury and financing the realm, other claims to the throne, and threats from foreign enemies are no longer concerns of a modern monarch. Today a king is not expected to lead the way on the battlefield to defend the kingdom. |
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Montenegro’s coming king has already undergone a very extensive life experience and representing his nation diplomatically because the Montenegrin Royal Family and the Montenegrins themselves, expect the Regent to be able to assess and understand his country’s political challenges. |
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'''A Prince of his own time''' |
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The day Prince Nikola ascends the throne of Montenegro he will be the ninth monarch in the line of Petrović, a family which took the Montenegrin throne as a [[theocracy]] in [[1697]]. The Crown Prince’s Great-Grandfather was often described as the Father in Law of all Europe, a sobriquet he shared with the contemporary King of [[Denmark]], because 5 of his daughters were married, each to princes and kings on the thrones of [[Europe]]. It is possible to see in the current Crown Prince himself, many similarities, parallels and personal traits from his many descendants. |
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When the Petrović Njegoš family changed the state from a [[theocracy]] to a secular princely state, the new Prince's nephew was 11 years old. Prince Nikola prepared himself for a future as Sovereign – just as his “Brother in name” the Crown Prince is doing – by training in martial and athletic exercises and by studying in Paris. His reign was long – 41 years. He gave Montenegro its first constitution in [[1905]] and also introduced west-European style press freedom and criminal law codes. In [[1906]], he introduced Montenegrin currency, the [[perper]]. On 28 August, [[1910]], during the celebration of his [[jubilee]], he assumed the title of [[king]] and was at the same time gazetted [[field-marshal]] in the [[Russia]]n army, an honor never previously conferred on any foreigner except the [[Duke of Wellington]]. |
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Prince Nikola’s Father, Prince [[Michael I]] was offered the throne of a new, independent Kingdom of Montenegro under [[Nazi]] German "protection" and "guidance". Bravely, he rejected, was arrested and sent to a [[concentration camp]] in Eastern Germany. It was in this camp that Prince Nikola was born in [[1944]]. |
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Prince Nikola is a man of his own time – as every succeeding monarch has been in the history of Montenegro. His life and training has therefore also always been aimed towards his position as the “man of the future” in the Montenegrin royal family. In a time where the monarch no longer has any significant political influence, the importance of the monarch for public life has consistently been maintained at a very high level, not least because it has managed to keep abreast of the times. |
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Prince Nikola is the common denominator between the historic perspective and modern society. |
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'''A torch bearer''' |
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When the Prince was born in [[1944]], his parents Prince Michael and Queen Geneviève restored the dignity of the family by naming their son after the first great King of the dynasty, and this name has since shown itself to be key word for the Prince. |
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Absolutely everything the Prince does has the total attention of the media – as “good material that will sell”. His official duties, representative tasks, international training and study and his professional career as an [[architect]] have all been presented to a fascinated public. The Prince has managed to find a balance in his various activities between his private life which is his own, and his public life which is considered as belonging to the Montenegrins. |
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Prince Nikola has also quite literally been a torch-bearer for the Montenegrin royal family. |
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When he addressed the crowds celebrating in [[Podgorica]] after the independence referrendum in [[2006]], it looked to many like a symbol of the Prince’s own life and destiny. As a future king he would create continuity from his great grandfather and maintain those links to other Royal Houses. |
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The Montenegrins feel they almost know the Royal Family personally. Prince Nikola has become more and more in harmony with this privilege and challenge as the years pass. What it actually means to be a fully experienced reigning monarch is something only a very few will ever be destined to know. The next in succession will be Nikola II who, with his attitudes and actions, will shape the future of the Montenegrin monarchy. |
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For this reason Prince Nikola has trained himself to lead the monarchy onwards into the 21st Century, both as an academic with his studies in France, and as an architect, businessman and diplomat. |
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But besides his academic achievements, his broad business and diplomatic career and his many official duties, Crown Prince Nikola has found time to round out his profile himself as an all-rounder – an artist and a person who appreciates nature. He is a very competent musician and swimmer. |
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==Biography== |
==Biography== |
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Revision as of 09:53, 2 January 2008
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HRH Prince Nicholas Petrović Njegoš of Montenegro (Serbian: Престолонаследник Никола Петровић-Његош/NJ.K.V. Prijestolonasljenik Nikola II Crnogorski) (born 7 July, 1944) is the pretender to the throne of Montenegro, known to Montenegrin monarchists and traditionalists as King Nikola II of Montenegro, Hereditary Grand Master of the Dynastic Orders of St. Peter of Cetinje, Prince Danilo I of Montenegro etc. His Royal Highness Prince Nikola is the Head of the Petrović Njegoš Dynasty, who have been the hereditary Vladikas of Montenegro since the 17th Century.
| Nikola Petrović Njegoš Prince of Montenegro | |
|---|---|
| Pretender | |
| Prince Nicholas Petrović Njegoš | |
| Born | July 7, 1944 |
| Regnal name claimed | Nikola II |
| Title(s) | Crown Prince |
| Throne(s) claimed | Montenegro |
| Pretend from | March 24, 1986 - present |
| Monarchy abolished | 1918 |
| Last monarch | Nikola I |
| Connection with | Great Grandson |
| Royal House | Petrović Njegoš |
| Father | Michael |
| Mother | Geneviève Prigent |
| Spouse | Francine Navarro |
| Children | Altinaï, Boris |
| Predecessor | Prince Michael |
| Styles of HRH Prince Nikola of Montenegro | |
|---|---|
| Reference style | His Royal Highness |
| Spoken style | Your Royal Highness |
| Alternative style | Sir |
Family background
The house of Petrović came originally from Herzegovina and settled in Njegoš around 1400. Niegosch was born around 1425 and became the Duke of Njegoš.
Prince Nicholas is a descendant of a line founded by Danilo Petrović Njegoš who obtained the hereditary Dignity of Vladika (Prince-Bishop) of Montenegro in 1711 when it became a (Theocracy). Danilo I Petrovic Njegos was recognized as Sovereign Prince and heir of Montenegro by Russia on 21 March, 1852, and established succession by male primogeniture. His successor, Prince Nikola assumed the qualification of Royal Highness on 19 December 1900, and the title of King 28 August 1910.
Prince Nicholas is also related to the Serb Royal House of Obrenović through Yephrem, younger full brother of Miloš Obrenović I, Prince of Serbia (elected Hereditary Prince of Serbia by the National Assembly 1827 and recognised by Sultan Mahmud II, 15 August, 1830). He is the Obrenović pretender to the throne of Serbia, as he is the heir to his grandfather Prince Mirko of Montenegro, the designated successor of Alexander I of Serbia.
During World War I the Petrović Njegoš family were forced to flee the country in 1915 after the Army of Montenegro was overwhelmed by the troops of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. At the end of the war, the Kingdom of Serbia illegally annexed and abolished the Kingdom of Montenegro and deposed the Petrović Njegoš dynasty. The family made their home in France where the old King Nikola I of Montenegro died in 1921. The same year, the old King's grandson, Alexandar Karađorđević (Prince Nicholas' cousin) became king of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, of which Montenegro had become a part. Though the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was proclaimed on 13 November 1918, it was never recognized by King Nicholas I (Nikola I) and a Government-in-Exile was maintained by him and his successors under the Premiership of King Nicholas's former ADC and Ambassador to Washington (1918), General Anto Gvozdenović until the Conference of Ambassadors at Paris gave international recognition to the union 13 July 1922.
King Nikola I was succeeded on his death by his son, Danilo II, who abdicated after one week, and then by his grandson, King Michael I (father of the present heir) who remained in exile until his death in 1986. King Michael I became prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II after refusing to return to the throne as a puppet King.
Were the Montenegrin monarchy not defunct Nicholas would be styled “His Majesty King Nikola II of Montenegro." He has chosen to use the style and title of “His Royal Highness Crown Prince Nikola of Montenegro”, or more simply ”The Crown Prince” or “Crown Prince Nikola”.
Biography
Prince Nikola is the only son and heir of the late pretender Michael who worked for the Communist government of Yugoslavia after the Second World War, Grand Duke of Grahovo and Zeta (born on 1 September O.S., 1908 and regarded by Montenegro's monarchists as king from 7 March 1921 until his death in 1986) and Geneviève Prigent who was born on 4 December, 1919 and died on 27 January, 1991. (Nikola's parents married on 27 January, 1941 and divorced in Paris France on 11 August, 1949). He was born in exile in Saint-Nicolas du Pélem, France in 1944 and there was schooled. In 1967 at the request of his father he visited Yugoslavia incognito and back-packed around Montenegro itself, visiting the former royal capital. A remarkable story of his visit is told on the prince's own website:
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Young Nikola discovers his country one day of summer 1967. At that time a student in architecture, he hitchhikes, carries Pataugas French shoes, a backpack and doubtful shorts. When standing in queue in front of the Royal Palace of Cetinje, he remarks that students have a right to a reduction. He holds his ID card to the ticket woman who turns it over and over in her hands, changes colour, calls the curator, the director, and the guards. All turn the ID card over and over in their hands, change color and bow together before Nicolas who is astonished by such an amount of civility. "Your Royal Highness, you are not going to pay to enter your home!" Nicolas realises then that to be called Nikola Petrovic-Njegos in the Balkans, is as for French to descend from Pasteur, Victor Hugo and Napoleon. His name, venerated by all the Southern Slavs, does not belong to him. It belongs to the Balkans.
[1] Reportedly, shortly after this he was arrested, briefly detained and then deported by the predictably anxious local Communist Yugoslav authorities.
Professionally, apart from being a pretender king, he is an architect and the founder and president of the Cetinje Biennale of Contemporary Art. His children both enjoy artistic vocations.
Nikola never renounced his dynastic right to the throne. He has taken an active interest in the future of his homeland by illegaly denouncing claims on Montenegrin private property owned by members of the Serbian royal family (whose head is the grandson of Nikola's first cousin) in 2002 and actively encouraging the people of Montenegro to vote for independence in 2006. He is now free to travel to his homeland and in time might return there to live;
Polling station number 23 was located in one of Cetinje’s chess clubs. Inside, we found Prince Nikola Petrovic Njegos, a descendent of the Petrovic dynasty that were dethroned in 1918. He expressed his hope that his family name would be finally cleared.
“Mr Djukanovic said that it would be an obligation of a new Montenegrin state to rehabilitate the name of the dynasty,” he said. Mr Petrovic-Njegos, an architect living in Paris, said he had no political ambitions, but “if Montenegrins tomorrow decide to return to the monarchy, I won’t say no.” He added that he hopes he could reach a gentleman’s agreement with the government over the property belonging to his family.
Later on he walked to his grandfather's palace in Cetinje, now turned into a museum, where he greeted the group of French tourists with the words "welcome to my home." [1]
Education
HRH Prince Nicholas was educated in France.
In 1964 he was admitted to the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and between 1965 and 1967 he attended training courses in several architects practices.
Between 1967 and 1971 The Prince assisted on several architectural projects, including a winter sports resort in Avoriaz, France, and with Shamaï Haber on several university science faculties.
In 1971 The Prince was awarded a Diploma in Architecture and admitted to the Société Française des Architectes.
Marriage and children
In 1976 he married Francine Navarro in Trebeurden, Côtes-du-Nord on 27 November. Together they raised a family at Les Lilas, France;
- Prince Boris of Montenegro (Petrovic-Njegoš), Grand Duke of Grahovo and Zeta, born at Les Lilas on 21 January, 1980 and
- Princess Altinaï of Montenegro, born at Les Lilas, Seine-Saint-Denis on 27 October 1977.
Decorations
Montenegrin Decorations:
- Grand Master and Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Peter of Cetinje (OStP)
- Grand Master and Knight Grand Cross with Diamond Star and Collar of the Order of Prince Danilo I of Montenegro (GCDO)
Foreign Decorations:
- Bailiff Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta
- Grand Cross Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus, Savoy
- Grand Cross Order of Our Lady of the Conception of Vila Viçosa, Portugal
- Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Francis I, Two Sicilies
- Golden Medal of Honour of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George, Two Sicilies.
Coat of Arms
The Prince bears the Royal Montenegrin Coat of Arms. It can be seen on the Crown Prince's shield on King Nikola's Palace in Cetinje.
The Royal Coat of Arms is born by the heirs to the throne, and differs to the Coat of Arms of the Petrović Njegoš family.
The history of the Royal Coat of Arms begins with the Crnojevics dynasty in the 15th century. Their family arms - golden crowned two-headed eagle on a red background - laid the foundation of the Montenegrin state heraldry: the two-headed eagle became the standard symbol of the state. After gaining power, the Petrović Njegoš dynasty took the golden two-headed eagle as the state symbol. Prince-bishop (Vladika) Danilo charged on its breast the Great Arms of the Petrović Njegoš family (shield, crown, mantling), while his successor Prince-bishop Sava made major changes to the coat of arms: removed the family Great Arms from the eagle's breast, and added the scepter and saru ("the imperial egg") in its claws. He also added another symbol retained until the present day - the golden lion passant - below the golden eagle. With Prince-bishop Petar I, further rearrangement of the coat of arms took place: from the eagle he removed the royal insignia and charged on the eagle's breast the Middle Arms of the Petrović Njegoš (the shield with the crown) while leaving the lion passant.
Prince Danilo also reorganized the Royal Coat of Arms: he charged on the golden eagle's breast the shield where on the blue background the golden lion passant was on green ground. In one claw the eagle held the saru, and in the other a sword and the scepter.
King Nikola I removed the sword, and later, in conformity with the Constitution of 1905, the color of the eagle was changed from golden to silver as well as the background of the shield with the lion - to red instead of blue.
The Constitution of 2007 maintained "the tradition" of King Nikola I: the adopted Coat of Arms was a crowned silver eagle with the sara in one and the scepter in the other claw, and charged on its breast was a red shield with the lion passant.
Royal Standard
From 1876 the State battle flag was described as being red with a white cross. In the time of Prince Danilo, the cross on the battle flag was replaced by the double-headed eagle with the initials in Cyrillic D. I. (Danilo I) on its breast, with the lion passant underneath.
King Nikola I made many different flags in his reign. The first of the variants was the same as Prince Danilo's, differing only in the initials in Cyrillic N. I. (Nikola I). Around 1910, two new variants appeared: one tricolor (red, blue and white) with the double-headed eagle bearing the initials N. I. on its breast and the lion passant on the sinister, the other with the double-headed eagle above the initials N. I.
In the Prince’s standard there is a red background bordered by white, with the double-headed eagle and the initials in Cyrillic N. I. I. (Nikola II) on its breast, with the lion passant underneath. This standard is flown over the Prince’s palace at Cetinje. It is also used as a distinguishing mark on vehicles, ships, aircraft and in the Military.
Annual Allowance
The Prince and the Royal Family currently receives no sum as part of the government of Montenegro’s annual budget. The Prince’s staff and his personal expenditure are financed by private wealth and gift.
The Montenegrin Royal Family currently pays tax in their respective domiciles. The Royal Family is required by law to comply with the standard regulations concerning payment of death duties and inheritance tax.
References
External links
- The Order of Prince Danilo I Official website of the Royal House of Montenegro and dynastic Orders.
- The Njegoskij Fund Public Project : The Modern Family of Montenegro.
- Flags of the World Flags of the World.
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See also House of Petrović-Njegoš | ||
- Articles needing cleanup from December 2007
- Cleanup tagged articles without a reason field from December 2007
- Wikipedia pages needing cleanup from December 2007
- 1944 births
- Pretenders to the Montenegrin throne
- Heirs apparent who never acceded
- Current heirs apparent
- History of Montenegro
- Living people
- Princes of Montenegro
- House of Petrovic-Njegoš
- Blue Palace
- Montenegrin Nobility