The Dedinje Royal Compound () is a complex of former royal residences commissioned by and built with the personal funds of King Alexander I in the Dedinje neighborhood of

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

, between 1924 and 1937. The Dedinje Royal Compound covers an area of 134

hectares The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. A ...

covered with parks and contains two residences: Kraljevski Dvor and Beli Dvor; as well as a small Thatched House and service buildings (kitchens, garages, guards barracks). The compound is owned by the Serbian state and since 2001 has been managed by the Kraljevski Dvor Fund under the direction of the Crown Prince

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

Kraljevski Dvor

The Kraljevski Dvor (, lit. "Royal Palace") is a grand stucco villa in the Serbo-Byzantine Revival style by architects Živojin Nikolić and Russian architects Nikolay Krasnov. It was built from 1924 to 1929 with the private funds of King Alexander I and was the official residence of the Karađorđević royal family from 1934 to 1941. It is today home to a

pretender A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term may often be used to either refer to a descendant of a deposed monarchy or a claim that is not legitimat ...

to the Serbian throne, Crown Prince

, where he lives since his return to the country from exile in 2001.The Office of HRH Crown Prince Alexander II, ''Royal Compound presented at Novi Sad fair 9–12 October'' (press release), Belgrade, 9 October 2007. Adjacent to the residence is the Royal Chapel, dedicated to

Saint Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Church stems from the Gospel of Jo ...

, the patron saint of royal

house of Karađorđević The House of Karađorđević or Karađorđević dynasty ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Династија Карађорђевић, Dinastija Karađorđević, ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Карађорђевићи, Karađorđevići, label=none) was the former ruling Kin ...

. The Chapel was built at the same time as Kraljevski Dvor and is attached to it through a colonnade with semicircular arches.

Beli Dvor

Beli Dvor (, lit. "White Palace") was built from 1934 to 1937 with the private funds of King Alexander I and was the residence of Prince Regent Paul from 1934 to 1941. Following the World War II, the new communist government seized the assets and property of the Karađorđević royal family. The palace was used by Yugoslav president,

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...

, and later by the president of

FR Yugoslavia The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

Slobodan Milošević Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...

, for official state functions and receptions of visiting foreign dignitaries. Bazen_Belog_dvora

Thatched House

The Thatched House () is a structure built in the style of old traditional Serbian houses. King Alexander I used to reside in this house supervising the construction works at the compound, and it also served as the studying room for his three sons as well as the art studio of Queen Maria. Currently,

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

and his family resides there.

Parks and gardens

The compound is covered with parks of the English garden type, where the vegetation is allowed to grow naturally, whereas around the two palaces the French garden concept of park arrangement is applied, meaning that flowers, bushes and trees have neatly shaped forms and are planted in strictly geometrical order.

References

External links