Order of Karađorđe's Star
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The Order of Karađorđe's Star ( sr, Orden Karađorđeve zvezde, italics=yes, sr-Cyrl, Орден Карађорђеве звезде) is
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
's highest civilian and military decoration. It originated in the
Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Краљевина Србија, Kraljevina Srbija) was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Princi ...
, and was initially awarded exclusively to Serbian citizens in return for services rendered to the Serbian monarchy, the Serb people and the Serbian state, though it is now bestowed upon Serbs and non-Serbs alike. During the
Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...
and
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the Order was mostly awarded for acts of bravery on the battlefield. The post-war
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
retained the Order, and it was awarded by the
Yugoslav government-in-exile The Government of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in Exile ( sh, Vlada Kraljevine Jugoslavije u egzilu / Влада Краљевине Југославије у егзилу) was an official government of Yugoslavia, headed by King Peter II. It evacu ...
until the end of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, in some cases to individuals who collaborated with the
Axis powers The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
. Following the war, the monarchy was outlawed and a
communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
government came to power. Along with other monarchist symbols, the Order was suppressed during the administration of
Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his deat ...
, and replaced with communist decorations such as the
Order of the People's Hero The Order of the People's Hero or the Order of the National Hero ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Orden narodnog heroja, Oрден народног хероја; sl, Red narodnega heroja, mk, Oрден на народен херој, Orden na ...
. During the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, it had been awarded by the Karađorđević family in exile. Following the
breakup of Yugoslavia The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...
, Serbia ceased using many of the awards and decorations established during the communist period, though it was not until 2010 that the Serbian Government officially reinstated the Order of Karađorđe's Star as Serbia's highest decoration. It continues as a
dynastic order A dynastic order, monarchical order, or house order is an order under royal patronage. Such an order is bestowed by, as a legitimate , a sovereign or the head of a once-sovereign ruling family. These are often considered part of the cultural ...
, with appointments currently made by Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia.


History

The Order of Karađorđe's Star was instituted by the
royal decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state (such as the president of a republic or a monarch), according to certain procedures (usually established in a constitution). It has the force of law. The particular term used for ...
of King
Peter I Peter I may refer to: Religious hierarchs * Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus * Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint * Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...
on 1 January 1904, commemorating his recent accession to the Serbian throne, as well as the one-hundredth anniversary of the
First Serbian Uprising The First Serbian Uprising ( sr, Prvi srpski ustanak, italics=yes, sr-Cyrl, Први српски устанак; tr, Birinci Sırp Ayaklanması) was an uprising of Serbs in the Sanjak of Smederevo against the Ottoman Empire from 14 February 18 ...
. It was meant to replace the
Order of the Cross of Takovo The Order of the Cross of Takovo was a Serbian state order. History It was instituted in the Principality of Serbia in 1865 to mark the 50th anniversary of the Second Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire, which had started in Takovo, Serbi ...
and the
Order of Miloš the Great The Order of Miloš the Great ( sr, Орден Милоша Великог), was an Order of the Kingdom of Serbia. Founded in 1898 by King Alexander I of Serbia, the order was named in honor of Miloš Obrenović, the leader of the Second Serbi ...
, two decorations that had been awarded by the rival
Obrenović dynasty The House of Obrenović ( sr-Cyrl, Обрeновић, Obrenovići / Обреновићи, ) was a Serbian dynasty that ruled Serbia from 1815 to 1842, and again from 1858 to 1903. They came to power through the leadership of their progenitor ...
, which ruled Serbia prior to the May 1903 coup d'état that reinstated Peter's
Karađorđević dynasty The Karađorđević dynasty ( sr-Cyrl, Динасија Карађорђевић, Dinasija Karađorđević, Карађорђевићи / Karađorđevići, ) or House of Karađorđević ( sr-Cyrl, Кућа Карађорђевић, Kuća Karađ ...
after several decades in exile. The first award was disagreeable to the Karađorđevićes and their supporters because it was named after
Takovo Takovo ( sr-cyr, Таково) is a village in the municipality of Gornji Milanovac, Serbia. According to the 2011 census, the village has a population of 458 people.Popis stanovništva, domaćinstava i Stanova 2002. Knjiga 1: Nacionalna ili etni ...
, the village where Obrenović dynasty founder
Miloš Obrenović Miloš, Milos, Miłosz or spelling variations thereof is a masculine given name and a surname. It may refer to: Given name Sportsmen * Miłosz Bernatajtys, Polish rower * Miloš Bogunović, Serbian footballer * Miloš Budaković, Serbian f ...
had launched the
Second Serbian Uprising The Second Serbian Uprising ( sr, Други српски устанак / ''Drugi srpski ustanak'', tr, İkinci Sırp Ayaklanması) was the second phase of the Serbian Revolution against the Ottoman Empire, which erupted shortly after the re ...
. The Order of Miloš the Great had to be replaced as it was named after Obrenović himself. Initially, the Order of Karađorđe's Star was categorized as a senior state award, and organized into four classes. The Grand Cross of Karađorđe's Star, the highest class, consisted of a badge of the Order on a sash and breast star; a Grand Officer of Karađorđe's Star was decorated with a badge necklet and a slightly smaller breast star; a Commander of Karađorđe's Star was only awarded a badge necklet; and the recipient of the Order's fourth class, the Officer of Karađorđe's Star, would receive a small triangular chest ribbon. The Order was usually awarded for services to the Karađorđević dynasty, the Serbian state or the Serb people, while Karađorđević princes received a Grand Cross at
baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...
. Recipients included both soldiers and civilians, though until 1906 only Serbian citizens were permitted to receive the award. During the
Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...
(1912–13), the Serbian Government introduced the War Merit Order of Karađorđe's Star to reward acts of "conspicuous gallantry of commissioned officers in the field", as well as the battlefield victories of the
Royal Serbian Army The Army of the Kingdom of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Војска Краљевине Србије, Vojska Kraljevine Srbije), known in English language, English as the Royal Serbian Army, was the army of the Kingdom of Serbia that existed between 1882 a ...
's senior officers; non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and soldiers in the field were ineligible. In June 1915, at the height of World War I, Serbia instituted a sub-division of the War Merit Order, called the Military Order, which was awarded to NCOs and men for bravery in combat. The War Merit Order was divided into two classes: the 1st division Gold Cross and the 2nd division Silver Cross. One of the recipients of the Military Order was the highly decorated female soldier
Milunka Savić Milunka Savić CMG ( sr-cyr, Милунка Савић; 28 June 1892 or 10 August 1888 – 5 October 1973) was a Serbian war heroine who fought in the Balkan Wars and in World War I. She is the most-decorated female combatant in the recorded h ...
, and another was
Flora Sandes Flora Sandes (, 22 January 1876 – 24 November 1956) was a British woman who served as a member of the Royal Serbian Army in World War I. She was the only British woman officially to serve as a soldier in that war. Initially a St. John Ambula ...
, the only British woman to openly serve as a soldier in the war. Several senior Serbian military leaders were recipients of the War Merit Order, including Prince Regent
Alexander Alexander is a male given name. 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 are Aleksandar, Al ...
, and Field marshals
Živojin Mišić Field Marshal Živojin Mišić ( sr-cyrl, Живојин Мишић; 19 July 1855 in Struganik – 20 January 1921 in Belgrade) was a Field Marshal who participated in all of Serbia's wars from 1876 to 1918. He directly commanded the First ...
and
Stepa Stepanović Stepan "Stepa" Stepanović ( sr-cyr, Степан Степа Степановић, ;  – 29 April 1929) was a Serbian military commander who fought in the Serbo-Turkish War, the Serbo-Bulgarian War, the First Balkan War, the Second Balk ...
. Foreign recipients included American General John J. Pershing, the British
Field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...
Douglas Haig Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig, (; 19 June 1861 – 29 January 1928) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the British Army. During the First World War, he commanded the British Expeditionar ...
, the French generals
Joseph Joffre Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre (12 January 1852 – 3 January 1931) was a French general who served as Commander-in-Chief of French forces on the Western Front from the start of World War I until the end of 1916. He is best known for regroupi ...
,
Maurice Sarrail Maurice Paul Emmanuel Sarrail (6 April 1856 – 23 March 1929) was a French general of the First World War. Sarrail's openly socialist political connections made him a rarity amongst the Catholics, conservatives and monarchists who dominated th ...
,
Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), commonly known as Philippe Pétain (, ) or Marshal Pétain (french: Maréchal Pétain), was a French general who attained the position of Marshal of France at the end of World ...
, and
Louis Franchet d'Espèrey Louis Félix Marie François Franchet d'Espèrey (25 May 1856 – 8 July 1942) was a French general during World War I. As commander of the large Allied army based at Salonika, he conducted the successful Macedonian campaign, which caused t ...
, and
King Ferdinand I of Romania Ferdinand (Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad; 24 August 1865 – 20 July 1927), nicknamed ''Întregitorul'' ("the Unifier"), was King of Romania from 1914 until his death in 1927. Ferdinand was the second son of Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern and ...
. The
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
retained the Order after World War I. In 1939, it was awarded to the city of
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
. During World War II, Peter II bestowed the Order upon a number of
Chetniks The Chetniks ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Четници, Četnici, ; sl, Četniki), formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland and the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationa ...
on the recommendation of Chetnik leader
Draža Mihailović Dragoljub "Draža" Mihailović ( sr-Cyrl, Драгољуб Дража Михаиловић; 27 April 1893 – 17 July 1946) was a Yugoslavs, Yugoslav Serb general during World War II. He was the leader of the Chetniks, Chetnik Detachments ...
. Some of the decorated Chetnik commanders included
Pavle Đurišić Pavle Đurišić ( sr-cyr, Павле Ђуришић, ; 9 July 1909 – April 1945) was a Montenegrin Serb regular officer of the Royal Yugoslav Army who became a Chetnik commander ('' vojvoda'') and led a significant proportion of the Chetniks ...
,
Dobroslav Jevđević Dobroslav Jevđević ( sr-Cyrl, Доброслав Јевђевић, ; 28 December 1895 – October 1962) was a Bosnian Serb politician and self-appointed Chetnik commander (, војвода) in the Herzegovina region of the Axis-occupied Ki ...
,
Momčilo Đujić Momčilo Đujić ( sh-Cyrl, Момчилo Ђујић, ; 27 February 1907 – 11 September 1999) was a Serbian Orthodox priest and Chetnik . He led a significant proportion of the Chetniks within the northern Dalmatia and western Bosnia r ...
, Brane Bogunović and
Uroš Drenović Uroš Drenović ( sr-Cyrl, Урош Дреновић; 1911 – 29 May 1944) was a Bosnian Serb military commander in the central Bosnia region of the fascist puppet state known as the Independent State of Croatia (NDH), led by the Ustaše ...
. These decorations proved controversial both during and after the war, as many of the commanders cooperated with the armed forces of
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
or even
Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...
against the
Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
-led
Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод ...
for most of the occupation period. Such a discrepancy can best be seen in the case of Đujić, who was given the Order for displaying "gallantry in the face of the enemy", and subsequently celebrated receiving it at an Italian general's headquarters. In Jevđević's case, the Order was given in 1943 for his services to the Serb population of Herzegovina during a series of
Ustaše The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian Fascism, fascist and ultranationalism, ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaš ...
massacres, but Mihailović had news of the award suppressed, because Jevđević had visited Rome to plan an anti-communist offensive with the Italians and his forces had carried out several massacres of non-Serbs over the previous several years. After the war, Yugoslavia came under the rule of communist president
Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his deat ...
, and Karađorđević-era medals and orders were replaced by non-royal decorations, such as the
Order of the People's Hero The Order of the People's Hero or the Order of the National Hero ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Orden narodnog heroja, Oрден народног хероја; sl, Red narodnega heroja, mk, Oрден на народен херој, Orden na ...
. In the 1990s, the
Republika Srpska Republika Srpska ( sr-Cyrl, Република Српска, lit=Serb Republic, also known as Republic of Srpska, ) is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Feder ...
instated its own decoration also called the Order of Karađorđe's Star, though this is not to be confused with the medal historically awarded by Serbia and the Karađorđević dynasty. In 2010, the
Government of Serbia The Government of Serbia ( sr, Влада Србије, Vlada Srbije), formally the Government of the Republic of Serbia ( sr, Влада Републике Србије, Vlada Republike Srbije), commonly abbreviated to Serbian Government ( sr, ...
decided to reinstate the Order as an official state award, though the Karađorđević's had continued giving the award in exile over the previous sixty years. In February 2012, tennis player
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
became the first person to receive the Order after it was reinstated. In September 2018, retired
Chief of the General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces (militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ( United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Af ...
Ljubiša Diković became the recipient of the order. In 2020,
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
winner
Peter Handke Peter Handke (; born 6 December 1942) is an Austrian novelist, playwright, translator, poet, film director, and screenwriter. He was awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Literature "for an influential work that with linguistic ingenuity has explored t ...
and
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
Professor
Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic ( sr-cyr, Гордана Вуњак Новаковић) is a Serbian American biomedical engineer and university professor. She is a University Professor at Columbia University, as well as the Mikati Foundation Professor o ...
received the order.


Design

The Order comes in either gold or silver depending on class, and the obverse features a white enameled
cross pattée A cross pattée, cross patty or cross paty, also known as a cross formy or cross formée (french: croix pattée, german: Tatzenkreuz), is a type of Christian cross with arms that are narrow at the centre, and often flared in a curve or straight ...
with gilt rays protruding from each of the arms. The rays are intersected diagonally by a pair of sabres when the recipient is awarded an Order "with swords". Orders from the royal period contain a blue medallion at the centre depicting a
Serbian cross The Serbian Cross ( sr, Cрпски крст / Srpski krst) is a national symbol of Serbia, part of the coat of arms and flag of Serbia, and of the Serbian Orthodox Church. It is based on the tetragrammic cross emblem/flag of the Byzantine Palaio ...
with a fire-steel at each corner, with the words "For Faith and Freedom, 1804" etched into the small circle in the middle of the cross. The reverse of these Orders contains a red medallion depicting a white eagle, with the words "Peter I, 1904" written around it. The bravery medals awarded from June 1915 forward are almost identical to the Orders awarded before that date, save for the crossed swords being present on all of them regardless of class. Such Orders also lacked the phrase etched into the obverse of the older ones and the date 1904 on the reverse, which marked the centenary of the
First Serbian Uprising The First Serbian Uprising ( sr, Prvi srpski ustanak, italics=yes, sr-Cyrl, Први српски устанак; tr, Birinci Sırp Ayaklanması) was an uprising of Serbs in the Sanjak of Smederevo against the Ottoman Empire from 14 February 18 ...
. Instead, they merely had King Peter's name on the obverse beside the year when the Order was bestowed. The Orders themselves were originally manufactured by foreign makers of decorations and medals, such as France's
Arthus-Bertrand Arthus-Bertrand is a maker of medals and decorations. It was founded in Paris in 1803 by Claude Arthus-Bertrand, an army officer during the French Revolution. Artists who have designed for the firm include Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi Frédér ...
and Switzerland's Huguenin Fréres; during the
interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...
(1919–39) they were produced domestically.


Footnotes


References


Works cited

;Books * * * * * * * * * * * ;Websites * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Order of the Star of Karadorde 1904 establishments in Serbia Awards established in 1904 Karadorde's Star Orders, decorations, and medals of the Kingdom of Serbia Karadorde's Star