Mihailo Ristić (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (, ), also known as the Serbian script, (, ), is a standardized variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language. It originated in medieval Serbia and was significantly reformed in the 19th cen ...

: Михаило Ристић;

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 ...

Principality of Serbia The Principality of Serbia () was an autonomous, later sovereign state in the Balkans that came into existence as a result of the Serbian Revolution, which lasted between 1804 and 1817. Its creation was negotiated first through an unwritten agre ...

, 5 September 1864 — Belgrade,

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 ...

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

, 15 August 1925) was a Serbian

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

, consul and representative of Narodna encyclopedia Serbian-Croatian-Slovenian, Belgrade 1929, book 3, 950 Ristić's main activity as a consul and diplomat was to help the Serbian people and the church in Macedonia and

Old Serbia Old Serbia () is a Serbian historiographical term that is used to describe the territory that according to the dominant school of Serbian historiography in the late 19th century formed the core of the Serbian Empire in 1346–71. The term does ...

, as well as their protection from Bulgarian and Greek propaganda and armed action.

Family

Mihailo Ristić is the son of Gavrilo Ristić, a Belgrade merchant, and Katarina Ćiprić from the family of Đorđe Ćipra, a Belgrade merchant. Mihailo and Pravda had a son, Andrija "Andra" Ristić, a lawyer, who graduated from high school in Paris and the Faculty of Law in Belgrade, where he received his doctorate (1936).

Education

, Mihailo Ristić finished primary school,

First Belgrade Gymnasium First Belgrade Gymnasium () is a Gymnasium (school), gymnasium (Central European type of grammar school) with a long tradition, founded in 1839 in Belgrade, Serbia. Since 1938, it is situated in the center of the city, on 61 Cara Dušana Street. T ...

and the

Faculty of Law A faculty is a division within a university or college comprising one subject area or a group of related subject areas, possibly also delimited by level (e.g. undergraduate). In North America, academic divisions are sometimes titled colleges, sc ...

Grandes écoles Grandes may refer to: *Agustín Muñoz Grandes, Spanish general and politician * Banksia ser. Grandes, a series of plant species native to Australia * Grandes y San Martín, a municipality located in the province of Ávila, Castile and León, Spain ...

(

University of Belgrade The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it me ...

). He graduated in 1886 with a degree in

Jurisprudence Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

, and after that he spent a post-graduate year studying in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

at the School of

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

Diplomatic Service

Mihailo G. Ristić spent his entire working life in the diplomatic service. He started his career working in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia in 1884.Biljana Vučetić, Istorijski časopis LIII (2006) 359-374 As secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he traveled throughout

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

, including

Pristina Pristina or Prishtina ( , ), . is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and District of Pristina, district. In antiquity, the area of Pristina was part of the Dardanian Kingdo ...

, and testified that the situation was so bad because of livestock raids from Albania are increasing and causing villagers to move out of Kosovo that he fears that in a generation or two there will be fewer and fewer Serbs there. That report of his on the work of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was published. During 1893, he became the secretary of the Serbian Embassy in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. In a letter from Constantinople, Ristić expressed his doubts regarding the new administration and the preservation of Serbian heritage and assets in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

: ''"We are in places from which we can see a little further than others, with completely selfless eyes, and for that we should be afraid... It could be that it is because I was taught to look at the good of the motherland as well as my own good, and what is happening there now is far from bringing her good things. On the contrary, her bad days are just beginning, and even a thoughtful person should already be overcome with foreboding even for the duration of it."'' Although the young king

Aleksandar Obrenović Alexander I (; 14 August 187611 June 1903) was King of Serbia from 1889 until his death in 1903, when he and his wife, Draga Mašin, were assassinated by a group of Royal Serbian Army officers, led by Captain Dragutin Dimitrijević. Accessio ...

staged a ''coup d'état'' in January 1894, which led to the fall of the Serbian government and a change in politics. Ristić stayed in the city on the

Bosphorus The Bosporus or Bosphorus Strait ( ; , colloquially ) is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul, Turkey. The Bosporus connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara and forms one of the continental bo ...

until the fall of 1895. In 1896 he was made temporary secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Belgrade. He was named consul in the Serbian Consulate in

Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...

in 1896 and in 1898 he was appointed secretary of the Serbian embassy in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. From 1899 until 1903, he was the Serbian consul in Bitola. He was also appointed as a diplomatic agent in

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

, but he did not receive that post. He again became the Serbian consul in Skopje from 1904 to 1906. He served in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

from 1906 to 1914. Also, in 1907 he was appointed as Serbia's representative in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, but did not move there until 1914, owing to wartime conditions. In 1913, he was assigned to the Serbian consulate in

România Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to the east, and the Black Sea t ...

together with

Nikola Pašić Nikola Pašić ( sr-Cyrl, Никола Пашић, ; 18 December 1845 – 10 December 1926) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician and diplomat. During his political career, which spanned almost five decades, he served five times as prime minis ...

prior to the

Treaty of Bucharest (1913) The Treaty of Bucharest (; ; ; ) was concluded on 10 August 1913, by the delegates of Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Montenegro and Greece. The Treaty was concluded in the aftermath of the Second Balkan War and amended the previous Treaty of Londo ...

. Ristić left for Italy in the last days of December in 1914. As the Serbian consul in Rome in March 1915, he began negotiations with the Italian government about "Arbania (Albania) and Serbia's access to the Adriatic Sea." He went from Rome to Corfu, where the assembly session opened at the end of August 1916."Beogradske novine", Belgrade, August 18, 1916 During 1920, he was a delegate of the

in the Danube Commission. Diplomat Ristić retired in 1924, and died a year later in Belgrade.

Activity

Ristić's main activity as a consul and diplomat was protecting

national interest The national interest is a sovereign state's goals and ambitions – be they economic, military, cultural, or otherwise – taken to be the aim of its government. Etymology The Italian phrase ''ragione degli stati'' was first used by Giovanni de ...

and the awakening of

national consciousness National identity is a person's identity or sense of belonging to one or more states or one or more nations. It is the sense of "a nation as a cohesive whole, as represented by distinctive traditions, culture, and language". National identity ...

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ristic, Mihailo 19th-century Serbian people 20th-century Serbian people Diplomats from Belgrade 1864 births 1925 deaths People from the Kingdom of Serbia