Prince Michael Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro (; 14 September 1908 – 24 March 1986) was the third (but eldest surviving) son of Prince Mirko of Montenegro, Grand Voivode of Grahovo and

Zeta Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; , , classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived from the Phoenician alphabet, Phoenician letter zay ...

(1879–1918), and Natalija Konstantinović, a cousin of Aleksandar Obrenović of

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 ...

. He was pretender to the throne of Montenegro, holding the title Grand Duke of Grahovo and Zeta, in succession to his father. King Nicholas I of Montenegro was Michael's grandfather. Michael had recognized and acknowledged the Unification of Montenegro with Serbia, renouncing the throne. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was held prisoner by the Nazis after refusing to take up the throne of the Axis forces' re-established Montenegrin puppet-state. During the period of Yugoslav socialism, he was an active member of the Serb diaspora revolutionary organization and a diplomatic worker against the socialist government led by Marshal Tito. He was a member of the Crown Council of King

Peter II of Yugoslavia Peter II Karađorđević (; 6 September 1923 – 3 November 1970) was the last King of Yugoslavia, reigning from October 1934 until he was deposed in November 1945. He was the last reigning member of the Karađorđević dynasty. The eldest ...

Early life

Michael was born in

Podgorica Podgorica ( cnr-Cyrl, Подгорица; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Montenegro, largest city of Montenegro. The city is just north of Lake Skadar and close to coastal destinations on the Adriatic Sea. Histor ...

in 1908, the son of Prince Mirko of Montenegro. In 1916, the defence of Montenegro against the invasion by

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

collapsed and he, along with the rest of the royal family, fled to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. There, he briefly attended a boarding school in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

before joining his mother, who had taken up residence in

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. It is also a non-metropolitan district, local government district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, bor ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

where he completed his primary education.

Accession

In 1918, a pro-Serb assembly deposed his grandfather and merged Montenegro into Serbia. Shortly after that, the enlarged Serbia led the formation of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Yugoslavia). After Nikola died in 1921, the defunct throne was inherited by Danilo, Crown Prince of Montenegro. However, Danilo unexpectedly abdicated a few days later and his nephew the young Michael (who succeeded him as ''pretender'') "reigned" as ''King Mihailo I'' under the guidance of a regent. On 14 September 1929 the Regency of General Anto Gvozdenović ended and Mihailo renounced his dynasty's claim to the throne of Montenegro and declared allegiance to the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, 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" () h ...

. In gratitude, the

King of Yugoslavia This article lists the heads of state of Yugoslavia from the Creation of Yugoslavia, creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Kingdom of Yugoslavia) in 1918 until the Breakup of Yugoslavia, breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of ...

, Alexander I rewarded ''Prince Mihailo'' with a pension from the

Civil List A civil list is a list of individuals to whom money is paid by the government, typically for service to the state or as honorary pensions. It is a term especially associated with the United Kingdom, and its former colonies and dominions. It was ori ...

The Axis Proposition

In 1941, following the Fall of France, Prince Mihailo and his wife were arrested by the German occupation authorities. They were transferred to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and were held at a castle on the shores of

Lake Constance Lake Constance (, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein (). These ...

. It was here that they were visited by Count Galeazzo Ciano and

Joachim von Ribbentrop Ulrich Friedrich-Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (; 30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946) was a German Nazi politician and diplomat who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945. ...

and were offered the throne of a new, independent Kingdom of Montenegro, but under Italian and German protection and guidance. He rejected this offer and remained imprisoned in Germany until his aunt, the Queen of Italy ( Elena of Montenegro), secured their release in 1943. They returned to France only to be arrested by the German authorities and transferred to an internment camp at Jezeří Castle in occupied

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. The couple's son Prince Nicholas of Montenegro was born in 1944 in France, in Saint-Nicolas-du-Pélem,

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

The Communist Proposition

At the end of the war Michael, his wife and infant son were released; they returned to France, taking up residence in Paris. Shortly after this he began talking to Marshal Tito of the newly socialist

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

and was invited to visit the country. In 1947 the young family took up residence in

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 ...

and Prince Mihailo accepted the position as ''Head of Protocol'' at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Prince Mihailo was able to visit Montenegro for the first time since 1916, and realized that the memory of his family was still alive amongst the people. Eventually disappointed with Tito, he returned to France with his family in June 1948.

Opposition to Communist Dictatorship

From its founding in 1946, Michael Petrovich spent his years as an active political dissident of the Communist regime and worked to bring about its downfall. He was a member of the revolutionary Serb Liberation Movement Fatherland, aimed at gathering the Serb diaspora and internal dissidents in an effort to destroy the Yugoslav Communists.

Later life and death

Following his break with the government of Yugoslavia, the money he received from the

civil list A civil list is a list of individuals to whom money is paid by the government, typically for service to the state or as honorary pensions. It is a term especially associated with the United Kingdom, and its former colonies and dominions. It was ori ...

was terminated. Soon after, he and his wife divorced and he remained in exile until his death in 1986. Their son,

Nicholas Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Ancient Greek, Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In ...

, was brought up by his mother. Prince Mihailo is buried in the Serbian Military section of the Thiais cemetery 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 ...

Marriage and children

Michael married in

on 27 January 1941 Geneviève Denise Charlotte Prigent (4 December 1919, in

Saint-Brieuc Saint-Brieuc (, Breton language, Breton: ''Sant-Brieg'' , Gallo language, Gallo: ''Saent-Berioec'') is a city in the Côtes-d'Armor Departments of France, department in Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. History ...

– 26 January 1990, in Lannion), second daughter of Dr. François Marie Prigent (

Fontenay-sous-Bois Fontenay-sous-Bois () is a Communes of France, commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Name The name Fontenay was recorded in the Middle Ages as ''Fontanetum'', meaning "the spring ...

, 8 March 1883 -

, 20 August 1947), a surgeon in

,Biography of Prince Michael Petrovic-Njegos, The Njegoskij Fund Public Project
/ref> and wife (

Neuilly-sur-Seine Neuilly-sur-Seine (; 'Neuilly-on-Seine'), also known simply as Neuilly, is an urban Communes of France, commune in the Hauts-de-Seine Departments of France, department just west of Paris in France. Immediately adjacent to the city, north of the ...

, 17 October 1905) Blanche Victorine Eugénie Bitte (

, 14 October 1883 -

, 3 December 1958), paternal granddaughter of Georges François Clair Prigent ( Rospez, 2 April 1848 - Lannion, 29 August 1912) and wife Marie Françoise Kergus ( Ploumilliau, 30 September 1857 - Lannion, 18 November 1897) and maternal granddaughter of Joseph Emile Bitte ( Guermange, 22 February 1839 -

, 1 November 1896) and wife ( Guermange, 17 June 1865) Marie Anne Victorine Renner ( Guermange, 22 February 1843 -

, 26 July 1913). They divorced on 11 April/August 1949 in

. Shortly after, Geneviève started a career of

orthoptist Orthoptics is a profession allied to the eye care profession. Orthoptists are the experts in diagnosing and treating defects in eye movements and problems with how the eyes work together, called binocular vision. These can be caused by issues with ...

in Trébeurden.Dangla, Jacques, ''Geneviève Prigent, orthoptiste pionnière et passionnée'', Revue francophone d'orthoptie, ISSN 1876-2204, 2009, vol. 2, n°1, pp. 41-42
– Éd. Elsevier Masson, Issy-les-Moulineaux, France (2008) (Revue) They had one child: * Nicholas, Prince of Montenegro (b. Saint-Nicolas-du-Pélem,

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, 7 July 1944)

Ancestors

Works

* Njegoš's Chapel on Lovćen - Sacred Place () * "From My Memoirs" (), The Serb National Defense, 1961, Windsor

References

External links

The Njegoskij Fund Public Project
: Biography of Prince Michel of Montenegro (1908–1986)
The Njegoskij Fund Public Project
: Biography of Genevieve Prigent, Militant Princess and French Resistant (1919–1990) *
Genealogy, Chronology, Notes
: Biography of Michael I of Montenegro (footnotes in English) {{DEFAULTSORT:Michael, Prince Of Montenegro 1908 births 1986 deaths Writers from Podgorica Serbs of Montenegro Petrović-Njegoš dynasty Princes of Montenegro Pretenders to the Montenegrin throne Yugoslav anti-communists Yugoslav dissidents Child pretenders Burials at the Cimetière parisien de Thiais