ORDERS AND MEDALS OF THE KINGDOM OF SERBIA also of the Principality of Serbia and Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Modern Serbian orders of merit were incepted in mid-19th century and modelled upon the contemporary orders of the western Europe. At the time, the country was a hereditary vassal Ottoman Principality under the rule of the domestic Obrenovich dynasty. Turkish suzerenity was phased out in 1878 under the provisions of the Congress of Berlin, when Serbia gained independance after succumbing to the Turks in 1453.
Mediaeval Serbian state did not have any chivalric or confraternal orders and thus there were none upon which new state merit orders could have been modelled in the 19th century [Note 1]. The inspiration was thus sought for in the honors systems of the contemporary monarchies.
In 1865, the solemn celebration of the 50th anniversary of the major anti-Ottoman campaign was commemorated with the cross and the silver medal struck for the occassion. The cross, later to be known as the Order of the Cros of Takovo was later reorganized in multiple classes, following the pattern of the contemporary European orders of merit. The Order of the White Eagle and Order of St. Sava followed in 1883 in the honor of the proclamation of the kingdom the year before.
A unique, single-class collar Order of St. Prince Lazar to be worn by the Sovereign and the Heir Apparent only was founded in 1889, in the scope of the 600th aniversary commemorations of the Battle of Kosovo, the major defeat by the Ottomans in 1389 which ultimately led to the downfall of the medieval Serbian state. The Order of Milosh the Great, one of the rarest and most beautiful in design, was founded in 1898, marking the 40th anniversary of the Obrenovich dynasty founder, Prince Milosh.
In 1903, the Obrenovich dynasty was dethroned in a court coup. With King Alexander I being assasinated without issue it became extinct in the legitimate line and the pretender from the rival house of Karageorgevich was elected King Peter I of Serbia.
King Peter supressed the Order of the Cros of Takovo and Order of Milosh the Great because of their explicit dynastic connotations, but retained other orders of merit, as they were considered transdynastic. The new ruling house needed a new, exclusive and genuine order of merit to preceed the ones already existing. The Order of the Star of Karageorge was instituted in 1904 and the inspiration was found in commemoration 100th anniversary of yet another anti-Otoman campaign, led by his grandfather Karageorge.
Although the original concept of a generic order "of the Crown" was developed as early as 1911, it materialized only in 1930 as Order of Yugoslav Crown, the last monarchical order affiliated with the former Kingdom of Serbia (incorporated in unified Yugoslav monarchy in 1918).
The monarchy was abolished in 1945. Since then, the remaining royal orders of merit have been retained by the head of the Royal House of Karageorgevich in exile, firstly King Peter II and after his death to his son and heir, Crown Prince Alexander.
