Draginja "Draga" Obrenović (Serbian Cyrillic: Драгиња『Драга』Обреновић; 23 September [O.S. 11 September] 1867 – 11 June [O.S. 29 May] 1903), née Lunjevica (Луњевица) and formerly Mašin (Машин),^[a] was the Queen consort of Serbia as the wife of King Aleksandar Obrenović. She was formerly a lady-in-waiting to Aleksandar's mother, Queen Natalija (until 1897).

Early life[edit]

Draga Mašin in her younger days (date unknown)

Draga was the fourth daughter of Panta Lunjevica, a prefect of the Aranđelovac area, and wife Anđelija (née Koljević). Draga was the sixth of seven siblings. She had two brothers, Nikola and Nikodije, and four sisters, Hristina, Đina, Ana and Vojka. Draga's mother was a dipsomaniac and her father died in a lunatic asylum.^[1]

Draga was the granddaughter of Nikola Lunjevica, a relative of Princess Ljubica of Serbia and close comrade of Prince Miloš, her husband's great-granduncle. Her paternal grandmother was Đurđija Čarapić, a cousin of vojvoda Ilija Čarapić (died 1844), husband of Stamenka Karađorđević (1799-1875), fourth daughter of Karađorđe Petrović, Grand Vožd of Serbia.

At the age of nine, Draga was sent to school in Belgrade, where she completed her school-education. Then she attended the "Cermanka's Institute" or "Women's Institute". There she learned several foreign languages, including Russian, French and German. During her stay in Belgrade, Draga began to write novels and short stories as well as to translate books for money. Despite the fact that her father took a lot of care about her, she began to earn her living as a very young girl. She published some well informed stories for foreign journals. She liked to read and especially liked to read Stendhal.^[2]^[3] At the time of her second marriage, she was the widow of Svetozar Mašin (1851-1886), a Czech civil engineer, son of Jan Mašin, who served as the royal physician to King Milan, her future father in law. She married Svetozar in August 1883 in the Cathedral Church of Belgrade.^[4]

Queen[edit]

Draga and King Alexander I

Despite Draga being ten years older than Aleksandar, the couple married on 5 August 1900 in a formal ceremony. When Aleksandar announced their engagement, public opinion turned against him. He was viewed as a besotted young fool in the power of a "wicked" seductress. Dowager Queen Natalija bitterly opposed the marriage, and was exiled by her son, in part because of this. His many arbitrary and unpopular acts were blamed on Draga's influence. There were rumors that Aleksandar would name Draga's elder brother as heir-presumptive to the throne. Both brothers were serving as army officers at the time of the marriage and appear to have been unpopular with their peers.

The Queen Draga of Serbia's Decoration was instituted in her honour on 7 April 1902. This medal was awarded to ladies for "achieving meritorious charitable work.”^[5]

Assassination[edit]

The rumour concerning the royal succession led to the couple's assassination. On the night of 10–11 June 1903, a group of army officers invaded the royal palace, led by Colonel Dragutin Dimitrijević and others. Troops led by other officers involved in the conspiracy were deployed near the palace, and the royal guards did not offer effective resistance during the confusion after the electric lighting of the building was turned off. Initially the conspirators were unable to find Aleksandar and Draga. However an aide of the king was captured and, either out of sympathy for the conspiracy or out of fear for his own life, revealed that they were hiding in a large built-in wardrobe off their bedroom.

Another account says that Aleksandar did not shut the secret door properly. Emerging partially dressed, the couple were murdered with sword thrusts and pistol shots by the officers, some of whom were reportedly drunk. The bodies were mutilated and afterwards thrown from a palace balcony onto piles of garden manure.^[6] Draga's two brothers, Nikodije and Nikola, were executed by firing squad on the same day. It was not until 19th June that the Lunjevica sisters, including the elder one Hristina Petrović with her children, left the country and settled permanently in Switzerland.^[7]^[b]

Portrayals[edit]

Vlaho Bukovac – queen Draga Obrenović, Museum of Rudnik-Takovo, 1901

Draga Mašin was played by Magda Sonja in the 1920 Austrian silent film Queen Draga. In the 1932 American film A Woman Commands she was portrayed by Pola Negri. She was also played by Ljiljana Blagojević in the 1995 Serbian mini-series The End of Obrenović Dynasty.

Honours[edit]

National honours

Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Miloš the Great (5 August 1900).^[8]
Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the White Eagle (5 August 1900).^[9]

Annotations[edit]

^
Her maiden name was Lunjevica (Луњевица), but she is and was most commonly known as Draga Mašin (Драга Машин),^[10] after her first marriage with Svetozar Mašin.

Hristina Lunjevica was married to Petar Petrović, a banker from Smederevo, later the director of the Belgrade Credit Bureau, with whom she had three children: sons Djordje and Mladen and daughter Jelena, who did not marry and did not start their own families in Switzerland, their final welcoming country.^[6]^[7]

References[edit]

^ Vucinich, Wayne S. (2006). Serbia Between East and West. The Events of 1903–1908. ACLS History E-Book Project. p. 324. ISBN 978-1-59740-242-2.

^ Queen Draga of Serbia

^ "First Serbian Lady". Archived from the original on 2021-04-25. Retrieved 2020-08-02.

^ "Royal House of Obrenovic". Archived from the original on 2021-04-25. Retrieved 2020-08-02.

^ Queen Draga of Serbia Medal

^ ^a ^b C. L. Sulzberger (1977). The Fall of Eagles. Crown Publishers. p. 202. ISBN 9780517528174.

^ ^a ^b Petrović, Hristina, "The Truth About the Life of Queen Draga", Fortnightly Review, London, December 1906.

^ Vhkcs

^ Queen Draga with the Badge of the Order

^ Slobodan Jovanović (1936). Sabrana dela: Vlada Aleksandra Obrenovića. G. Kon. p. 12. Исто тако краљ је узалуд означавао у прокламацији Драгу њеним девојачким именом Луњевице; за цео Бео- град она је била и остала не Драга Луњевица, него Драга Машин, – и то име Машин вукло је за собом не само ...

Sources[edit]

Краљица Драга Обреновић. Zavod za Udžbenike. 2009. ISBN 978-86-17-16133-8.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Draga Mašin.

Royal titles
Preceded by Natalija Keşco	Queen consort of Serbia 5 August 1900 – 11 June 1903	Vacant Title next held by Maria of Yugoslavia as Queen of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes

v t e Royal consorts of Serbia
Serbian Principality of Duklja, 998–1101	Kosara Monomachina Jaquinta of Bari Raška re-emerging as seat (Grand Principality)
Grand Principality of Serbia, 1101–1217	Anna Diogenissa Anastasia Eudokia Angelina Proclamation of Kingdom
Kingdom of Serbia, 1217–1346 Serbian Empire, 1346–1371	Anna Dandolo Anna Angelina Komnene Doukaina Beloslava of Bulgaria Helen of Anjou Catherine of Hungary Helena Doukaina Angelina Elizabeth of Hungary Ana Terter Simonida Teodora of Bulgaria Maria Palaiologina Helena of Bulgaria Proclamation of Empire Helena of Bulgaria Anna of Wallachia Fall of the Serbian Empire
Moravian Serbia, 1371–1402 Serbian Despotate, 1402–1537	Milica of Serbia Proclamation of Despotate Helena Gattilusio Irene Kantakouzene Helena Palaiologina Maria of Serbia Ottoman annexation, titular: Angelina Arianiti Barbara Frankopan Isabella del Balzo Jelena Jakšić Catherine Batthyány Theodora Ottoman annexation
Revolutionary Serbia, 1804–1837	Jelena Jovanović Ljubica Vukomanović
Principality of Serbia, 1837–1882	Ljubica Vukomanović Persida Nenadović Júlia Hunyady de Kéthely Natalija Obrenović Proclamation of Kingdom
Kingdom of Serbia, 1882–1918	Natalija Obrenović Draga Mašin Proclamation of Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes