Yugoslavia's last king, Petar II Karadjordjevic, laid to rest in Serbia
Monarch who fled Nazis and was blocked from returning reburied with state honours in Serbia
Yugoslavia's last king - Petar II Karadjordjevic, who fled the Nazi occupation of his country just days after being proclaimed monarch at the age of 17 - was reburied with state honours in Serbia yesterday.
Serbian dignitaries joined hundreds of royalists who turned out for the ceremony in the central town of Oplenac to honour the king, 43 years after his death in the United States.
"Our king was forced to leave, he was forced never to set his foot back to his homeland, but now, finally, he is here where he belongs," Milka Radojicic, a 78-year-old from nearby Topola, said with tears in her eyes.
Petar was laid to rest alongside his mother Marija, a great-granddaughter of Britain's Queen Victoria, as well as his wife Alexandra, the daughter of King Alexander I of Greece, and his brother Andrej. Their coffins, draped in Serbian state flags, were laid out in the Orthodox church of St George during the liturgy, performed by Serbian Patriarch Irinej, before being taken to the royal family crypt in Oplenac.
Top officials including President Tomislav Nikolic and Prime Minister Ivica Dacic attended the ceremony along with members of the royal family and foreign dignitaries including Jordan's King Abdullah and Britain's Prince Edward.
Hundreds of supporters gathered to pay tribute to the royals, some spending the night outside the picturesque church to be able to watch the ceremony.