The May Coup () was a
coup d'état
A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup
, is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...
in the
Kingdom of Serbia
The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynast ...
which resulted in the assassination of
King Alexander I and his
consort __NOTOC__
Consort may refer to:
Music
* "The Consort" (Rufus Wainwright song), from the 2000 album ''Poses''
* Consort of instruments, term for instrumental ensembles
* Consort song (musical), a characteristic English song form, late 16th–earl ...
,
Queen Draga, inside the
Stari Dvor
Stari Dvor (, lit. "Old Palace") is the city hall of Belgrade, Serbia, housing the office of the Mayor of Belgrade. It was the royal residence of Serbian royal family (the Obrenović and later Karađorđević) from 1884 to 1922. The palace is ...
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 ...
on the night of . This act resulted in the extinction of the
Obrenović dynasty that had ruled Serbia since the middle of the 19th century. A group of
Royal Serbian Army
The Army of the Kingdom of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Војска Краљевине Србије, Vojska Kraljevine Srbije), known in English language, English as the Royal Serbian Army, was the army of the Kingdom of Serbia that existed between 1882 ...
officer
An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...
s led by
Captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
Dragutin Dimitrijević (Apis) organized the assassination. After the May Coup, the throne passed to
King Peter I of the
Karađorđević dynasty.
Along with the royal couple, the conspirators killed
prime minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Dimitrije Cincar-Marković, minister of the army , and
general-adjutant Lazar Petrović
Lazar Petrović ( sr-cyr, Лазар Петровић; 10 March 1855 – 11 June 1903), also known as ("Handsome Lazar"), was a Serbian General officer, general, adjutant of Aleksandar Obrenović, King Aleksandar Obrenović and professor at Belg ...
. The coup had a significant influence on Serbia's relations with other European powers; the Obrenović dynasty had mostly allied with
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 ...
, while the Karađorđević dynasty had close ties both with
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
and with
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 ...
. Each dynasty received ongoing financial support from their powerful foreign sponsors.
[Sulzberger, p. 202.]
Background
When Serbia gained independence from
Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Turkish (, ; ) was the standardized register of the Turkish language in the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed extensively, in all aspects, from Arabic and Persian. It was written in the Ottoman Turkish alphabet. ...
control following the
Serbian Revolution
The Serbian Revolution ( / ') was a national uprising and constitutional change in Serbia that took place between 1804 and 1835, during which this territory evolved from an Sanjak of Smederevo, Ottoman province into a Revolutionary Serbia, reb ...
in 1804 to 1835, it emerged as an independent principality ruled by various factions surrounding the Obrenović and Karađordević dynasties. They, in turn, were sponsored by the rival Austro-Hungarian and Russian empires. The Obrenović family was mostly pro-Austrian, and their hereditary enemies, the Karađordević family, was mostly pro-Russian. Each dynasty was financially aided by their powerful foreign sponsors.

After the assassination of Prince
Mihailo Obrenović
Mihailo ( sr-cyr, Михаило) is a South Slavic masculine given name. It is a variant of the Hebrew name ''Michael'', and its cognates include Mihajlo and Mijailo. Common as a given name among Serbs, it is an uncommon surname.
Notable peopl ...
on 29 May 1868 (
Old Style
Old Style (O.S.) and New Style (N.S.) indicate dating systems before and after a calendar change, respectively. Usually, they refer to the change from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar as enacted in various European countries betwe ...
), his cousin,
Milan Obrenović, became the newly-elected Serbian prince. Milan was married to
Natalie Keshko, a
Moldavia
Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...
n
boyar
A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russia), Moldavia and Wallachia (and later Romania), Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. C ...
's daughter. He was an autocratic ruler and unpopular among the people. During his rule,
Serbia re-emerged as an independent country and gained territory at the 1878
Congress of Berlin
At the Congress of Berlin (13 June – 13 July 1878), the major European powers revised the territorial and political terms imposed by the Russian Empire on the Ottoman Empire by the Treaty of San Stefano (March 1878), which had ended the Rus ...
.
Since
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
gave its support to
Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
at the
Treaty of San Stefano
The 1878 Preliminary Treaty of San Stefano (; Peace of San-Stefano, ; Peace treaty of San-Stefano, or ) was a treaty between the Russian and Ottoman empires at the conclusion of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. It was signed at San Ste ...
, King Milan relied on
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 ...
as his ally. He proclaimed himself King in 1882. His military defeats in the
Serbo-Bulgarian War and the
Timok Rebellion, led by elements of the
People's Radical Party, were serious blows to his popularity.
The situation was compounded by quarrels between the King and the Queen. King Milan was not a faithful husband and Queen Natalija was greatly influenced by Russia. In 1886, the couple, mismatched both personally and politically, separated. Queen Natalija withdrew from the kingdom, taking with her the ten-year-old Prince Alexander (later King Alexander I). While she was residing in
Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...
in 1888, King Milan was successful in recovering the Crown Prince, whom he undertook to educate. As a reply to the queen's remonstrances, Milan exerted considerable pressure upon the
Metropolitan and obtained a divorce which was later declared illegal.
On 3 January 1889, Milan adopted the new constitution which was much more liberal than the existing 1869 Constitution. Two months later, on 6 March, Milan suddenly abdicated the throne in favor of his son. No satisfactory reason was given for that step. Upon the abdication, former King Milan put up a
regency
In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
to rule in the name of young King Alexander and retired to
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 ...
to live as an ordinary citizen. Members of the regency were
Jovan Ristić, General
Kosta Protić and General
Jovan Belimarković
Jovan Belimarković ( sr-cyr, Јован Белимарковић, 1827–1906), was a Serbian general and politician.
Belimarković was born on January 1, 1827, in Belgrade, Principality of Serbia. He finished military school in Berlin.
He wa ...
. The Radicals were forgiven and allowed to return to political life. The Radical
Sava Grujić
Sava Grujić ( sr-Cyrl, Сава Грујић, ; 25 November 1840 – 3 November 1913) was a Serbian politician, statesman, general, army officer, and author, serving five times as Prime Minister of Serbia#Kingdom of Serbia (1882–1918), Prime ...
formed a new government, which was succeeded by the Government of
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 ...
, the leader of the Radical Party. After King Milan's pro-Austrian policy, the Radical-led Government became closer to the Russian Empire. In the summer of 1891, Prince Alexander and Pašić visited Russian Tsar
Alexander III. The Tsar promised that Russia would not allow
Austro-Hungarian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Bosnian Crisis, also known as the Annexation Crisis (, ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Aneksiona kriza, Анексиона криза) or the First Balkan Crisis, erupted on 5 October 1908 when Austria-Hungary announced the annexation of Bosnia and Herzeg ...
and that Russia would support Serbian interests in "
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 ...
" and
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 ...
.
Alexander's mother, former queen Natalija, who was in the process of divorcing Milan and was banished from Belgrade, upon Alexander's request went to the French coastal resort
Biarritz
Biarritz ( , , , ; also spelled ; ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spain. It is a luxu ...
together with her lady-in-waiting and the future queen
Draga Mašin.
After the death of the Regent Protić on 4 June 1892, a conflict emerged between Pašić, who wanted the vacant position in the regency for himself, and the Regent Ristić, who disliked Pašić. In 1892, Ristić transferred the government to the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world.
The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
, the party he had always been linked with, and appointed
Jovan Avakumović
Jovan Avakumović (1 January 1841 – 3 August 1928) was a Serbian lawyer, criminologist, statesman, and Prime Minister of Serbia.
Biography
Born in Belgrade, a descendant of a respected Serbian merchant family of Baba-Dudići, Avakumović was a ...
as the new prime minister. This step and the subsequent conduct of the Liberal politicians caused serious discontent in the country. On the 1st (13th) of April 1893, Prince Alexander, by a successful stratagem, imprisoned the regents and the ministers in the palace and, declaring himself of age, called the Radicals to office. In quick succession, the new prime ministers were Radicals
Lazar Dokić,
Sava Grujić
Sava Grujić ( sr-Cyrl, Сава Грујић, ; 25 November 1840 – 3 November 1913) was a Serbian politician, statesman, general, army officer, and author, serving five times as Prime Minister of Serbia#Kingdom of Serbia (1882–1918), Prime ...
,
Đorđe Simić and
Svetozar Nikolajević. One of the guardsmen that helped Alexander imprison the regents and the ministers was colonel
Lazar "Laza" Petrović.
At the beginning of his reign, King Alexander was prescribing a program of Government in matters of the military, the economical and the financial life of the state. He disapproved an unprincipled party competition and in order to suppress the Radicals, on 9 January, he invited his father back to Serbia. The Radical Government immediately resigned and moved into opposition. The influence of former king Milan in state affairs could be seen immediately after his return to Serbia.
King Alexander tried to keep a policy of neutral governments but he did not have much success. Therefore, on 9 May 1894 he conducted another coup, abolished the Constitution from 1888, and put into force the old one from 1869. Milan's return to Serbia did not last long because he quickly got into a conflict with his son. A week after his departure, Queen Natalija was allowed to return to Serbia.
Natalija invited Alexander to come to Biarritz. When he visited his mother, he met Draga, 9 years his senior, and immediately fell in love with her. Natalija knew about the affair but did not pay much attention to it, believing that it would be short-lived.
In the meantime,
the progressivist Stojan Novaković formed a new government. On his father's command, King Alexander visited
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. ...
where, as a sign of Austro-Serbian friendship, he awarded the Austrian minister of finance
Béni Kállay
Béni Kállay de Nagy-Kálló or Benjamin von Kállay (; – ) was an Austro-Hungarian statesman and a Hungarian nobility, Hungarian nobleman.
Early life
Kállay was born in Pest (today part of Budapest). His family derived their name from t ...
, who was also the minister for Bosnia and Herzegovina. This was poorly received in Serbia because of the Austro-Hungarian tendency to
annex Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Marriage to Draga Mašin Lunjevica
King Alexander invited his father to return once more to Serbia. Upon the arrival of former King Milan in Serbia on 7 October
1897, a new Government was formed with
Vladan Đorđević as the new prime minister. Milan was appointed to the position of Supreme Commander of the Active Army of the Kingdom of Serbia. Together with the new Government, Milan tried to find a suitable princess from some Western court to become Alexander's bride, not knowing that Alexander was already meeting regularly with Draga.
Due to the growing involvement of former king Milan in daily Serbian political life, and especially due to his anti-Radical policy, an unemployed worker tried to assassinate Milan on 24 June 1899, resulting in Milan to begin reckoning with the Radicals in every way. However, Alexander now had to find a way to get rid of his father so that he could marry Draga. He decided to send King Milan and Prime Minister Đorđević outside the country. Under the pretext of negotiating his marriage to the German Princess Alexandra Caroline
zu Schaumburg-Lippe, sister of
Queen Charlotte of Württemberg, Alexander sent his father to
Karlsbad and Prime Minister Đorđević to
Marienbad to sign a contract with Austria-Hungary.
As soon as he removed the opponents, Alexander was able to announce his engagement to Draga Mašin.
King Alexander's popularity further declined after his marriage to Draga, the former lady-in-waiting of his mother Queen Natalija and widow of engineer Svetozar Mašin. Draga was nine years older than Alexander. At that time, it was very unusual for a king or heir to the throne to marry a woman who was not a member of the nobility. Alexander's father, the former King Milan, did not approve of the marriage and refused to return to Serbia. He died 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. ...
in 1901. Another opponent of the marriage was the dowager queen Natalija, who wrote a letter to Alexander containing all of the ugliest rumors regarding Draga circulating in Russia. Minister of foreign affairs
Andra Đorđević visited
Jakov Pavlović, archbishop of Belgrade and metropolitan of Serbia, and asked him to refuse to grant his blessing. Alexander also visited the metropolitan and threatened that he would abdicate if he could not receive his blessing. As a sign of protest, the entire Đorđević government resigned. Among the fiercest opponents to the marriage was
Đorđe Genčić
Đorđe Genčić (; 16 November 1861 – 19 October 1938) was a Serbian and Yugoslav industrialist and politician. He served as the List of mayors of Niš, Mayor of Niš (1894-1899), Ministry of Internal Affairs (Serbia), Minister of Internal Affai ...
, minister of the interior in Đorđević's government. Because of Genčić's public condemnation of the engagement, Alexander had him jailed for seven years. The situation was resolved by Russian tsar
Nicholas II
Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until his abdication on 15 March 1917. He married ...
, who agreed to be Alexander's honorary
best man
A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be selected. From his groomsmen, the groom usuall ...
.
The wedding took place on 23 July 1900. One of the officers in the procession was
Dragutin Dimitrijević Apis. With strained relations with the outside world because of his unpopular marriage, King Alexander's foreign policy turned to Russia. The king had previously released the Radicals from prison who had been accused of backing the on former King Milan.
After the death of his father Milan, King Alexander, as a sign of goodwill because of the queen's alleged pregnancy (a public secret existed that she was actually
sterile
Sterile or sterility may refer to:
*Asepsis, a state of being free from biological contaminants
* Sterile (archaeology), a sediment deposit which contains no evidence of human activity
*Sterilization (microbiology), any process that eliminates or ...
since an accident in her youth, which Alexander refused to believe), pardoned all political prisoners, including Đorđe Genčić and the remaining Radicals. On 20 March 1901, he assembled a new government led by the Radical
Mihailo Vujić. The government consisted of representatives from the People's Radical Party and the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world.
The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
. King Alexander then enacted a new
octroyed constitution, with its main feature the introduction of a
bicameral system consisting of the Senate (
upper house
An upper house is one of two Legislative chamber, chambers of a bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house. The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restricted p ...
) and the National Assembly (
lower house
A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...
). The new constitution gave the monarch the right to appoint the majority of the senators, who would defend his interests.
The false pregnancy of Queen Draga created a major problem for King Alexander. The first reaction came from the Russian tsar, who did not want to receive the king and queen upon their planned visit to Russia. Alexander blamed Radicals for it, instigated a new coup, and installed a government headed by general
Dimitrije Cincar-Marković on 6 November 1902.
Because of increasing repulsion by the Russian court, King Alexander again tried to approach Austria in the autumn of 1902. He had taken some earlier steps in January 1902 when he sent his personal secretary to Vienna with the promise that it would solve the question of his successor in agreement with the neighbouring monarchy by adopting one of the descendants of the female line of Obrenovićs living in Austria-Hungary.
Draga believed that Alexander should adopt her brother
Nikodije Lunjevica for the succession.
Dimitrije Tucović
Dimitrije "Mita" Tucović ( sr-Cyrl, Димитрије Туцовић, ; 13 May 1881 – November 1914) was a Serbian theorist of the socialist movement, politician, writer and publisher. He was founder of the Serbian Social Democratic Par ...
organized a rally of dissatisfied workers and students on 23 March 1903, which escalated to open conflict with the police and the army, resulting in the deaths of six people. Knowing that he would not be able to win new elections, the king staged two coups within one hour. With the first coup, Alexander abolished his octroyed constitution and disbanded the Senate and National Assembly. Then the king appointed new members to the Senate, the state council and the courts. In the second coup, the king restored the constitution that he had abolished just a few hours earlier.
Following this, the government
held elections on 18 May 1903 (31 May by the
Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...
), which the government won. This was the final political victory for King Alexander I.
Army officers' conspiracy
Junior officers had complained that the queen's false pregnancy diminished the international reputation of Serbia. They were also unhappy with the constant temper tantrums thrown by her brother Nikola Lunjevica, himself a junior military officer who once killed a policeman whilst drunk. Nikola, as the king's brother-in-law, had also demanded that senior officers report and salute to him.
In August 1901, cavalry lieutenant Antonije Antić (Genčić's nephew), captains Radomir Aranđelović and Milan Petrović and lieutenants
Dragutin Dimitrijević Apis and Dragutin Dulić organised a plot to assassinate the king and queen.
The first meeting was on 6 September 1901 in Lieutenant Antić's apartment. Later, lieutenant Milan Marinković and lieutenant Nikodije Popović joined the conspiracy. According to the original plan, Alexander and Draga were to be killed by knives dipped in
potassium cyanide
Potassium cyanide is a compound with the formula KCN. It is a colorless salt, similar in appearance to sugar, that is highly soluble in water. Most KCN is used in gold mining, organic synthesis, and electroplating. Smaller applications include ...
at a party at
Kolarac Endowment for the queen's birthday on 11 September, but the plan failed because the royal couple never arrived. After the details of the plot were disseminated among the military ranks, the conspirators decided to acquaint other politicians and citizens with their intentions. The plot was first introduced to
Đorđe Genčić
Đorđe Genčić (; 16 November 1861 – 19 October 1938) was a Serbian and Yugoslav industrialist and politician. He served as the List of mayors of Niš, Mayor of Niš (1894-1899), Ministry of Internal Affairs (Serbia), Minister of Internal Affai ...
, who discussed the idea with foreign representatives in Belgrade and also travelled abroad trying to learn how to create changes to the Serbian throne if the king died without children. Austria-Hungary did not intend to nominate any of its princes, as it expected difficulties and obstacles to be put forward by Russia. Russia, for the same reasons, fearing resistance from Vienna, was not willing to outsource one of its own princes. Among the conspirators was
Aleksandar Mašin, a retired staff colonel and brother of Draga's first husband.
Prince Mirko of Montenegro was one of the potential candidates for the Serbian throne. However, Peter Karađorđević, who lived as an ordinary citizen in
Geneva
Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
, became the preferred option. Therefore, Nikola Hadži Toma, a merchant from Belgrade, was introduced into the plot and sent to
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
to meet with Peter to acquaint him with the conspiracy. Peter did not want to commit himself to
regicide
Regicide is the purposeful killing of a monarch or sovereign of a polity and is often associated with the usurpation of power. A regicide can also be the person responsible for the killing. The word comes from the Latin roots of ''regis'' ...
. Influenced by his views, a group of older conspirators headed by general
Jovan Atanacković proposed that King Alexander be forced to abdicate the throne and then sent into exile. However captain Dragutin Dimitrijević argued that Alexander's survival might trigger a
civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
. It was therefore decided that the king and queen should be assassinated.
After another failed attempt to kill the royal couple on the 50th anniversary celebration of the Belgrade Choral Society, the group resolved to stage the killing in the palace. They also recruited officers of the
Royal Guard. Lieutenant colonel
Mihailo Naumović agreed to take part in the plot. He was a grandson of
Karađorđe
Đorđe Petrović (; ; – ), known by the sobriquet Karađorđe (; ), was a Serbian revolutionary leader who led a struggle against the Ottoman Empire during the First Serbian Uprising. He held the title of Grand Vožd of Serbia from 14 ...
's bodyguard
Naum Krnar
Naum Krnar ( sr-cyr, Наум Крнар; d. 13 July 1817) was the secretary of Karađorđe, the leader of the First Serbian Uprising.
Biography
Krnar was an ethnic Greek, hailing from Thessaly. He spoke several languages and worked as a merchan ...
, who had been killed with Karađorđe in
Radovanje Grove in 1817 by order of
Miloš Obrenović
Miloš Obrenović (; ; 18 March 1780 or 1783 – 26 September 1860) born Miloš Teodorović (; ), also known as Miloš the Great () was the Prince of Serbia twice, from 1815 to 1839, and from 1858 to 1860. He was an eminent figure of the Firs ...
.
Rumors about the plot reached the public, but at first the king dismissed them as false propaganda. Eventually, a few officers were brought before the military court but were acquitted for lack of evidence. Fearing that they could be discovered, conspirators decided to act on the first occasion when Naumović would be in command at the palace, the night of 28–29 May (Old Style).
The assassination

The conspirators from the interior arrived to Belgrade the day before, under various pretexts. Together with their Belgrade comrades, they were divided into five groups and spent the early evening drinking in various hotels in the town, before gathering in the
Officers Club. That night King Alexander had dinner with his ministers and the queen's family. Naumović gave a sign to the conspirators that the royal couple was asleep by sending one of his subordinates to bring his
tippet
A tippet is a piece of clothing worn over the shoulders in the shape of a scarf or cape. Tippets evolved in the 1300–1400 in fashion, fourteenth century from long sleeves and typically had one end hanging down to the knees. A tippet (or tapp ...
from his home. After midnight, Captain Apis led most of the officers in the conspiracy to the royal palace. At the same time, Colonel Mašin went to the 12th Infantry barracks to take command of the troops there. Lieutenant Colonel Mišić prepared to bring his 11th Infantry regiment to the palace.
Several groups of the conspirators surrounded the houses of prime minister
Dimitrije Cincar-Marković and senior officers loyal to King Alexander. Guard lieutenant
Petar Živković
Petar Živković ( sr-cyr, Петар Живковић; 1 January 1879 – 3 February 1947) was a Serbian military officer and political figure in Yugoslavia. He was Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia from 7 January 1929 until 4 Ap ...
, on duty that night, unlocked the gate of the royal palace at 2:00 a.m. As the conspirators, led by
Petar Mišić entered the building, the electric lighting was switched off throughout the palace. While several officers of the Royal Guard were involved in the plot, the majority of the guards on duty were not. However, in the darkness and confusion, they did not attempt an effective defense. A search for the royal couple was unsuccessful for nearly two hours. During this time, captain Jovan Miljković, an aide familiar with the conspiracy but who refused to participate, and Mihailo Naumović (unknown to the conspirators) were killed. The doors to the king's bedroom were shattered with dynamite, but no one was in the bed. Unknown to the others, Apis spotted someone escaping down the stairs into the courtyard. He thought it was the king and ran after him, but it was one of the king's loyal guardsmen. In the gunfight that erupted, Apis was wounded with three bullets to his chest, surviving only because of his strong constitution.
Nervous because of the failure of the search, the approaching dawn and the disappearance of Apis, who was lying wounded in the basement of the palace, the conspirators believed that the plot had failed. They had soldiers bring the king's first
aide-de-camp, general
Lazar Petrović
Lazar Petrović ( sr-cyr, Лазар Петровић; 10 March 1855 – 11 June 1903), also known as ("Handsome Lazar"), was a Serbian General officer, general, adjutant of Aleksandar Obrenović, King Aleksandar Obrenović and professor at Belg ...
, who had been captured as soon as the conspirators entered the courtyard. He was ordered to reveal whether there was a secret room or passageway, under the threat of death if he failed to comply within ten minutes. Petrović waited in silence for the expiration of the deadline.
The subsequent course of events is not precisely known. According to one version, the officers again entered the royal bed chamber where cavalry lieutenant Velimir Vemić observed a recess in the wall that appeared to be the keyhole of a secret door. The king and queen were hidden there. According to another version, which was partially accepted for the script of the television series ''
The End of Obrenović Dynasty
''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...
'', the king and queen were hiding behind the mirror in the bedroom where there was a small room used for the queen's wardrobe. Cupboards covered a hole in the floor that was the entrance to a secret passage (which allegedly led to the Russian embassy located opposite the palace).
As the conspirators called for him to emerge, Alexander demanded from his hiding place that the officers confirm their oath of loyalty. According to one version of events, they did so. According to another, they threatened to bomb the palace if Alexander did not open the passage. After Alexander and Draga, who were only partially dressed, emerged, artillery captain
Mihailo Ristić fired at them using all the bullets in his revolver, followed by Vemić and captain Ilija Radivojević. The king fell dead from the first shot. The queen tried to save his life by protecting his body with her own. General Petrović was killed immediately afterward.
It is known with certainty that the king and queen were eventually discovered hiding inside a wardrobe and were then both savagely killed. Their bodies were mutilated and tossed from a second-floor window onto piles of manure.
Diplomatic correspondent, historian and author
C.L. Sulzberger relates an account relayed to him by a friend who had participated in the assassination under Captain Apis: the assassination squad "burst into the little palace, found the king and queen cowering in a closet (both in silken nightgowns), stabbed them and chucked them out the window onto garden manure heaps, hacking off Alexander's fingers when he clung desperately to the sill".
This account would indicate that King Alexander was killed after he had been thrown from the palace window. The assassination of King Alexander coincided with the 35th anniversary of the assassination of his predecessor Prince Mihajlo. The remains of the royal couple were buried in
St. Mark's Church.

That same night, the queen's brothers Nikola and Nikodije Ljunjevica were arrested and executed by a firing squad commanded by lieutenant
Vojislav Tankosić
Vojislav Tankosić ( sr-cyr, Војислав Танкосић, 20 September 1880 – 2 November 1915) was a Serbian military officer, ''vojvoda'' of the Serbian Chetnik Organization, major of the Serbian Army, and member of the Black Hand (Serbi ...
. Prime minister general
Dimitrije Cincar-Marković and minister of the army general were killed in their homes. The third member of Cincar-Marković's government, interior minister Velimir Todorović, who was also marked to be killed, was instead severely wounded and lived until 1920.
Aftermath
Members of the new interim government soon gathered under the presidency of
Jovan Avakumović
Jovan Avakumović (1 January 1841 – 3 August 1928) was a Serbian lawyer, criminologist, statesman, and Prime Minister of Serbia.
Biography
Born in Belgrade, a descendant of a respected Serbian merchant family of Baba-Dudići, Avakumović was a ...
. Aleksandar Mašin was appointed minister of civil engineering, Jovan Atanacković was appointed minister of the army, while Đorđe Genčić became minister of the economy. Besides conspirators, members of the new government were: Radical
Stojan Protić
Stojan Protić ( sr-cyrl, Стојан Протић; 28 January 1857 – 28 October 1923) was a Serbian politician and writer. He served as the prime minister of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes between 1918 and 1919, and again in 1920 ...
, Liberal Vojislav Veljković, leaders of the
Serbian Independent Radical Party Ljubomir Stojanović
Ljubomir Stojanović ( sr-cyr, Љубомир Стојановић, sometimes mentioned as ''Ljuba Stojanovic'') (6 August 1860, Užice – 16 June 1930) was a Serbian politician, philologist and academic.
Biography
Stojanović was a philologist ...
and
Ljubomir Živković and progressivist
Ljubomir Kaljević. Nikola Pašić, Stojan Ribarac and
Jovan Žujović were also considered members of the new government but were absent from Belgrade at the time of the overthrow.
The National Assembly conducted a session on 4 June 1903, voted
Peter Karađorđević as king of Serbia and elected the mission that went to Geneva to retrieve him. He ascended the Serbian throne as Peter I.
The news of the coup was received with mixed feelings by the Serbs. Many who had blamed the king for the situation in the country were satisfied, while those who had supported him were disappointed. In parliamentary elections a few days before the coup, the king's candidate had received a full majority. Angry elements within the army mutinied in
Niš
Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names of European cities in different languages (M–P)#N, names in other languages), less often spelled in English as Nish, is the list of cities in Serbia, third largest city in Serbia and the administrative cente ...
in 1904, taking control of the
Nišava District
The Nišava District (, ) is one of administrative districts of Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, i ...
in support of the fallen king, demanding that the assassins be tried for their crimes. Their aim was also to show that the army as a whole was not responsible for the May Coup. Seen as a supporter of the Obrenović dynasty by the conspirators, (having been one of King Alexander's adjutants and also close to his father King Milan), the future
Vojvoda Živojin Mišić
Živojin Mišić ( sr-cyrl, Живојин Мишић; 19 July 1855 – 20 January 1921) was a field marshal who participated in all of Serbia's wars from 1876 to 1918. He directly commanded the First Serbian army in the Battle of Kolubara an ...
was forced into retirement in 1904.
International outrage and boycott
International outrage over the coup came swiftly. Russia and Austria-Hungary vehemently condemned the brutal assassination.
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
and the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
withdrew their ambassadors from Serbia, thus freezing diplomatic relations, and imposed sanctions, which were not abolished until 1905. British prime minister
Arthur Balfour
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour (; 25 July 184819 March 1930) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As Foreign Secretary ...
publicly condemned the assassinations, saying that British ambassador
Sir George Bonham was only accredited in front of King Alexander, and thus with the king's death, relations between Britain and Serbia were terminated. Bonham left Serbia on 21 June. The British government demanded that Belgrade punish the regicides as a sign of diplomacy. However, the conspirators were so powerful that it was unrealistic for the Serbian government to act on British demands.
[David McKenzie, “European powers: the diplomatic boycott against Serbia, 1903–1906” in David McKenzie, ''Serbs and Russians'' (East European Monographs, 1996) pp. 324–341]
online
/ref>
Austrian ambassador Konstantin Dumba persuaded Austrian foreign minister Agenor Gołuchowski to coordinate with Russian foreign minister Vladimir Lamsdorf to diplomatically boycott Serbia until officers involved in the coup were removed from influential positions in the government and the army. The boycott had an almost complete success. By January 1904, only the ambassadors of the Kingdom of Greece
The Kingdom of Greece (, Romanization, romanized: ''Vasíleion tis Elládos'', pronounced ) was the Greece, Greek Nation state, nation-state established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally ...
and the Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
remained within Serbia.
As a result, the new King Peter decided to remove from court the aides-de-camp who had taken part in the coup, while at the same time promoting them to higher positions. Aleksandar Mašin became acting chief of staff, while Colonel Čedomilj Popović became commander of the Danube division. This satisfied Russia, which returned its ambassador and was followed by other states, leaving only Britain and the Netherlands in boycotting the new Serbian government.
During this time, Serbian statesmen became increasingly nervous because of Britain's refusal to reestablish diplomatic relations, especially after the Ilinden Uprising and because of the deteriorating situation in 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 ...
. The government of Ljubomir Stojanović was ready to fulfill British demands, but it was Nikola Pašić's government that finally did so. The conspirators were brought to trial, which forced some into early retirement. Other junior conspirators were never punished for their complicity in the assassination. Dimitrijević was later promoted to the rank of colonel and served as an officer in the intelligence sector of the Serbian army. British-Serbian diplomatic relations were renewed by decree signed by King Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910.
The second child ...
three years after the May Coup.
After the coup, life in Serbia continued as before, with King Peter exerting a minimal interference in politics, not wishing to oppose the Black Hand, which had become increasingly powerful. The deterioration in external relations between Serbia and Austria-Hungary led to the Pig War (also known as the Customs War) of 1906–08 from which Serbia emerged as the victor. With most senior conspirators forced into retirement, Dimitrijević became the de facto leader of the conspirators. In 1914, the Black Hand ordered the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was one of the key events that led to World War I. Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg ...
in Sarajevo, executed by members of Young Bosnia
Young Bosnia ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Млада Босна, Mlada Bosna) refers to a loosely organised grouping of separatist and revolutionary cells active in the early 20th century, that sought to end the Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovin ...
, which was used by Austria-Hungary as a basis for launching World War I
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 ...
.
Dimitrijević and the Black Hand were later involved in another scandal. Nikola Pašić wished to expel the most prominent members of the Black Hand movement, by then officially disbanded. Dimitrijević and several of his military colleagues were arrested and tried on false charges of the attempted assassination of regent Alexander I Karađorđević
Alexander I Karađorđević (, ; – 9 October 1934), also known as Alexander the Unifier ( / ), was King of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from 16 August 1921 to 3 October 1929 and King of Yugoslavia from 3 October 1929 until Alexander I of Y ...
. On 23 May 1917, following the Salonika Trial, Colonel Dimitrijević, Major Ljubomir Vulović and Rade Malobabić were found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. A month later, on 11, 24 or 27 June, they were executed by firing squad. After World War II, Apis and his associates were rehabilitated in a mock trial staged for propaganda purposes by the communist government
A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state in which the totality of the power belongs to a party adhering to some form of Marxism–Leninism, a branch of the communist ideology. Marxism–Leninism was ...
. However, most historians agree that the men were guilty of the attempted assassination of the prince.
Reactions
*: According to Bolati, the Montenegrin court of Nicholas I did not grieve for late King Alexander, as they saw him as an enemy of Montenegro and obstacle to the unification of Serbdom. "Although it wasn't said openly, it was thought that the Petrović-Njegoš dynasty
The House of Petrović-Njegoš (Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Serbian Cyrillic: , / ) is an old Serbian medieval nobility, Serbian noble family that ruled Montenegro from 1697 to 1918.
History
Origin
"Bogut" or "Boguta" is believed to be the olde ...
would achieve he unification All procedures of Nicholas I shows that he himself believed that".
Legacy
* The coup is the main theme of the 1995 Serbian TV series, '' The End of the Obrenović Dynasty''.
* The coup is the main theme of Dobrilo Nenadić's 2006 Serbian historical novel '' Ermine''.
See also
* Serbian Revolution
The Serbian Revolution ( / ') was a national uprising and constitutional change in Serbia that took place between 1804 and 1835, during which this territory evolved from an Sanjak of Smederevo, Ottoman province into a Revolutionary Serbia, reb ...
* Alexander I of Serbia
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.
Acces ...
* Black Hand
* White Hand
* Young Bosnia
Young Bosnia ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Млада Босна, Mlada Bosna) refers to a loosely organised grouping of separatist and revolutionary cells active in the early 20th century, that sought to end the Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovin ...
* Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was one of the key events that led to World War I. Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg ...
* Salonika Trial
References
Sources
* , The original source for the text of this article
* C. L. Sulzberger ''The Fall of Eagles'', Crown Publishers, Inc., New York, 1977
* Christopher Clark ''The Sleepwalkers'', Harper Perennial, New York, 2013
{{commons category, May Overthrow
Conflicts in 1903
1903 murders in Europe
1903 in Serbia
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
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, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
1903
Events January
* January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India.
* January 10 – The Aceh Sultanate was fully annexed by the Dutch forces, deposing the last sultan, marking the end of the Aceh War that have lasted for al ...
Political history of Serbia
Politics of the Kingdom of Serbia
Assassinations in Serbia
1900s in Belgrade
Austria-Hungary–Serbia relations
May 1903 in Europe
Mass murder in 1903
Military history of Belgrade