ON BABY, RELATIONSHIP WITH FATHER-IN-LAW AND PRINCESS KATHERINE, WHO SHOULD LIVE AT COURT! Danica Karađorđević Kurir exclusive!

“I’m grateful for everything life has given me, for my family, and my health. I believe that together we can make a more beautiful and healthier future. But also that it’s important that we remain authentic as people, true to ourselves, our principles, and values, and to join hands in helping the society recover. Only together, united, can we meet all the challenges. When Marija was born, my wish came true, which was to have a girl in addition to Stefan, so I start 2024 with the most beautiful of emotions. I wish a happy New Year and Christmas holidays to all the people, and may they enjoy them in merriment, serenity, and good health,” says in her interview with Kurir Princess Danica Karađorđević, wife to Crown Prince Phillip, the first since she gave birth on 5 November to Princess Marija, their second child.

What is Princess Marija like as a baby, and how has she been accepted by her brother, Prince Stefan?

“Marija is still very small, but she is a good baby, amiable and curious. Stefan is, above all, a noble boy, very empathic, and with lots of love and positive energy. He has accepted the arrival of the baby with great happiness, he is tender and careful, and can hardly wait for the time when they play together.”

1 / 10 Foto: Zorana Jevtić

Are you happy in your role as a mother?

“The family, as well as being a mother to Stefan and Marija, is a great blessing for me, and I feel a great deal of responsibility towards them. Motherhood has encouraged me to remain true to myself and uphold the values in which I believe – to work on preserving our heritage and tradition through my work and projects. And this is what I wish to all mothers – to be their own selves in everything, brave and ready to tackle new challenges. These are the values that were ingrained in me by my parents, and for that I am eternally grateful to them.”

Do you follow the advice of any education experts? What do you want for your children?

“First and foremost, we find it important to provide emotional safety and support for our children, so that we could build a basis for forming a stable personality. That’s the main principle in Stefan’s upbringing and it will be during Marija’s as well, in line with the values that are important for the continuation of the Karađorđević Dynasty. We live in the spirit of tradition and Orthodox Christianity, and we’d like our children to grow up in line with these values. But, on the other hand, we’d like to give them the opportunity to be authentic and true to themselves in everything. We are happy to spend time with them and put in an effort to create closeness and maintain love, which is the most important thing and the basis of relationships. To talk about our day during dinner or while playing together. Bringing up children is also a responsibility towards society – what sort of people they will become – because they will be living, working, and building relations with other people in that society.”

‘THIS YEAR WE’RE NOT GOING TO SEVILLE’

How will you celebrate your first New Year’s and Christmas as a family of four?

“This time of year we usually spend in Seville at Phillip’s mother’s and his brother Peter and his sisters’, enjoying a nice family time. However, this year, since Marija is still a baby, we’ll be spending the New Year’s at our home in Belgrade, where we’ll celebrate Christmas as well, with our family.”

What does Stefan know about his title and origin, and how does he deal with that as a child? Does he know who Grand Leader Karađorđe is?

“When we’re at places that are important for the Karađorđević Dynasty, such as Oplenac, Stefan is aware of his origin as much as a boy who’s almost six can be. He recognizes his ancestors in images, on monuments, and in books, and especially the face of the Grand Leader, whose monument is in our vicinity. But his origin and belonging to a historically important dynasty isn’t the central topic of our conversations. It’s important for us that Stefan is growing up with his peers, playing, living a healthy life. To this we add the activities through which we focus his great energy such that he grows up to be a moral, hard-working, diligent, and educated man. However, it’s a fact that the heritage he brings will be of crucial importance in his life. The tradition and the values of the royal houses that his ancestors come from and, by virtue thereof, he as well, are important for his development, so we will endeavour to impart to him our knowledge about the family heritage because the Karađorđević Dynasty is an integral part of the cultural heritage of our country.”

Would you school your children in Serbia or abroad?

“We see the future of our children as them having an opportunity to live and work in their country and feel no need to leave it. To like what they do, their country, their origin, and their identity. This is why we try to contribute to our society in terms of becoming moral and healthy for all our children until we reach the point of further education, which they will decide on.”

BORN IN LUXURY, BUT AN EMBODIMENT OF MODESTY

For almost 140 years the direct line of succession has been waiting for a princess. What would you like her to inherit from Queen Maria, who you named her after?

“Queen Maria was born as a Romanian princess, and by marrying the chivalrous King Alexander I she won the hearts of the Serbian people and became a source of spiritual revitalization as well. The most beloved and most dignified Serbian queen, she was also the greatest benefactor in our history. The daughter of the Romanian king and queen, the granddaughter of the Russian Emperor Alexander III and the great-granddaughter of the British Queen Victoria, she was born in luxury, but she was an embodiment of modesty, love, goodness, humanity, bravery, and sacrifice. And these are some of the noble traits that I hold in high esteem and which I’d like for Marija and Stefan to have. This is why we decided for the baby to have the name of Queen Maria, also Phillip’s mother’s, Maria da Glória’s name.”

Prince Phillip and yourself are specific in terms of leading a life like many ordinary people in Serbia.

“We lead a civilian life in the centre of Belgrade, not far away from the Kalenić Market. We’re always glad to say hello to people who we meet daily in our neighbourhood. Given the amount of recognizability because of the title and the family and historical heritage that we represent, we try to live and work responsibly. Phillip works in finance, and I work on projects within the Foundation of Crown Prince Phillip and Princess Danica of Serbia, which we have founded. Moreover, my artistic work is ubiquitous in my life. But people greet us cordially everywhere and give us their support, and that motivates us to work and maintain the continuity and heritage of the Karađorđević Dynasty. We like going with Stefan, building memories and gaining experiences that will be important to him as he is growing up. It’s amazing that he visited The Visoki Dečani Monastery, Gračanica, Prizren – the places that are essential to the Serbian identity – as early as when he was four.”

But the strained relations in the Karađorđević family, between you on the one hand, and Crown Prince Alexander and Princess Katherine on the other, leave people with a bad impression. Do you feel responsible for this?

“For Phillip and me family is the most important thing, but so is the continuity of the Karađorđević Dynasty, which we work on diligently. However, the family model is something that we don’t choose. I come from a harmonious family in which I was witness all my life to my parents’ great love and sacrifice. Phillip grew up in different, specific circumstances, but over the years he and his brothers learnt that this wasn’t a hindrance in setting his life goals.”

When did you visit the court last?

“It was the summer after Stefan’s baptism, in 2019. But Phillip’s father and my father-in-law, Crown Prince Alexander, visited us to meet his granddaughter Marija in our home in Vračar, where he had visited Stefan on a couple of occasions before our baby was born. He is always welcome in our home.”

But not Princess Katherine, with whom, as Prince Phillip has said, you both are not on speaking terms?

“Our home is always open to family and friends. In addition to Stefan, we also have baby Marija, which is yet another reason for guests to come over. It’s important that, in addition to my parents, Stefan spends as much as time as possible with his grandfather, Crown Prince Alexander, who lives in Belgrade, as well as his grandmother, Princess Maria da Glória, Phillip’s mother, who lives far away, in Seville.”

AN ARTIST TAKING AFTER HIS GRANDDAD CILE

Does Stefan show his artistic or his warrior’s streak, because he has both in his genes?

“Stefan is very creative and artistically oriented, which makes me happy. He has an ear for music, and likes to draw and paint, especially in Cile’s atelier, where he spends a lot of time. It is precisely his persistence and the artistic streak, which he has inherited from my father, that help him focus his energy on noble and good work, similar to how I was taught in my childhood about the importance of work habits. But I also learned about organizational skills from my mother Beba, who infused love, stability, and a pragmatic spirit into a great creative energy. And that is now imparted to Stefan, which is a great source of his stability and support.”

Prince Phillip said that you would like to live in the Thatched House, but that you were not allowed to because Princess Katherine’s daughter is there. After the general public learnt that you are in touch with Crown Prince Alexander, is there any hope for that?

“The Thatched House, which is part of the Royal Compound, was the art studio of Queen Maria and a space where, as a great patron of the arts, she allowed young artists to create. That house also served as the studying room for all three King’s sons, especially Phillip’s grandfather, King Peter II. This is why it’s very important that this space is part of the tradition of the Karađorđević Dynasty, in the context in which it was used during Queen Maria’s time there.”

What is it that you can specifically give to Serbia and its people?

“Since our wedding, Phillip and I have been trying to put the title that was bestowed on us to good use for the individuals, organizations, and the people whose voice needs to be heard. It is our duty to make use of our voice and credibility for important topics and solutions, contributing thus to the society. The values that we advocate, such as preserving tradition and the Serbian cultural heritage are very significant for our collective identity in which the Karađorđević Dynasty has a special place. We make use of the traditional values in advocating modern ideas, and serve as examples in providing support to the young people in Serbia, which makes for a great responsibility on our part. Moreover, as members of the royal families across Europe, we belong to a large royal international family, which is a great capital that can only benefit each of the countries that has its representatives among them.”

Jelena S. Spasić

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