209th Anniversary of Karađorđe's Death Marked at Oplenac

A state ceremony was held at Oplenac to commemorate the 209th anniversary of the death of Đorđe Petrović, known as Karađorđe, the leader of the First Serbian Uprising and founder of the Karađorđević dynasty. The event took place at the mausoleum of the Royal Family, where clergy from the Oplenac deanery conducted a memorial service.

Following the service, wreaths were laid on Karađorđe's grave. Members of the Serbian Army stood guard, paying respects to the historical figure. Crown Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević spoke at the occasion, hailing Karađorđe as a "great historical figure of our people" and a national hero who "created and built our fatherland, our statehood." He added that Karađorđe's example continues to guide and inspire new generations, referring to him as the "Father of Serbia."

In addition to the royal family, state officials present included Nikola Vukelić, State Secretary in the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs, representatives from the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Army, Dragan Reljić, director of the King Peter I Foundation at Oplenac, and representatives from the Municipality of Topola. The public also gathered to pay their respects.

Karađorđe's life and death were also recalled during the ceremony. After the failure of the First Serbian Uprising, he fled to Austria and then to Bessarabia. His attempt to persuade the Russian Tsar to enter a war against Turkey was unsuccessful. Subsequently, Karađorđe contacted the Greek organization "Hetairia," which aimed for a joint uprising of Greeks, Serbs, and Bulgarians. He secretly returned to Serbia with the intention of initiating this joint struggle but was assassinated on the night of July 24-25, 1817, in Radovanjski Lug near Smederevo, on the orders of the Turkish vizier and Prince Miloš Obrenović. His remains are interred in the mausoleum of St. George's Church on Oplenac, a foundation of King Peter I.

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Karađorđe is a great historical figure of our people, one of those national heroes who created and built our fatherland, our statehood, one whose example still leads and inspires new generations, an outstanding statesman and military leader, the 'Father of Serbia,' as another great figure of our people, the great Vladika Petar Petrović Njegoš, called him.