Peter
Peter, name of two kings of Yugoslavia.
Peter I (1846–1921)was king of Serbia, 1903–18, and king of the newly created Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (later named Yugoslavia), 1918–21. As a child Peter went into exile with his father, Alexander, of the Karageorgevich dynasty, who was deposed in 1858 by the rival house of Obrenovich. Peter was a French army officer in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71) and took part in a Bosnian revolt against the Turks, 1875–76.In 1903 the king and queen of Serbia were assassinated. Peter, after 44 years of exile, was proclaimed king by the army and elected unanimously by the parliament. He was a constitutional ruler, helped reform Serbia's army and school system, and in foreign policy allied the nation with Russia against Austria-Hungary. During the Balkan Wars (1912–13) and World War I Peter was incapacitated by ill health. He was succeeded by his son, Alexander I.
Peter II (1923–1970)was king of Yugoslavia, 1934–45. He succeeded his assassinated father, Alexander I, at the age of 11, with Prince Paul serving as regent. Paul's regency was overthrown by army officers in 1941, for signing an alliance with the Axis, and Peter assumed royal powers. A short time later, German troops overran the country and Peter fled to London, where he formed a government in exile. He backed the resistance forces of General Mihailovich over those of Mihailovich's Communist rival, Marshal Tito. By the end of World War II, however, Tito was in control of Yugoslavia. In late 1945, while Peter was still in London, Tito's government deposed him by declaring Yugoslavia a republic. Peter spent most of his remaining years in the United States and was buried there.