Queen of Italy. Daughter of King Nikola Petrovic of Montenegro, wife of king Victor Emmanuel III. She spent her earliest youth at the Russian tsar court. She was 23 when, on one official occasion, at the wedding of tsar Nikola II, she met Victor Emanuel of Savoy, the prince of Naples, who was four years older. Her luxuriant beauty could not pass unperceived by the Italian dignitaries who were looking for a tall woman to balance the prince’s not very impressive height; on the other hand, for her family it was a unique chance to become close to the ruling house of one of the main states in Europe. The betrothal was scheduled soon, and after Helen had converted to the Catholicism, the wedding took place on 24th October 1896. The luxury of the Italian court did not change a modest disposition of Helen, who always led quiet and exemplary life, who did not like celebrations and secular matters, but devoted herself to a humanitarian work, during and after the births of her five children: Jolanda, Mafalda, Giovanna, Maria and Umberto. She devoted her whole life to charitable work. Helen specially showed that after the earthquake in Mesina in 1908. She found herself at the spot among the debris and the wounded. The Sicilian city built her a monument even during her life. With the same devotion she helped the endangered during the Big war, working as a nurse in hospitals. With the fall of Fascism, the Savoy dynasty fell as well, Helen followed her husband to the exile in Alexandria; after Victor’s death, in 1947, she returned to France, to live a lonely life in Montpellier, where she died.
Queen of Italy. Daughter of King Nikola Petrovic of Montenegro, wife of king Victor Emmanuel III. She spent her earliest youth at the Russian tsar court. She was 23 when, on one official occasion, at the wedding of tsar Nikola II, she met Victor Emanuel of Savoy, the prince of Naples, who was four years older. Her luxuriant beauty could not pass unperceived by the Italian dignitaries who were looking for a tall woman to balance the prince’s not very impressive height; on the other hand, for her family it was a unique chance to become close to the ruling house of one of the main states in Europe. The betrothal was scheduled soon, and after Helen had converted to the Catholicism, the wedding took place on 24th October 1896. The luxury of the Italian court did not change a modest disposition of Helen, who always led quiet and exemplary life, who did not like celebrations and secular matters, but devoted herself to a humanitarian work, during and after the births of her five children: Jolanda, Mafalda, Giovanna, Maria and Umberto. She devoted her whole life to charitable work. Helen specially showed that after the earthquake in Mesina in 1908. She found herself at the spot among the debris and the wounded. The Sicilian city built her a monument even during her life. With the same devotion she helped the endangered during the Big war, working as a nurse in hospitals. With the fall of Fascism, the Savoy dynasty fell as well, Helen followed her husband to the exile in Alexandria; after Victor’s death, in 1947, she returned to France, to live a lonely life in Montpellier, where she died.
Bio by: Jelena
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See more Savoy-Carignan or Petrovic of Montenegro memorials in:
- Cimetière de Saint-Lazare Savoy-Carignan or Petrovic of Montenegro
- Montpellier Savoy-Carignan or Petrovic of Montenegro
- Departement de l'Hérault Savoy-Carignan or Petrovic of Montenegro
- Languedoc-Roussillon Savoy-Carignan or Petrovic of Montenegro
- France Savoy-Carignan or Petrovic of Montenegro
- Find a Grave Savoy-Carignan or Petrovic of Montenegro
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