Order of the Star of Karađorđe

Order of Karađorđe's Star
The Grand Cross Medal of the Order
Awarded by Head of the Yugoslav Royal Family  Republic of Serbia
Type	Dynastic Order State Order
Status	Currently constituted
Grades	Grand Cross, Grand Officer, Commander, Officer, Knight/Dame-Medal
Statistics
Established	1 January 1904
Precedence
Next (higher)	Order of Saint Prince Lazarus (Yugoslav Royal Family) Order of the Republic of Serbia (Serbia)
Next (lower)	Royal Order of the White Eagle (Yugoslav Royal Family) Order of the White Eagle (Serbia)
Civil ribbon of the order Military ribbon of the order

The Order of Karađorđe's Star (Serbian: Orden Karađorđeve zvezde, Cyrillic: Орден Карађорђеве звезде) is Serbia's highest civilian and military decoration. It originated in the Kingdom of Serbia, and was initially awarded exclusively to Serbian citizens in return for services rendered to the Serbian monarchy, the Serb people and the Serbian state, though it is now bestowed upon Serbs and non-Serbs alike. During the Balkan Wars and World War I, the Order was mostly awarded for acts of bravery on the battlefield. The post-war Kingdom of Yugoslavia retained the Order, and it was awarded by the Yugoslav government-in-exile until the end of World War II, in some cases to individuals who collaborated with the Axis powers. Following the war, the monarchy was outlawed and a communist government came to power. Along with other monarchist symbols, the Order was suppressed during the administration of Josip Broz Tito, and replaced with communist decorations such as the Order of the People's Hero.

Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, Serbia ceased using many of the awards and decorations established during the communist period, though it was not until 2010 that the Serbian Government officially reinstated the Order of Karađorđe's Star as Serbia's highest decoration. During the Cold War, it had been awarded by the Karađorđević family in exile. The first person to receive it following its reinstatement as a state order was the tennis player Novak Djokovic, in February 2012.

The Order of Karađorđe's Star was instituted by the royal decree of King Peter I on 1 January 1904, commemorating his recent accession to the Serbian throne, as well as the one-hundredth anniversary of the First Serbian Uprising. It was meant to replace the Order of the Cross of Takovo and the Order of Miloš the Great, two decorations that had been awarded by the rival Obrenović dynasty, which ruled Serbia prior to the May 1903 coup d'état that reinstated Peter's Karađorđević dynasty after several decades in exile. The first award was disagreeable to the Karađorđevićes and their supporters because it was named after Takovo, the village where Obrenović dynasty founder Miloš Obrenović had launched the Second Serbian Uprising. The Order of Miloš the Great had to be replaced as it was named after Obrenović himself.