Princess Helen of Serbia
| Princess Helen | |
|---|---|
| Princess Elena Petrovna of Russia | |
 |
|
| Born | Jelena Karađorđević 4 November 1884 Cetinje, Montenegro |
| Died | 16 October 1962 (aged 77) Nice, France |
| Spouse | Prince John Constantinovich of Russia |
| Issue |
Prince Vsevolod Ivanovich Princess Catherine Ivanovna |
| House | Karađorđević |
| Father | Peter I of Yugoslavia |
| Mother | Princess Zorka of Montenegro |
Jelena Karađorđević or Princess Helen of Serbia (4 November 1884 – 16 October 1962) was the daughter of King Peter I of Yugoslavia and his wife Princess Zorka of Montenegro. She was the elder sister of George, Crown Prince of Serbia and King Alexander I of Yugoslavia. Helen was also a niece of Anastasia of Montenegro (or "Stana"), wife of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia, and of Milica of Montenegro, wife of Grand Duke Peter Nicolaievich of Russia, the women who introduced Grigori Rasputin to Tsarina Alexandra. She was born Princess Jelena Karađorđević, became Princess Jelena of Serbia at the accession of her father and was known as Elena Petrovna, Jelena Petrovna, Hélène Petrovna or Ellen Petrovna after her marriage.
The strong-minded, purposeful Helen, whose mother died when she was a small child, was born in Cetinje, Montenegro, and was brought up largely under the care of her aunts Stana and Milica. She was educated in Russia at the Smolny Institute, a school in St. Petersburg for well-born girls. "She was a very sweet-faced though plain girl, with beautiful dark eyes, very quiet and amiable in manner," wrote Margaretta Eagar, governess to the daughters of Tsar Nicholas II. Eagar wrote that Helen, then about seventeen, often came to tea with another of her aunts, Princess Vera of Montenegro, and cousins. Young Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia was very fond of her.
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