Prince Alexander of Serbia is officially off the market for good after tying the knot in a lavish ceremony attended by senior royals last weekend.
The grandson of the country’s last king, 43, married glamorous dentist Dr Vesna Jelić in a church service in Villamanrique de la Condesa near Seville on Saturday September 20, surrounded by his family.
The union between the former ruler’s youngest grandson and his new wife was announced by the palace in a statement last week, along with the confirmation of Vesna’s new title of princess.
The statement read: ‘Welcome to the of Karadjordjevic, Her Royal Highness Princess Dr Vesna of Serbia.’
Prince Alexander is the third child of Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia, head of the now-defunct Serbian royal house.
The Crown prince and the groom’s mother, Princess Maria da Gloria of Orléans-Braganza were both present at the ceremony in Seville, beaming as they watched their youngest son, who was previously married to Princess Maria da Gloria of Orléans-Braganza, get married.
The city in Seville was chosen because of Prince Alexander’s emotional connection to the place.
Not only was it the location of his wedding but it was also where his parents were married and where he and his twin brother Philip were baptized.
Prince Alexander of Serbia has tied the knot in a lavish ceremony to his dentist belle Dr Vesna Jelić (the couple pictured centre) surrounded by friends and family
Two weeks earlier, the civil wedding ceremony took place in the Royal Palace in Belgrade on September 6.
The ceremony was officiated by Bishop Toplicki Petar and father Dusan Erdelj, the archpriest of the parish in Andalusia.
In an Instagram post, the father of the groom revealed that the pair were surrounded by their closest friends and family and had opted for a small celebration and would ‘crown their love’ in a ceremony in Serbia at a later date.
For the intimate occasion, the new princess wore a long white embroidered dress with a high collar and short sleeves as well as voluminous veil for the religious ceremony in Serbia.
She added an heirloom set of diamond earrings, previously worn by her husband’s half-sister, Doña Sol María de la Blanca de Medina y Orléans-Braganza, for her own royal wedding back in 2023, Tatler reported.
For the Spanish ceremony, Dr Vesna opted for a more relaxed look with a flowing white dress with wide sleeves and a keyhole detail.
The civil ceremony on September 6 marked the 102nd anniversary of the birth of Prince Alexander’s grandfather King Peter II.
In a heartfelt post on Instagram, Crown Prince Alexander wrote: ‘The Royal Family of Serbia announces with great pleasure that my youngest son, HRH Prince Aleksandar, and his fiancee Dr. Vesna (born Jelic) got married and began their life journey together.
Glamorous dentist Dr Vesna Jelić (pictured) will now be known as a Serbian princess
Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia and his second wife Princess Catherine of Serbia (pictured September, 2024) were also in attendance and welcomed their daughter in law to the family
‘As the elder of the Royal House, I am happy to welcome my daughter-in-law to the Karadjordjevic family and to award her with the title, which is Her Royal Highness Princess Dr Vesna of Serbia.
‘The whole Royal House is filled with happiness as my son and daughter-in-law got married and started one of the most important chapters in life, the one in which ‘we’ becomes more important than ‘I’, in which we all realize that life is better and easier when shared with our life companion. Then every joy is much bigger and the anxiety is easier.
‘We wish them a lot of luck, progress, mutual respect and understanding, and above all, love.’
He added: ‘Since the newlyweds did not want a big celebration, considering that in the light of the current very complex circumstances in Serbia it would not be appropriate, they crowned their love in the presence of their closest friends and family, while the ceremony in Serbia will be appropriately organized on some other occasion.’
Alexander and his twin brother Philip were born in Virginia in the US to Prince Alexander and his first wife Princess Maria.
He grew up in London and Canterbury, attending The King’s School Canterbury before completing a BA in Communications and Media from the University of San Francisco in 2004.
Before briefly moving to Hawaii, he studied for an MFA in Advertising.
Alexander’s father, the Crown Prince was famously born in Claridge’s hotel in London during his family’s exile in WWII and counted the late Queen Elizabeth II among his god parents.
Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia (pictured) issued a shock statement revealing that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year
He later married Princess Maria da Gloria, in 1972, but the pair later divorced in 1985,.
Following the separation, the Crown Prince married Katherine Clairy Batis and the Princess married Ignacio, 19th Duke of Segorbe.
All the family attended the ceremony, alongside Prince Alexander’s half-sisters from his mother’s second marriage, Doña Sol María de la Blanca de Medina y Orléans-Braganza, Countess of Ampurias, and Doña Ana Luna de Medina y Orleans-Braganza, Countess of Ricla.
In February last year, Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia revealed he ‘only recently defeated prostate cancer’ after admitting he was encouraged to speak up by King Charles’ ‘openness’.
In a shock statement, the 80-year-old, who is cousin to the British monarch, disclosed that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer in December last year.
He previously kept his battle with the illness under wraps, but Charles’ ‘openness’ about his own cancer diagnosis inspired him to speak out.
He said he was ‘terrified’ at the time of diagnosis, but the support of family and friends helped him through the struggle. Alexander has since received the ‘all clear’ from doctors.
He concluded the message by sending well wishes to his ‘dear friend and cousin’ Charles and expressed his ‘high hopes’ that the monarch will also be ‘triumphant’ in recovery.
