Prince Arsene to marry rich American widow or not?

 

May 12, 1913

Prince Arsene of Serbia is engaged to Mrs. Thomas Huger Pratt, a wealthy American widow, according to a dispatch from Florence to the Daily Express.

The wedding is expected to take place later this month.

The 54-year-old Prince is the younger brother of King Peter.  His first marriage to Aurora Demidoff, the daughter of Pavel, 2nd Prince of Donato ended in divorce in 1896 after only four years of marriage.  

The couple had one son, Prince Paul, who was raised by his uncle King Peter.  Paul is attending university in Oxford.

The future Princess was born Myra Abigail Pankhurst and married Pratt in 1896.  They were separated for some time, and Pratt died in 1912.   Her first marriage to Herbert Wright ended in divorce.

https://olympstats.com/2019/07/24/huger-pratt/

The Daily Express got it wrong.  The groom was Prince Alexis Karageorgevitch (1859-1920), who in 1884, following the death of his father, Prince George, became head of the senior branch of the Karageorgevitch family, which gave him a claim to the throne. His great uncle, Alexander Karageorgevitch was Prince of Serbia from 1842 until1858.

   In January1902, Serbian newspapers reported that King Alexander Obrenovic would abdicate in favor of Prince Alexis.  This did not happen. 

A year later,  King Alexander and his wife, Queen Draga, were assassinated in their palace, and the throne was offered to Alexis' first cousin, Peter.  After Peter was proclaimed king, Alexis abandoned his claim to the throne.