Draga Mašin

1866 - According to her birth certificate, Draga Mašin was born on September 23, 1866 (in the sources: September 11 or September 23, depending on whether the date is calculated according to the Gregorian or Julian calendar) in Gornji Milanovac, where she finished primary school, and then the Higher Institute for Women in Belgrade, better known as the "Cermanka's Institute". Her father's name was Panta Lunjevica, and her grandfather Nikola was the Duke in the Second Serbian Uprising and a friend of Miloš Obrenović. The Lunjevicas family, originally from Herzegovina, settled in the immediate vicinity of Ivanjica, and in the 18th century settled villages: Srezojevci, Beršići, Ljutovnica, Velereč, Velereč and Lunjevica on the slopes of the Rudnik Mountain. From the marriage with Andja Koljević, the daughter of the president of the municipality of Čačak at that time, Panta Lunjevica had six children, including Draga. The inaccuracies in the date of birth of Draga Mašin originate from the wariness of the contemporaries at that time towards the royal marriage, and the tendency to increase the age difference between Draga and her husband, king Aleksandar Obrenović, has been transferred to historiography. However, in 1886, Draga addressed the Funds Management Board to regulate the widow's pension by enclosing an excerpt with the exact dates of the birth of both spouses.

1883 - Left without a father, with her oldest sister Kristina, Draga took care of the brothers (Nikola and Nikodije), sisters Djurdjina and the youngest one Vojka (Ana). When Draga graduated from school, on August 28, 1883, she married Svetozar Mašin in the Belgrade Cathedral Church. The mining engineer by profession, Svetozar Mašin was the oldest son of Jovan Mašin, a Czech, the court physician of Prince Mihailo, and later of Prince Milan Obrenović. After the marriage, because of her husband's job, Draga lived in Karanovac, Krupanj, and Leskovac. In 1886, after three years of marriage, she returned to Belgrade. Svetozar Mašin suddenly passed away during an epileptic seizure. It is known that, as a widow, she had many financial problems. On June 12, 1961, Politika newspaper published an article entitled "The Found Letter of Draga Masin" addressed to the director of the commercial bank, typical of the period in which she lived, and attractively stylized, typical of the way of asking a loan at that time. In 1891, she began working at the Belgrade court as Queen Natalia's court lady. There are contradictory opinions about how Draga Mašin became the Queen's court lady. The youngest Draga's sister, Ana Lunjevica, recalled that in 1891 Draga received a call from the Queen to join her in Biarritz, France.

1891 - After joining Queen Natalija in 1891, she travelled with her to Moldova, Crimea, as well as to Biarritz in France, where her relationship with Aleksandar Obrenović began. In October 1897, Draga left Biarritz and resigned to the court lady's position for allegedly having been insulted by the queen. Allegedly, after Queen Natalija had suspected on the secret relationship of Draga Mašin and her son Aleksandar, she decided to move her away from herself. It is assumed that as a minor, Aleksandar began to sympathize with the ten years older Draga Mašin. As it turned out, the relationship of King Aleksandar and his mother's court lady was not a secret at all. In the correspondence of King Aleksander Obrenović and Draga Mašin until 1900, there was no mention of marriage.

1900 - They married on July 23, 1900, despite the opposition of many, especially Aleksandar's parents, Queen Natalija and King Milan Obrenović. By King Aleksandar's decree, Draga Mašin's birthday was proclaimed a national holiday, and she alone took care of decorating the court and taking care of finances, at the same time participating in the conduct of her husband's foreign policy. The people used to say "enjoying like Queen Draga", and the intolerance towards the royal couple grew strong. Numerous affairs shook the court: Draga's pseudo-pregnancy in 1901, the hypothesis of Draga as a "Russian agent" in the service of Russian interests in Serbia, the careless and arrogant behavior of Draga'a brothers who were believed to pretend to the throne.

1903 - Officers chose to plot against the King and the Queen. The assassination was carried out between 28th and 29th of May (some sources cite the dates of the Gregorian calendar on June 10 and 11) in 1903 and it is known as the May Coup. Captain Dragutin Dimitrijević-Apis, Aleksandar Mašin, Draga's former brother-in-law, and Djordje Genčić, former Draga's admirer, were one of the main organizers of the assassination.