Prince Philip and Princess Danica of Serbia and their son, Prince Stefan, have visited Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina to visit Serbs living in the city and the leadership of the local Serbian Orthodox Church.
They also learned that a former royal summer residence in the city would be rebuilt.
The royals used the opportunity to walk through the historic centre of the Old Town, Bascarsija, and the more urban centre of east Sarajevo, where they were hosted by Mayor Ljubisa Cosic.
After the conversation with the mayor, it was revealed that restoration work on the devastated summer house of the Serbian Royal Family, built by the Prince’s great-grandfather King Alexander of Yugoslavia in the early 1920s, will begin in early May this year.
The royals privately visited the ruins of the royal summer residence the day before they arrived in Sarajevo. Prince Philip toured the ruined castle but did not address reporters. However, he briefly said that he was satisfied with the decision to restore the home.
Financing for the restoration is secured; the Municipality of Han Pijesam, the government of the Republika Srpska and the city of East Sarajevo set aside a total of roughly 237,262 GBP for the restoration. The residence will be renovated to look as it did when it was originally built. It will also be used for tourism and commercial purposes.
The Serbian Royal Family will have its own space within the residence available to them, according to Mayor Han Pijeska.
The summer villa of King Alexander is the only one of its kind in Bosnia and Herzegovina; it is protected as a cultural and historical heritage site. The King used to come to the Han Pijesak villa often for leisure and welcome world leaders to the residence.
