Dragutin Dimitrijević
Serbian army officer and conspirator
Who was Dragutin Dimitrijević?
Dragutin Dimitrijević lived from August 17, 1876 to June 24, 1917.
Career and public life
Dragutin Dimitrijević, better known by his nickname Apis (Апис), was a Serbian army officer who was the main leader of the Black Hand, a paramilitary secret society devoted to South Slav irredentism that organized the 1903 overthrow of the Serbian government and assassination of King Alexander I of Serbia and Queen Draga. Many scholars believe that he also sanctioned and helped organize the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on 28 June 1914. This led directly to the July Crisis and the outbreak of World War I.
Historical significance
Dragutin Dimitrijević, better known by his nickname Apis (Апис), was a Serbian army officer who was the main leader of the Black Hand, a paramilitary secret society devoted to South Slav irredentism that organized the 1903 overthrow of the Serbian government and assassination of King Alexander I of Serbia and Queen Draga. This led directly to the July Crisis and the outbreak of World War I.