Milenko Radomar Vesnić

Who was Milenko Radomar Vesnić?

Milenko R. Vesnić or Vesnitch in French, and Wesnitsch in German was a Serbian politician, diplomat, cabinet member and prime minister.

Milenko R. Vesnić studied law at la Grande École of Belgrade and at the University of Munich since 1883. On 8 August 1888 Vesnić became PhD in law with a thesis under the title "The Blood Feud among South Slavs". His highly praised thesis was published in German next year in Stuttgart. Two next two years Vesnić spent in Paris and in London, for further specialization in law. He joined diplomatic service of Serbia in 1891, as the secretary of the Serbian Legation at Constantinople. In 1893, Vesnić was appointed as university professor teaching international law at Grande École in Belgrade and the same year became MP in the National Assembly of Serbia as a the member of the People's Radical Party of Nikola Pašić.

In the government of Sava Grujić, Vesnić was the Minister of Education and the Religious Affairs. His university career was finished in 1899, after Vesnić insulted King Milan I and was sentenced for two years in prison. In 1901 Vesnić returned to the diplomatic service as the Minister of Serbia in Rome.