Princess Irene of Greece has been laid to rest in the royal cemetery at Tatoi following a moving funeral ceremony in Athens.
Princess Irene, who died last week at the age of 83, was buried with her sister and closest friend and confidante, Queen Sofia of Spain, leading mourners.
Queen Sofia was surrounded by royalty on this difficult day. Her three children – King Felipe VI of Spain, Infanta Elena and Infanta Cristina – were at her side throughout the funeral and burial.
The funeral took place on a cold, grey day in Athens with mourners arriving in the mid morning at the Metropolitan Cathedral in the city for the ceremony.
Irene was the younger sister of Queen Sofia of Spain and of King Constantine II of Greece and it was the late king’s sons who accompanied her coffin into the cathedral.
As the coffin, covered in the Greek royal standard, was carried towards the church, Crown Prince Pavlos along with his brothers, Prince Nikolaos and Prince Philippos, followed behind.
Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece, who is also now known as Pavlos De Grece and is titular head of the Greek royal family, then emerged on to the steps of the cathedral to greet guests as they arrived.
King Felipe and Queen Letizia were driven to the cathedral with their two daughters, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia, after a busy morning which had seen the monarch keep in close contact with Spain after a devastating train crash in Andalucia left 39 people dead. It’s understood he will be missing some of the reception after Irene’s funeral to return home to Madrid and prepare for a visit to the site of the accident at Adamuz.
There were cheers for Queen Sofia as she arrived at the cathedral with her two daughters, Infanta Elena and Infanta Cristina. Crown Prince Pavlos bowed to his aunt as she arrived before greeting his cousins, too.
The coffin of Princess Irene had arrived earlier, draped in a Greek royal standard. The three sons Once it had been borne into the cathedral, a private funeral service took place.
The steps of the cathedral had been adored with wreaths of white flowers, several of them from royalty including the King and Queen of the Netherlands. The floral tributes were later loaded into the hearse which took Irene’s coffin away to Tatoi.
Queen Sofia stood with her sister-in-law, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, as the preparations for Irene’s final journey were made. Several of the honours that had been around Princess Irene’s coffin were held by her great niece, Victoria de Marichalar, the daughter of Infanta Elena. Another great niece, Irene Urdangarin, who was named in her honour, also took a role in the ceremony.
The Spanish and Greek royal family then made their way to the cemetery at Tatoi where Irene was buried. They followed the rocky path to a small chapel in biting winds for a final ceremony before Queen Sofia, holding the arm of Queen Anne-Marie, led mourners to the grave.
Irene of Greece and Denmark died on January 15 2026 at the age of 83 in Madrid. She had been the youngest of the three children of King Paul and Queen Frederica of Greece and was briefly heir to the throne when her brother first ascended as King Constantine II. She never married and dedicated much of her life to humanitarian work. She was also a noted pianist and was at her sister’s side through much of the last forty years.
