Constantine II, King of the Hellenes will be buried as a private citizen in the country he ruled for a decade.
The former monarch, who died on January 10th 2023 at the age of 82, will be laid to rest outside Athens in a private ceremony.
Just hours after Constantine passed away, the Greek government, led by Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, met to decide whether to hold a state funeral for the man who ruled Greece from 1964 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1974. They decided a private ceremony would be more appropriate for the former head of state.
The Greek government will be represented at the ceremony by the country’s Minister for Culture and Sports, Lina Mendoni. The government also said that all procedures for visits by overseas officials for the funeral will be observed. It is expected that royalty from around Europe will attend the funeral – Constantine was closely related to several ruling houses including those of Spain, Denmark and Great Britain.
It is expected that King Constantine will be buried at Tatoi, the private cemetery where many of Greece’s royal family are laid to rest. It’s understood that his family is continuing to talk to ministers about where the private funeral service should be held ahead of burial.
The death of Constantine II, last King of the Hellenes, was announced late on January 10th by the hospital where he was being treated. The private Hygeia Hospital confirmed he had passed away there but gave no further details. A formal announcement by Constantine’s family is still to come.
The Greek monarchy was abolished following a referendum in 1974. Constantine, his wife Anne-Marie, and their children had gone into exile in 1967 following a military coup. The king and queen spent decades campaigning to return to Greece but it was only in the last years of Constantine’s life that he was able to return to live, as a private citizen, in the country.
Constantine’s heir is his eldest son, Pavlos, who was born as Crown Prince of Greece but who has lived almost his entire life in exile.
The former King of the Hellenes is also survived by his wife, Queen Anne-Marie, his two daughters, Princess Alexia and Princess Theodora, and his two younger sons, Prince Nikolaos and Prince Philippos, as well as by his nine grandchildren. In his final days, his two sisters, Queen Sofia of Spain and Princess Irene of Greece, were also at his side.
