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European royals in the British line of succession: The Greek Royal Family

The last in our series, Royal Central is taking a look at the members of the Greek Royal Family who are in the British line of succession.

How are the two families connected? The Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip was born into the Greek and Danish royal families. Born in Greece, his family was exiled from the country when he was an infant. He is the only son and the fifth and final child of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg.

During the Greco-Turkish War in 1922, Philip’s uncle, King Constantine I, was forced to abdicate. The new military government arrested Prince Andrew, along with others, and the commander of the army, General Georgios Hatzianestis, was executed along with five senior politicians. Prince Andrew’s life was believed to be in danger at that point. In December, a revolutionary court banished Prince Andrew from Greece for life.

Constantine I of Greece, Philip’s uncle, was born in 1868. He is the eldest son of King George I and Queen Olga. One of King George I’s sisters married into the British Royal Family, which meant that Edward VII was George I’s brother-in-law.

Paul of Greece, Constantine I’s son, is a first cousin to Prince Philip.

605. Constantine II of Greece

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Constantine II is the nephew of King George II and is also the second child and only son of the King’s brother and heir presumptive, Crown Prince Paul (later King Paul). Constantine II reigned as the King of Greece from 1964 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1973.

His reign would not come without controversy. Constantine II was involved in the Apostasia of July 1965 – a political crisis centred around the resignation of Prime Minister Georgios Papandreou. The resignation created unrest among the population and ongoing political instability.

Constantine II married Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark in 1964, and together, they had five children. Constantine II is also a former competitive sailor and Olympian, winning a goal medal in the 1960 Rome Olympics.

Because Anne-Marie is 380th in line to the British throne, Constantine II is 605th, Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece follows in the line of his mother because he is the eldest son of the couple.

381. Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece

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Crown Prince Pavlos is the eldest son and the second child of Constantine II and Anne-Marie. Pavlos was the heir apparent to the throne of Greece and was its crown prince from birth until the monarchy abolition (although he still holds the crown prince title as a courtesy). He is a male-line descendant of Christian IX of Denmark and is also a Danish prince.

According to Article 45 of the Greek Constitution of 1864 and the Greek Constitution of 1911, the crown descends according to primogeniture among descendants of George I with males coming before females. In 1952, the clause was clarified to note the crown is inherited with preference to descendants of the current king with males taking preference and the sovereign’s daughters following in respective order.

Pavlos married British-born heiress Marie-Chantal Miller in 1995. Together they have five children.

382. Prince Constantine Alexios of Greece and Denmark

Prince Constantine Alexios is the eldest son and second child of Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece. Born in 1998, he is second in line to the former Greek throne after his father. The Duke of Cambridge is one of his godparents.

383. Prince Achileas-Andreas of Greece and Denmark

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Prince Achileas-Andreas was born in 2000 and is the second son and third child of Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece. He is currently third in the line of succession to the former Greek throne.

His mother is the daughter of American-born British billionaire Robert Warren Miller and his Ecuadorian wife, Marie Chantal Pesantes. It’s believed his maternal grandfather descends from passengers on the Mayflower connected to the British North American colonial elite. His family claims to descend from Henry I of England.

384. Prince Odysseas-Kimon of Greece and Denmark

Prince Odysseas-Kimon was born in 2004.

385. Prince Aristidis-Stavros of Greece and Denmark

Prince Aristidis-Stavros was born in 2008.

386. Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece and Denmark

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Princess Maria-Olympia is the oldest child and only daughter of Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece. Born in 1996, she is an American fashion model, socialite, and member of the Greek Royal Family.

387. Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark

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Prince Nikolaos is the third child of Constantine II and Anne-Marie of Denmark. Nikolaos married Tatiana Blatnik in 2010 and as of now have no children.

388. Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark

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Prince Philippos was born in 1986 and is the youngest child of Constantine II and Anne-Marie of Denmark. He currently works as a hedge fund analyst in New York and recently announced his engagement.

389. Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark

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Born in 1965, Princess Alexia is the eldest child of Constantine II and Anne-Marie of Denmark. She is married to architect and champion yachtsman Carlos Javier Morales Quintana, and together, they have four children.

390. Arrietta Morales y de Grecia

The eldest child of Princess Alexia and Carlos Javier Morales Quintana, Arrietta was born in 2002.

391. Ana María Morales y de Grecia

Ana María Morales y de Grecia was born in 2003.

392. Carlos Morales y de Grecia

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Carlos Morales y de Grecia was born in 2005.

393. Amelia Morales y de Grecia

Amelia Morales y de Grecia was born in 2007.

394. Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark

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Born in 1993, Princess Theodora is the youngest daughter and the fourth of Constantine II and Anne-Marie of Denmark’s five children. She is currently ninth in the line of succession to the defunct Greek throne and acts in American television.

Editor’s Note: These are estimates as to the royals’ place in the British line of succession. As of 2011, Constantine II of Greece was 565. Since then, there have been 14 babies born to those in the first 100 places; therefore, we added 14 to the 2011 calculations to account for those births. We added a further 26 to the calculations to account for births in the Danish, German, Norwegian, Russian, Swedish, and Serbian royal families after 2011. Any children who have been born to those further down the line of succession have not been accounted for, so the Greek royals could be a bit further down the line of succession.

About author

My name is Sydney Zatz and I am a University of Iowa graduate. I graduated with a degree in journalism and sports studies, and a minor in sport and recreation management. A highlight of my college career was getting the chance to study abroad in London and experiencing royal history firsthand. I have a passion for royals, royal history, and journalism, which led me to want to write for Royal Central.