The body of former and last king of Greece, Constantine II, was buried alongside his ancestors at the former royal estate of Tatoi, north of Athens, shortly before 16:00 on Monday afternoon.
The private burial service was held after the completion of the funeral service at the Athens Metropolitan Cathedral, led by Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Hieronymos, with the participation of senior clerics of the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Greece.
Constantine’s son, Pavlos, delivered the eulogy at the service: “You will always live on in our thoughts and our hearts, as happens in every Greek family when it loses something precious.” He spoke of moments in his father’s life, among them winning a gold Olympic medal in 1960, and the influence he exerted so that Athens would assume the organisation of the Olympic Games in 2004.
He also referred to the moments that led to the dissolution of democracy in Greece, saying: “From the first moment you resisted strongly and sought ways to overthrow the dictators”.
Pavlos also promised that Constantine’s children and grandchildren will safeguard his legacy and “always offer to the country and to Greece”. Afterwards, he delivered the eulogy in English.
As the body was carried out of the Church, those gathered there sang the national anthem.
The government was represented by Deputy Prime Minister Panagiotis Pikrammenos and Culture and Sports Minister Lina Mendoni. Among those attending the funeral of the former king, who had been an Olympic gold medallist, was the president of the Hellenic Olympic Committee Spyros Capralos.
Royalty attending the funeral included King Felipe of Spain with his wife Queen Letitia, Queen Mother of Spain Sofia, Constantine’s sister, with her husband King Emeritus Juan Carlos, as well as Constantine’s other sister, Irene, and the princesses Elena and Cristina, daughters of Juan Carlos and Sofia.
The funeral was also attended by Princess Anne, the sister of King Charles III of Britain, Queen Margrethe of Denmark and her son, and Crown Prince Frederik and Princess Benedikte, sister of the Queen of Denmark and of the former Greek queen consort Anne-Marie, the wife of Constantine.
Other royals included the King Carl Gustaf of Sweden and Queen Silvia, the Crown Prince of Norway Haakon and his wife, Princess Mette-Marit, the Grand Duke of Luxembourg Henri, the King of the Netherlands Willem-Alexander with his wife, Queen Maxima, and the Queen Mother Princess Beatrix and Prince Albert of Monaco. On the part of the Belgian royal family came King Philippe and his wife, Queen Mathilde.
Former royals included Serbian royal couple Catherine and Alexander, Mariya Vladimirovna from Russia and former prince Radu from Romania.
SOURCE; ANA-MPA
