Constantine II, King of the Hellenes, 1964-1974
Constantine was 23 in March 1964 when he became king on the death of his father, King Paul. The accession of the young, impressionable king increased the real influence and power of his mother, Queen Frederika. An arrogant woman who was a grand-daughter of the Kaiser and a member of the Hitler Youth, she tended to believe whatever was in her own interests, such as that the Greek royal family was descended from the emperors of Byzantium. Already criticised for her administration of tax money for her own 'charitable purposes' without any public accounting, i.e. as a source of patronage, she was clearly quite deficient in her understanding of the role of a constitutional monarch in a modern state, and managed to pass this disability on to her son.
George Papandreou, who triumphed in the February 1964 elections, had been able to garner considerable support from liberal and leftist voterswho were discontent with the authoritarian royal governments and had been wrongly perceived by the young King Constantine II as the main thread to his dynasty. Time and again the young and obstinate monarch disavowed openly the Prime Minister, while his personal entourage undermined the cohesion of the elected government. The political climate was poisoned by actions of the unofficial nexus of power that was under royal protection and beyond the control of the legal government. This and other smaller secret right-wing extremist leagues, increasingly following their own aims since 1961, were intimidating political opponents, discriminating against the centrist and leftist parties, and would soon seize the opportunity to implement what they considered as the only solution to political instability and to democracy in general, that is, a dictatorship. The final breach between Papandreu and the king centered upon the desire of George Papandreu to dismiss General Gennimatas. The king was stiffened by his mother and CIA station chief Jack Maury. He insisted that he, and not the elected ?rime minister, decide who shou1d control the Ministry of Defence and the anned forces. This left the Prime minister with no option but to resign. The king replaced him with George Novas without calling for elections.
A group of colonels won the race against the King's generals and in the early hours of the morning of 21st April 1967, the colonels seized power in a coup. ?y December 1967, even the king was finding it difficult to work with the junta, and began planing a counter-coup. Local transmitters at Kavalla and Larissa called for a counter-coup, but the US did not relay the message via the Voice of America, so few heard it. The broadcast was certainly not heard in Athens. There was little enthusiasm for the king in the armed forces, and what there was melted away at the first sign of opposition. The junta, who were aware of his every move, simply broadcast that the attempt had failed. The king fled into exile, a regent was appointed, and Papadopoulos made himself Prime Minister.
After the military regime disintegrated in 1974, restoration of the monarchy was rejected in a referendum by 69% of the people and the royal family's land was expropriated. Constantine has lived in exile in Britain since 1974.
The expropriation of the royal property was reversed in 1979 and Constantine began his quest to regain control of it; he went to King Juan Carlos of Spain and asked him to persuade Felipe Gonzalez, the socialist who became prime minister in 1982, to raise the issue with Andreas Papandreou, his Greek counterpart. When he last attempted to return to his homeland in 1993, his yacht was chased out of Greek territorial waters by gunboats and fighter planes.
King Constantine referred the case to the Commission of the European Court of Human Rights with the contention that the three Applicants' (King Constantine, Princess Irene, Princess Ekaterini) rights to property had been violated through confiscation, as directed by the 1994 law. The Commission was asked to decide whether this violation had taken place. In a unanimous decision of the 30 judges, -including the Greek one-, the Commission ruled that the human rights of the Applicants had been violated and referred the case of the confiscation of the property to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).
The Commission maintained that on the issue of name, King Constantine had not be wronged by the Greek Government, as his full title had been used in the previous court procedures which had taken place in Greece, -and had therefore been accepted by the Supreme Court, the Supreme Special Court and the Council of State. The correct form of address is: King Constantine, former King of the Hellenes and so on for the family members. This ensues from the Treaty of Vienna, 1815, whereby titles are maintained for life, even when the status ceases to be active. The Council of the State (no. 4575/1996), decreed that the title is definitive of the person and not a title of nobility.
On the 22nd November 2000, the European Court of Human Rights delivered its Judgment by a majority of 15 to 2. It ruled that the human rights of the Applicants had been violated, as their property had been confiscated.
His Majesty has always been actively involved in sports, and his personal interest in sailing has, over the years, developed into dedicated contribution to several committees worldwide. He is currently President of Honour of the International Sailing Federation, to whom he has offered over 30 years of commitment and service. His Majesty enjoys sailing with friends whenever possible, and attends international sailing events.
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