Constantine II, the last king of Greece, who died last Tuesday aged 82, will be buried as a private citizen in Athens, Greek media reported on Wednesday, January 11th.
An “inter-ministerial meeting chaired by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis” decided that the former monarch is to be buried close to his ancestors on the grounds of the family’s former summer palace at Tatoi.
Minister of Culture and Sports Lina Mendoni will be the sole Greek government official attending the ceremony. Protocols will be followed for foreign dignitaries to pay their respects. It seems Greek authorities are careful to avoid the slightest hint of pomp and fanfare.
The former king was being treated in an Athens hospital after having suffered a stroke e.arlier this month. While he was said to be in critical but stable condition, the stroke caused multiple organ failure, to which he ultimately succumbed.
The 82-year-old had for a while contended with a chronic heart condition and mobility problems.
In a statement, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis offered “sincere condolences” to the former king’s family. He went on to refer to Constantine II’s “eventful life” which “marked and was marked” in turn by turbulent moments in Greek history.
Constantine II ascended to the throne in 1964. Three years later, a military coup followed by an aborted counter-coup forced him to go into exile.
While the military junta fell in July 1974, later that year, the Greeks voted through a referendum to abolish the monarchy. The former king was later even stripped of his Greek citizenship.
These wounds, Mitsotakis added, were “healed by the choices, the free conscience and the maturity of the Greek people.” The prime minister said,
His passing is, on a human level, the formal epilogue to a chapter that was closed and done with the 1974 referendum.
Mitsotakis said, “from now on, it’s up to history to judge.”
