The modern Greek monarchy was quite unstable with kings being deposed and restored. Prince Alexander was born at Tatoi Palace on 1 August 1893 (20 July in the Julian calendar) as the second son of Constantine I of Greece and his wife Sophia of Prussia. Sophie was a granddaughter of British Queen Victoria.
When Alexander grew up, he was close to his sister Helen, but he had little in common with his elder brother George who spent part of his military training in Germany. When staying with their grandmother is Germany, Alexander generally took the initiative in any mischievous escapades. Once they flung cupfuls of petrol against the walls of their playroom and set it alight, thankfully without any harmful results.
Alexander joined the Hellenic Military Academy where he was known for his mechanical skills rather than any intellectual capacity. He was one of the first Greeks to acquire an automobile. During the Balkan Wars of 1912-13 both brothers were station in the field staff of their father.
In 1915, at a party, 21-year-old Alexander became re-acquainted with one of his childhood friends, Aspasia Manos, a daughter of his father’s Master of the Horse. Alexander was smitten, and the couple became secretly engaged.
During World War I, on 10 June 1917, Greek King Constantine I was ordered to go into exile. The allies perceived Crown Prince George to be too pro-German like his father. Thus, 23-year-old Alexander was chosen to ascend the Greek throne. Spied on day and night by the prime minister's supporters, Alexander became a prisoner in his own palace, and his orders were ignored.
With the help of the lovely Aspasia's brother-in-law, Christo Zalocostas, and after three unsuccessful attempts, Alexander eventually married Aspasia in secret - before a royal chaplain - on the evening of 17 November 1919. The information leaked, however, and to escape public opprobrium Aspasia was forced to leave Greece. She fled to Rome first, and then to Paris. In 1920 Alexander visited his morganatic wife in Paris. After their return to Greece, she was expecting a child.
On 2 October 1920, Alexander was injured while walking through the grounds of the Tatoi estate. A domestic Barbary macaque monkey, belonging to the steward of the palace's grapevines, ended up in a fight with the king's large dog, Fritz. Alexander attempted to separate the two animals. As he did so, another monkey attacked Alexander, and bit him deeply on the leg and torso. Eventually, servants arrived and chased away the monkeys.
The King's wounds were cleaned and dressed, but not cauterized. He didn’t consider the incident serious, and asked that it not be publicized. That evening, Alexander’s wounds became infected. He developed a high fever and sepsis set in. His cries of pain could be heard by the guards. His doctors considered amputating Alexander’s leg, but none wished to take responsibility for so drastic an act. Aspasia nursed her husband for weeks. On 19 October, Alexander became delirious, and called out for his mother, but the Greek government refused to allow her to re-enter the country from exile in Switzerland.
In his final delirium, Alexander thought he saw his dead grandfather walking down the hill at Tatoi where he was buried. The 27-year-old King died of sepsis shortly after 4 pm on 25 October 1920. Two days later, Alexander's body was conveyed to Athens Cathedral, where it lay in state until his funeral on 29 October. Afterwards it was interred on the grounds of the royal estate at Tatoi.
Alexander's daughter by Aspasia Manos, Alexandra (1921–1993), was born 5 months after his death. Alexandra was legitimized as a princess of Greece and Denmark. In 1944 she married King Peter II of Yugoslavia, and had a son Alexander.
Sources: Wikipedia; J. van der Kiste, Kings of the Hellenes (The Greek Kings 1863-1974), Alan Sutton Publishing, 1994; M. of Greece & A. Palmer, The Royal House of Greece, Weidenfield and Nicolson, 1990.
No comments:
Post a Comment