The rationale of the Maximus Palace for the decision to bury the former king as a private person – What his family had requested
By Penelope Galliou
The decision of the inter-ministerial meeting at the Maximos Palace to bury the former King Constantine as a private individual, it was a purely political decision, which was made neither hastily nor “uninfluenced” by the political condition of the informal pre-election period that the country is going through.
After all, since the deposed king’s health worsened with the stroke he suffered and he was admitted to the hospital, the ferments and processes that crystallized during the inter-ministerial meeting had already begun. The reasoning – according to information – of the government officials who participated in it and of the prime minister himself, was that they had to deal with a former king, however, not as a political person, but as a simple private individual and what “weighted” this reasoning the most, it was the fact that the former King had been stripped of his Greek citizenship, but also that the state issue in Greece has been definitively and irrevocably closed since 1974.
The Maximus Palace, which had been informed in time by the Glyxburg family about Constantine’s condition and began to prepare for any eventuality, did not want at all to have any shadow surrounding the decisions to be made and no room for criticism and partisan exploitation of the situation.
Even though within the ND there were also voices that would probably support the former king being buried with the honors of a head of state – on the grounds that this is how he has been recorded in history, apart from his administration and his role in subsequent developments – the Kyriakos Mitsotakis – according to government sources – he acted as a centrist and shut down any such talk before it even started. A decision that also prevented any misinterpretation or partisan exploitation that would open an “unnecessary” round of political confrontation on the occasion of the funeral of the deceased.
According to information, the family of the former king, who continues to be in contact with the government on the procedural issues of the ceremony, had requested that the burial be carried out with honors of the head of state and that the body of Constantine be exposed to a popular pilgrimage. And it may be that the first request has already been clarified with the relevant decision that was taken, however whether the body of the former King Constantine will finally be exposed – even for a few hours – to a public pilgrimage, has not been fully clarified, and negotiations between the family continue and the government, with a “decent dialogue” as a government official commented.
However, the context in which the ceremony will take place is almost ready, as, among other things, it was decided at the request of his family, the funeral service will be held in the Metropolis of Athens on Monday, in all probability by the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Mr. Ieronymos and members of the Holy Synod, while the burial will take place near his ancestors in Tatoi. The government will be represented at the funeral by the Minister of Culture and Sports, Lina Mendoni, while all the procedures provided by the Protocol for officials from abroad who will attend the funeral.
However, until the time when these lines were written, the list of royals and dignitaries who will attend the funeral of the former King remains pending. After all, the family has excellent relations with all the kingdoms in Europe and Great Britain, which will result in guests from all the royal families.
It is considered certain that the Queen Mother of Spain and wife of the former King Juan Carlos I of Spain, Sofia who was the sister of the former King Constantine, will attend the ceremony and very likely her son King Philip VI will also attend.
Reports say that the UK royal family is likely to be represented as Constantine was a cousin of King Charles and godfather to the heir to the British throne, Prince William.
The present is expected to be given by members of the Royal family of Denmark as Queen Margaret of Denmark was the sister-in-law of the deceased, while the list of dignitaries is expected to grow longer as the day of the ceremony approaches.
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