![Arms of the Crown Prince of Greece](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Arms_of_the_Crown_Prince_of_Greece.svg)
The Crown Prince of Greece ( el, Διάδοχος, Diadochos) is the
heir to the
defunct throne of Greece. Since the
abolition of the
Greek monarchy
The monarchy of Greece ( el, Μοναρχία της Ελλάδας, Monarchía tis Elládas) or Greek monarchy ( el, Ελληνική Μοναρχία, Ellinikí Monarchía) was the government in which a hereditary monarch was the sovereign of ...
by the then-ruling
military regime
A military dictatorship is a dictatorship in which the military exerts complete or substantial control over political authority, and the dictator is often a high-ranked military officer.
The reverse situation is to have civilian control of the m ...
on 1 June 1973, it is merely considered a
courtesy title.
Title
Neither the
constitution of 1844 or
1864, which served as the basis for other
fundamental laws of the
Kingdom of Greece
The Kingdom of Greece ( grc, label= Greek, Βασίλειον τῆς Ἑλλάδος ) was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally recognised by the Treaty of Constantinople, wh ...
, recognised titles of
nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...
. On the contrary, they prohibited even the sovereign from conferring such titles.
[Greek Constitution of 1844]
at ''Heraldica.org'' . Retrieved on 1 April 2014.[Article XXXIII of the Constitution of 1844 states: ]“The King has the right to confer the insignia of existing orders, in accordance with the laws which have been established. But can not give titles of nobility or recognise those who would be given by a foreign power to Greek citizens.”
[Article III of the Constitution of 1864 states: ]“Titles of nobility and distinction are neither conferred nor recognised for Greek citizens.”
As a result, the heir apparent was usually referred to simply as "the ''diadochos''" by virtue of his function, rather than as a title. The word ''diadochos'' (διάδοχος) simply means "successor, he who collects the estate". This is a
deverbal of διαδέχομαι (''diadéchomai''), "receive by succession", and has been used since the
Archaic period for heirs-apparent. The most famous bearers of the title were the ''
Diadochi
The Diadochi (; singular: Diadochus; from grc-gre, Διάδοχοι, Diádochoi, Successors, ) were the rival generals, families, and friends of Alexander the Great who fought for control over his empire after his death in 323 BC. The War ...
'', the "Successors" of
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
, who
contended with each other for the spoils of his empire.
[''Dictionnaire alphabétique et analogique de la langue française'', vol. 2, Le Robert, 1972, p. 208 .]
Only one crown prince, the future Constantine I, bore a separate title of nobility, that of "
Duke of Sparta
Duke of Sparta ( Katharevousa: , Demotic Greek: Δούκας της Σπάρτης) was a title instituted in 1868 to designate the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Greece. Its legal status was exceptional, as the Constitution of Greece forbade the ...
", created soon after his birth in 1868. However, as it ran contrary to the constitution, it caused a political scandal; although in the end ratified by the Greek parliament, the title's use within Greece was very restricted.
Succession
The
London Conference of 1832
The London Conference of 1832 was an international conference convened to establish a stable government in Greece. Negotiations between the three Great Powers (Britain, France and Russia) resulted in the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece unde ...
, established a
semi-salic
The Salic law ( or ; la, Lex salica), also called the was the ancient Frankish civil law code compiled around AD 500 by the first Frankish King, Clovis. The written text is in Latin and contains some of the earliest known instances of Old D ...
line of succession which would pass the crown to
Otto I
Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of He ...
's descendants, or his younger brothers, should he have no
issue
Issue or issues may refer to:
Publishing
* ''Issue'' (company), a mobile publishing company
* ''Issue'' (magazine), a monthly Korean comics anthology magazine
* Issue (postal service), a stamp or a series of stamps released to the public
* '' ...
. It was also decided that in no case would the crowns of
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
and
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
be joined in a
personal union
A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interlink ...
.
[Succession Laws of the Greek Monarchy]
at ''Heraldica.org''. Retrieved on 1 April 2014.
The continued inability of Otto and
Queen Amalia to have children was a permanent threat to the stability of Otto's throne: the 1844 constitution insisted that Otto's successor had to be Orthodox, but as the king was childless, the only possible heirs were his younger brothers,
Luitpold and
Adalbert. The staunch Catholicism of the Wittelsbachs complicated matters, as Luitpold refused to convert and Adalbert married
Infanta Amalia of Spain
Infanta Amalia of Spain ( es, Amalia de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias; 12 October 1834 – 27 August 1905) was the youngest daughter of Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain. Her eldest brother, Francisco de Asís married Queen Isabella II of Spai ...
. The sons of Adalbert, and especially the eldest,
Ludwig Ferdinand, were now considered the most likely candidates, but due to the issue of religion, no definite arrangements were ever made prior to Otto's deposition in 1862.
Since the establishment of the
constitution of 1952, the daughters of the sovereign came after their brothers in the order of succession to the throne.
When
Constantine II succeeded
Paul I Paul I may refer to:
*Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch
* Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople
*Pope Paul I (700–767)
*Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia
*Pau ...
in 1964, his sister became heir presumptive according to the 1952 Constitution but that caused a
constitutional crisis
In political science, a constitutional crisis is a problem or conflict in the function of a government that the political constitution or other fundamental governing law is perceived to be unable to resolve. There are several variations to this ...
because his father's cousin
Prince Peter who declared himself heir to the throne on the pretext that female dynasts had been unlawfully granted succession rights, but Prince Peter lost his succession rights by marrying
Irina Ovtchinnikova in 1939. Also at the time Constantine's older sister
Princess Sophia married the future
Juan Carlos I in 1962 and cousin
Prince Philip
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...
married
Queen Elizabeth II in 1947 renounced their rights for their descendants.
Personal standard
File:Standard of the Crown Prince of Greece (1914 pattern).svg, 1914 version
File:Standard of the Crown Prince of Greece (1936-1967).svg, 1935 version
Crown princes of the House of Glücksburg
References
Notes
Bibliography
*
*
*
{{Kingdom of Greece, state=collapsed
Greek monarchy
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...