Paul ( el, Παύλος, ''Pávlos''; 14 December 1901 – 6 March 1964) was

King of Greece The Kingdom of Greece was ruled by the House of Wittelsbach between 1832 and 1862 and by the House of Glücksburg from 1863 to 1924, temporarily abolished during the Second Hellenic Republic, and from 1935 to 1973, when it was once more abolishe ...

from 1 April 1947 until his death in 1964. He was succeeded by his son, Constantine II. Paul was first cousin to

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh 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 El ...

and father-in-law to

Juan Carlos I of Spain Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Nov ...

Early life

Paul was born on 14 December 1901 at the

Tatoi Palace Tatoi ( el, Τατόι, ) was the summer palace and estate of the former Greek royal family. The area is a densely wooded southeast-facing slope of Mount Parnitha, and its ancient and current official name is Dekeleia. It is located from t ...

Attica Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Se ...

north of

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, the third son of King

Constantine I of Greece Constantine I ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Αʹ, ''Konstantínos I''; – 11 January 1923) was King of Greece from 18 March 1913 to 11 June 1917 and from 19 December 1920 to 27 September 1922. He was commander-in-chief of the Hellenic Army ...

and his wife, Princess

Sophia of Prussia Sophia of Prussia (Sophie Dorothea Ulrike Alice, el, Σοφία; 14 June 1870 – 13 January 1932) was Queen consort of the Hellenes from 1913–1917, and also from 1920–1922. A member of the House of Hohenzollern and child of Frederick III, ...

. He trained as an army officer at the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...

and later at the

Hellenic Military Academy The Hellenic Army Academy ( el, Στρατιωτική Σχολή Ευελπίδων), commonly known as the Evelpidon, is a military academy. It is the Officer cadet school of the Greek Army and the oldest third-level educational institution in G ...

Kypseli, Athens Kypseli ( el, Κυψέλη, ) is a neighbourhood in central Athens, Greece. It occupies much of the 6th municipal department of the municipality of Athens, and has a population of around 50,000. Ντίνα Βαΐου''Το αστικό τοπίο ...

. Paul was an army officer cadet in the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

and Lieutenant with the

Evzones The Evzones or Evzonoi ( el, Εύζωνες, Εύζωνοι, ) were several historical elite light infantry and mountain units of the Greek Army. Today, they are the members of the Presidential Guard ( el, Προεδρική Φρουρά , transli ...

. From 1917 to 1920, Paul lived in exile with his father, Constantine I. From 1923 to 1935, he lived in exile again in England, this time with his brother,

George II George II or 2 may refer to: People * George II of Antioch (seventh century AD) * George II of Armenia (late ninth century) * George II of Abkhazia (916–960) * Patriarch George II of Alexandria (1021–1051) * George II of Georgia (1072–1089) * ...

. He worked briefly in an aircraft factory under an alias, and through

Viscount Tredegar Baron Tredegar, of Tredegar in the County of Monmouth, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 16 April 1859 for the Welsh politician Sir Charles Morgan, 3rd Baronet, who had earlier represented Brecon in Parliame ...

met and befriended notorious literary muse

Denham Fouts Denham "Denny" Fouts (May 9, 1914 – December 16, 1948) was an American male prostitute, socialite, and literary muse. He served as the inspiration for characters by Truman Capote, Gore Vidal, Christopher Isherwood, and Gavin Lambert. He was al ...

, who later alleged an affair. Allegedly, Prince Paul of Greece alongside Denham Fouts visited a tattooist in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

and had themselves identically marked—a small blue insignia above the heart. However, Fouts's friend

John B. L. Goodwin John Blair Linn Goodwin (1912–1994) was an American author and poet, best known for his story "The Cocoon" (1946), collected in Houghton Mifflin's ''The Best American Short Stories'' in 1947. A further short story was "Stone Still, Stone Cold" ...

said Fouts often made up stories about his life, and literary critic

Katherine Bucknell Katherine Bucknell (born 1957 in Saigon) is an American scholar and novelist who resides in England. Katherine Bucknell is the editor of W. H. Auden's ''Juvenilia'' and of three volumes of the diaries of Christopher Isherwood Christopher Wil ...

thought many of the tales about him were myths. To his family, he was known as ''Palo''.

Marriage and children

Bundesarchiv Bild 183-2003-1103-501, Berlin, Olympiade, Spyridon Louis, Kronprinz Paul

On 9 January 1938, Paul married Princess

Frederica of Hanover Frederica of Hanover (''Friederike Luise''; ; 18 April 1917 – 6 February 1981) was Queen consort of Greece from 1947 until 1964 as the wife of King Paul, thereafter Queen mother during the reign of her son, King Constantine II. Early life Bo ...

, his first cousin once removed through

Frederick III, German Emperor Frederick III (german: Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl; 18 October 1831 – 15 June 1888), or Friedrich III, was German Emperor and King of Prussia for 99 days between March and June 1888, during the Year of the Three Emperors. Known informa ...

, and

Victoria, Princess Royal Victoria, Princess Royal (Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa; 21 November 1840 – 5 August 1901) was German Empress and Queen of Prussia as the wife of German Emperor Frederick III. She was the eldest child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingd ...

, and second cousin through

Christian IX of Denmark Christian IX (8 April 181829 January 1906) was King of Denmark from 1863 until his death in 1906. From 1863 to 1864, he was concurrently Duke of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg. A younger son of Frederick William, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein- ...

, in Athens. They had three children: * Sophia,

Queen of Spain , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...

(born 1938) * Constantine II,

King of the Hellenes The Kingdom of Greece was ruled by the House of Wittelsbach between 1832 and 1862 and by the House of Glücksburg from 1863 to 1924, temporarily abolished during the Second Hellenic Republic, and from 1935 to 1973, when it was once more abolishe ...

(born 1940) *

Irene Irene is a name derived from εἰρήνη (eirēnē), the Greek for "peace". Irene, and related names, may refer to: * Irene (given name) Places * Irene, Gauteng, South Africa * Irene, South Dakota, United States * Irene, Texas, United Stat ...

(born 1942)

World War II

During most of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, from 1941 to 1946, when Greece was under German occupation, Paul was with the Greek

government-in-exile A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile u ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

. From Cairo, he broadcast messages to the Greek people.

Reign

Paul returned to Greece in 1946. He succeeded to the throne in 1947, upon the death of his childless elder brother, King

, during the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom ...

(between Greek

Communists Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a so ...

and the non-communist Greek government). In 1947 he was unable to attend the wedding of his

first cousin Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, " ...

to the future Queen

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during h ...

as he was suffering from

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

. By 1949 the Civil War was effectively over, with the Communist insurgents ceasing the majority of their operations, and the task of rebuilding the shattered north of the country began. In the 1950s Greece recovered economically, and diplomatic and trade links were strengthened by Paul’s state visits abroad. He became the first Greek Monarch to visit a Turkish Head of State. However, links with Britain became strained over

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

, where the majority Greek population favored union with Greece, which Britain, as the colonial power, would not endorse. Eventually, Cyprus became an independent state in 1960. In December 1959, Prince Maximillian of Bavaria presented King Otto's

coronation regalia Regalia is a Latin plurale tantum word that has different definitions. In one rare definition, it refers to the exclusive privileges of a sovereign. The word originally referred to the elaborate formal dress and dress accessories of a sovereign ...

to Paul. It had been almost a century since they were last in Greece. Meanwhile, republican sentiment was growing in Greece. Both Paul and Frederica attracted criticism for their interference in politics, frequent foreign travels, and the cost of maintaining the Royal Family. Paul responded by economising and donated his private estate at Polidendri to the State. In 1959, he had an operation for a

cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colors, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble w ...

, and in 1963 an emergency operation for

appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a rup ...

. In late February 1964, he underwent a further operation for

stomach cancer Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a cancer that develops from the lining of the stomach. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas, which can be divided into a number of subtypes, including gastric adenocarcinomas. Lymph ...

, and about a week later on 6 March 1964, King Paul I died in Athens. He was succeeded by his son, Constantine II.

Foreign Honours

* : ** Honorary Knight Grand Cross

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

- 1937 ** Honorary

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

- Feb 1953 ** Stranger Knight of the

Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George C ...

- 1963

Legacy

In March 2014, a memorial service took place in the grounds of

in Athens commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of Paul's death. Members of the Greek and Spanish royal families were present.

Ancestry

Notes and sources

References

* Bucknell, Katherine (1996). ''

Christopher Isherwood Christopher William Bradshaw Isherwood (26 August 1904 – 4 January 1986) was an Anglo-American novelist, playwright, screenwriter, autobiographer, and diarist. His best-known works include '' Goodbye to Berlin'' (1939), a semi-autobiographical ...

Diaries: Volume One 1939–1960'' London: Methuen. * Clarke, Gerald (1988). ''Capote: A Biography''. London: Hamish Hamilton. * Clogg, Richard (1992). ''A Concise History of Greece'', Cambridge University Press * Vanderbilt, Arthur (2014). ''Best-Kept Boy in the World: The Life and Loves of Denny Fouts''. Magnus Books * Van der Kiste, John (1994). ''Kings of the Hellenes''. Stroud, Gloucestershire: Alan Sutton Publishing. * Wishart, Michael (1977). ''High Diver''. Blond and Briggs * Woodhouse, C.M. (1998). ''Modern Greece: A Short History'', Mackays of Chatham, Kent *Μιχάλης Φύλλας, «Στιγμές από την ιστορία της σύγχρονης Ελληνικής θεολογίας. Ο βασιλιάς Παύλος και η «Ένωση Ελλήνων Θεολόγων», Σύναξη, τχ.156, (Οκτώβριος-Δεκέμβριος 2020), σελ.85-8

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Paul Of Greece Kings of Greece Eastern Orthodox monarchs 1901 births 1964 deaths 20th-century Greek monarchs Nobility from Athens Greek princes Danish princes Field marshals of Greece House of Glücksburg (Greece) Burials at Tatoi Palace Royal Cemetery Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Bailiffs Grand Cross of the Order of St John Order of George I Order of Saints George and Constantine Extra Knights Companion of the Garter Recipients of the Order of Saint-Charles Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Grand Commanders of the Order of the Dannebrog Commander's Crosses of the Cross of Valour (Greece) Recipients of the Grand Star of the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria Recipients of the Order of the Phoenix (Greece) Order of Beneficence (Greece) Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Knights Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Collars of the Order of Isabella the Catholic 1950s in Greek politics 1960s in Greek politics 20th-century Greek people Grand Crosses Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Greek people of Danish descent Greek people of German descent Deaths from cancer in Greece Deaths from stomach cancer Sons of kings Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint-Charles