The Greek Royal Family is a direct family member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. Its first monarch was George I. Most members of the Royal Family hold the title Prince (Princess) of Greece and Denmark with the style Royal Highness.
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The family came to throne when Otto I of Greece allowed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Second French Empire to occupy the port at Piraeus so as to prevent the Kingdom of Greece from aligning with the Russian Empire during the Crimean War (1853-1856). This prompted the Hellenic Army to overthrow Otto in 1862. The military powers offered the throne to Prince William of the Danish Glücksburg dynasty and he was crowned King George I in 1863. Members of this family would rule over Greece intermittently until 1974. [1]
The beginning of George's reign was taken up with expanding Greece's territory. The royal family saw Greece experience several upheavals including the Balkan Wars, World War I, World War II (during which Greece experienced Axis occupation), the Greek Civil War, and the Greek military junta of 1967–1974.
On April 21, 1967 the elected government was overthrown by a group of middle-ranking army officers led by Colonel Georgios Papadopoulos and a military dictatorship was established. The regime, known as The Regime of the Colonels, cowed King Constantine II into accepting it as legitimate. On December 13, 1967, the King launched a counter-coup but failed[2] and he, together with his family, fled to exile in Rome.
On 1 June 1973, Constantine II was declared deposed and Papadopoulos was self-declared President. On 29 July, 1973, the Greek plebiscite, 1973 seemed to confirm the abolition of the monarchy. The dictatorship fell in 1974 and a new plebiscite declared. On 8 December 1974, the Greek plebiscite, 1974 once again confirmed the abolition of the monarchy.
All members of the former Royal Family are living abroad; Constantine II and his wife, Queen Anne-Marie and unmarried children currently reside in London. The family still hold their royal titles, but they do not represent Greece in any way, other than as individuals. Nevertheless, they are often addressed by their royal titles, and invited to functions of reigning royal families. They can, with the approval of the Danish Government and Crown, represent the Kingdom of Denmark[citation needed]. As male-line descendants of King Christian IX of Denmark the members of the former Greek Royal family are Princes or Princesses of Denmark in their own right; this is why they are referred to as Princes or Princesses of Greece and Denmark[citation needed].
The extended members of the Greek royal family are:
