The Oldenburg Dynasty of Greece

The Reigns of Six Greek Kings From George I to Constantine II

Aug 20, 2009

When a Danish prince became King George I of Greece, he founded the Greek Oldenburg dynasty that would rule this unstable country through the reigns of six kings.

When Greece gained its independence from Turkey in 1829, it decided to establish itself as a monarchy. In order for their monarchy to be respected by other royal families, however, Greece would have to get a “real royal” from another reigning house. Greece was first ruled by King Otto, the younger son of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, but he and his wife Amelie became unpopular with the Greek people and were overthrown in a revolution in 1862. An 1863 national assembly then chose a young Danish prince, thus beginning the Oldenburg dynasty of Greek monarchs.

King George I—The Danish Prince Who Became a Greek King

Prince William (1863–1913) was a younger son of the soon-to-be King Christian IX of Denmark. This royal family was of a junior branch of the House of Oldenburg and came from the Danish-German territory of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucksburg. William tried to make himself as Greek as possible, taking the name George I and marrying the Orthodox Grand Duchess Olga, a niece of the Russian Tsar Alexander II.

King George I and Queen Olga had seven children and were fairly popular in Greece. In 1864, George I approved a new constitution that established democratically elected representatives. He also oversaw territorial expansion, when after the Russo-Turkish War in 1881 Greece acquired Thessaly and a part of Epirus. But Greece was never a politically stable country and King George I was assassinated in 1913.

King Constantine I—The Greek King Who Ruled Twice

King Constantine I (1865–1923) was the eldest son of King George I, and when he assumed the throne in 1913 he was a fairly popular military leader. He oversaw more territorial expansion of Greece, including the acquisitions of Cyprus and Crete. During WWI, however, he wanted to remain neutral, so the Allies forced him to abdicate in 1917.

King Constantine I’s eldest son had received military training in Germany and the Allies didn’t want him in power either, so the throne went to the second son. King Alexander I (1893–1920) was a weak king, with the political leader Eleutherios Venizelos taking control. When King Alexander I died a few years later, Venizelos took complete control.

Venizelos didn’t stay popular for long, though, and after staging an unsuccessful attack on the Ottoman Empire was defeated in the elections and a plebiscite voted Constantine back in power. Two years later the Turks slaughtered thousands of Greeks in Smyrna, leading to an army mutiny and a popular uprising, which caused King Constantine I to abdicate for good in 1922.

King George II—The Greek King Who Ruled Thrice

Constantine’s first son came to power as King George II (1890–1947) in 1922 after a rigged plebiscite. Quiet and powerless, George allowed a revolutionary committee to depose him two years later and he was thrown out of Greece. But after an unsuccessful government and a series of coups under Venizelos, a 1935 plebiscite voted for the restoration of the monarchy.

So King George II returned to reign a second time, but Greece was still riddled with problems, particularly communism. George fought the Communists for half a decade until 1941, when the Germans invaded and he had to flee to London. After WWII, more problems with the Communists led to civil war and they were eventually defeated. A 1946 plebiscite again voted for monarchy, and King George II returned for a third reign that lasted until his death a year later.

King Paul I and King Constantine II—The Last Greek Kings

King George’s brother came to power as King Paul I (1901–1964) in 1947. He too ruled over an unstable country, and was succeeded in 1964 by his son. King Constantine II (b.1940) had problems with the independence of Cyprus, and the “Colonel’s Coup” in 1967 effectively overthrew him, at which time he fled to Rome. In 1973 Colonel Papadopoulos deposed King Constantine II, and a plebiscite voted for a republic in 1975, ending the monarchy in Greece. As pretender to the throne, Constantine is concerned for the welfare of Greece and has said that he would return as king if asked.

Opfell, Olga S. Royalty Who Wait: The 21 Heads of Formerly Regnant Houses of Europe. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2001.

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