Wedding of Constantine II of Greece and Anne-Marie of Denmark

The wedding of King Constantine II of the Hellenes, and Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark took place on Friday, 18 September 1964 at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens. Constantine II, King of the Hellenes was the only son of King Paul of the Hellenes and Princess Friederike of Hanover, while Princess Anne-Marie was the youngest daughter of King Frederick IX of Denmark and Princess Ingrid of Sweden. It was the first, and to date only, wedding of a Greek monarch whilst they sat on the throne to be held in Greece.

Engagement[]

The couple, third cousins through both Victoria of the United Kingdom and Christian IX of Denmark, first met in 1959 when then Crown Prince Constantine accompanied his parents on a state visit to Denmark. Princess Anne-Marie was just 13 at the time. They met again in 1961, and in 1962, Anne-Marie was a bridesmaid at the wedding of Constantine's older sister, Princess Sophia, to Infante Juan Carlos of Spain. In 1962, Princess Anne-Marie was on holiday with her governess in Norway, where Crown Prince Constantine was attending a yacht racing event, he proposed, she accepted. King Frederick IX initially withheld his consent, as Anne-Marie was only 15 at the time, but eventually relented on the conditions that she finish her education and reach her 18th birthday.^[1]

On 23 January 1963, the Danish royal court announced the engagement. The wedding was initially set for January 1965. Following the death of King Paul on 6 March 1964, the date was moved up.^{[citation needed]}

Pre-wedding celebrations[]

Constantine and Anne-Marie at their pre-wedding gala at the Royal Palace.

In Denmark[]

The celebrations began in early September 1964. On 7 September, Constantine II arrived in Denmark where a private dinner was held at Fredensborg Palace. The next day, there was a gala performance at the Royal Danish Theatre followed by a banquet at Christiansborg Palace. The next morning, a reception was held at Copenhagen City Hall.^{[citation needed]}

In Greece[]

King Constantine II, Princess Anne-Marie, King Frederick IX, Queen Ingrid, Princess Margrethe and Princess Benedikte sailed to Greece onboard the Danish royal yacht Dannebrog. A reception was held in honour of the Danish royal family at the Hotel Grande Bretagne.

On 16 September, most of the royal guests arrived in Greece by plane. That evening, a gala was held at the Royal Palace for 1,600 invited guests.^{[citation needed]}

Wedding[]

Constantine and Anne-Marie were married on 18 September 1964, two weeks after Anne-Marie's 18th birthday.^[2]

Ceremony[]

The marriage ceremony, taking place in the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens, was conducted by Chrysostomos II, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece.

Attire[]

Princess Anne-Marie wore a relatively unadorned gown by Danish designer, Jørgen Bender. Her Irish lace veil, worn by her maternal grandmother, Princess Margaret of Connaught at her own wedding in 1905, was anchored by a Cartier diamond tiara given to Princess Margaret by the Khedive of Egypt. The veil had also been worn by her mother, Queen Ingrid, in 1935. The veil and tiara together have been worn by all of Ingrid's female descendants.^{[citation needed]}

King Constantine II wore the ceremonial uniform of field marshal of the Hellenic Army. He wore the riband and star of the Order of the Redeemer as well as all his other medals and decorations.^[3]

Attendants[]

Bridesmaids[]

• Princess Anne of the United Kingdom
• Princess Christina of Sweden
• Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark
• Princess Margareta of Romania
• Princess Clarissa of Hesse
• Princess Tatiana Radziwiłł

Crown bearers[]

• The Crown Prince of Norway
• The Crown Prince of Sweden
• Crown Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia
• The Prince of Wales
• Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark
• Prince Ingolf of Denmark
• Prince Michael of Kent
• Prince Karl of Hesse
• Count Michael Bernadotte af Wisborg

Guests[]

The wedding was attended by 1200 guests from all over the world.^[4] As both the bride and groom were descendants of Victoria of the United Kingdom and Christian IX of Denmark, they were closely related to almost all of the royal houses in Europe, many of whom were in attendance.

Relatives of the bride[]

House of Glücksburg[]

• The King and Queen of Denmark, the bride's parents
  • Princess Margrethe of Denmark, the bride's sister
  • Princess Benedikte of Denmark, the bride's sister
• Prince Ingolf of Denmark, the bride's paternal first cousin

House of Bernadotte[]

• The King of Sweden, the bride's maternal grandfather
  • Princess Christina of Sweden, the bride's maternal first cousin
  • The Crown Prince of Sweden, the bride's maternal first cousin
  • Count Michael Bernadotte af Wisborg, the bride's maternal first cousin

Relatives of the groom[]

House of Glücksburg[]

• Queen Frederica of Greece, the groom's mother
  • The Princess and Prince of Asturias, the groom's sister and brother-in-law
  • Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark, the groom's sister
• Princess Katherine of Greece and Denmark and Major Richard Brandram, the groom's paternal aunt and uncle
• Princess Eugénie, Duchess of Castel Duino and The Duke of Castel Duino, the groom's paternal first cousin, once removed, and her husband
  • Princess Tatiana Radziwiłł, the groom's paternal second cousin
  • Prince George Radziwiłł, the groom's paternal second cousin
• Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark, the groom's paternal great-aunt by marriage
• Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark, the groom's paternal first cousin, once removed

House of Hanover[]

• The Duchess of Brunswick, the groom's maternal grandmother
  • Prince and Princess George William of Hanover, the groom's maternal uncle and aunt
    • Prince Karl of Hesse, the groom's paternal second cousin
    • Princess Clarissa of Hesse, the groom's paternal second cousin

Other royal guests[]

• The King and Queen of the Belgians, the bride's second cousin and his wife
• The Queen and Prince Consort of the Netherlands, the bride's first cousin, twice removed, and her husband
  • Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, the bride's second cousin, once removed
• The King of Norway, the bride's paternal first cousin, once removed
  • The Crown Prince of Norway, the bride's paternal second cousin
• The Duke of Edinburgh, the groom's paternal first cousin, once removed (representing the Queen of the United Kingdom)
  • The Prince of Wales, the groom's paternal second cousin
  • The Princess Anne, the groom's paternal second cousin
• Prince Michael of Kent, the groom's paternal second cousin
• The Earl Mountbatten of Burma, the bride and groom's mutual second cousin, once removed
• King Umberto II and Queen Marie-José of Italy, the bride and groom's mutual third cousin, twice removed
  • The Prince of Naples, the bride and groom's mutual fourth cousin, once removed
  • Princess Maria Gabriella of Savoy, the bride and groom's mutual fourth cousin, once removed
  • Princess Maria Beatrice of Savoy, the bride and groom's mutual fourth cousin, once removed
• Princess Irene, Duchess of Aosta, the groom's paternal aunt
  • The Duke and Duchess of Aosta, the groom's paternal first cousin and his wife
• Queen Mother Helen of Romania, the groom's paternal aunt
  • King Michael I and Queen Anne of Romania, the groom's paternal first cousin and his wife, the bride and groom's mutual second cousin, once removed
    • Princess Margareta of Romania, the groom's paternal first cousin, once removed
• Tsar Simeon II and Tsarista Margarita of Bulgaria, the bride and groom's mutual fourth cousin, once removed, and his wife
• The Count and Countess of Barcelona, the bride and groom's mutual second cousin, once removed, and his wife (also parents of the groom's brother-in-law)
  • Infanta Pilar of Spain, the bride and groom's mutual third cousin
• The Hereditary Grand Duke and Hereditary Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, the bride's second cousin and her husband
• Crown Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia, the groom's paternal first cousin, once removed
• Princess Paul of Yugoslavia, the groom's paternal first cousin, once removed
• The Prince and Princess of Liechtenstein
• The Prince and Princess of Monaco
• The Duke and Duchess of Württemberg
• The King and Queen of Thailand
• The King and Princess Muna al-Hussein of Jordan
• Queen Farida of Egypt

References[]