Thousands turn out to bid farewell to Greece’s former king
The casket carrying the former and last king of Greece has emerged from Athens’ metropolitan cathedral after a funeral service attended by royalty from across Europe
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — As a crowd of thousands chanted “Long live the king” and “Constantine, Constantine,” the casket carrying the former and last monarch of Greece emerged from Athens' metropolitan cathedral Monday after a funeral service attended by royalty from across Europe.
Constantine's wife, Anne-Marie, the sister of Denmark's Queen Margrethe II, and his eldest son, Pavlos, followed at the head of the funeral procession. The casket, draped with the Greek flag, was loaded into a hearse for the trip to Tatoi, a former royal estate north of Athens where Constantine was to be buried near his parents and ancestors.
Once a richly forested site popular with Athenians for picnics and nature walks, Tatoi was ravaged by a wildfire about two years ago and had remained mostly blackened and derelict ever since. Cleanup crews worked feverishly since Constantine's death last week at age 82 to clean up the site in time for Monday's funeral.
A referendum definitively abolished Greece's monarchy in 1974. Constantine, a controversial figure during a turbulent time in Greek history, spent decades in exile before returning to settle in his home country in his waning years.
