I think what dbarn67 is getting at is that it is odd in this day and age to criticise the spouse of a royal solely on the grounds of their family background. If the "parvenue" comment had appeared in Tatler or some other snooty society magazine we could understand where it was coming from, but otherwise it's a rather outmoded and unoriginal way of belittling someone. If Pandora had claimed that Marie Chantal was a bad person, or a negligent mother, or something of substance, the criticism would carry more weight rather than resorting to Olde World snobbery.
Your point is well taken and to an extent I would agree with you. Having said that, the Hellenes must be viewed, and every nation as well, in the context of their overall heritage and perspective, which consists of many components of which I shall quote the ones pertinent to this discussion:
1.
History. What is 100 years of history for many nations, is one hour's or one minute's history for Greece. Because of that, the Hellenes, even the few remaining uneducated ones, are attached to, and can identify with, history as well as what goes with it, the mythical, the mystical and the sublime.
2.
Monarchy-Kingdom-Empire. The Hellenes achieved the zenith of their intellectual capacity during the
Pericleian Democracy. However, one should not underestimate the role of the monarchy as in the
Argeian and
Minoan kingdoms, or of the imperium as promulgated by Alexander of Macedon or, much later, by the Byzantines. Indeed, the Hellenes were able to also identify with kings and emperors as long as the latter were part of history and the Hellenic heritage and as long as they could uplift and exalt the populus from the mundane and the pedestrian. Even in the recent past, in modern Greece that is, the Hellenes were capable of identifying with what in their minds represented the "mythical" and the "sublime". For instance, the Hellenes loved
Olga Konstantinovna, and hated
Sofia of Prussia and
Frederika of Hanover but, in the end, respected all three because of their provenance and the history they carried in their bagage.
3.
Intellectual excellence. The Hellenes have always excelled in entrepreneurship. However, whereas the average citizen of the western world is awed and inspired by such names as
Onasis, Niarchos and
Latsis, the average Hellene enjoys the publicity through, but is not impressed by, them.
Going to a distinguished finishing school such as
Gordonstoun or
Eton carries gravitas but does not suffice ti impress the Hellenes. The average middle-class 25-year-old boy or girl, nowadays, is expected to be a physician, an economist, an engineer, a lawyer and to have obtained at least a master's degree in England or the USA. In the context of globalization, the market is getting very competitive and good jobs are hard to get in Greece.
In the context of all the above, it is no surprise that Mrs Miller-de Grecia* has not fared well with the Hellenes, even in her capacity as the wife of a courtesy prince. And really, there is nothing personal against the particular lady who may indeed be oustanding and a perfect addition to the de Grecia [surname quoted in King Constantine's Danish passport] family. She is just the wrong kind for the Greek setting. Someone like the former Miss Donaldson or princess Maxima of the Netherlands would have done very well with the Hellenes for, albeit non royal, they are women of substance, from the professions, and successful in their own rights.
Last but not least, every history and self-respecting individual would agree that Greece is not about Valentino, Armani, Mykonos or gyros and souvlaki with pitta bread. For good or bad, Greece is the cradle of Western Civilization and ought to be preserved as such for the common good.
*By Greek Law introduced in the 1980s, if Mrs. Miller-de Grecia were to become a Greek citizen, she would remain Mrs. Miller, since all women retain their maiden surname upon marriage. Outside Greece, [whether she is an American or British or Danish citizen] her appropriate name is Mrs. Miller or Mrs. Miller-de Grecia or Mrs. de Grecia, since, after king Constantine's adoption of the
de Grecia surname, all of his children (including her husband) inherited automatically the same.
