Education of the children of Pavlos and Marie-Chantal

[NotHRH]

Originally Posted by stef

I am Greek, I live in Greece, I believe in the monarchy, I like the royal family, and it turns out for you I'm pathetic, for believe in these people. If i would comunist is possible that I would not pathetic, but I prefer be monarchy and pathetic

Stef,
I do not consider people who want the GRF restored to power in Greece as 'pathetic.' My point was that some in the GRF live in the past and they need to rid themselves of the idea that the glory days of the GRF will take place in the not-to-distant future. I am positive that this monarchy was deposed for very good reasons and grounds. They really need to realize the reality of their situation and not be looking through 'rose-colored glasses,' and their imagined glory of the restoration of a GRF is simply very 'sad' and 'pathetic' IMO!

[Bella]

Does anyone really believe that any members of the GRF truly think there is a chance that the monarchy will be restored in Greece? I'm sure it's a lingering dream, but I've always had the impression that members of the GRF are pretty realistic that the chances are slim to none, at least in Constantine's lifetime and probably Pavlos' too.

[NotHRH]

Originally Posted by BELTRANEJA

...Know greek will not change their current situation. But I think they should know it by their ancestors, were kings of Greece. This is not a legal obligation to them, this is my opinio.

I do understand your feelings about this subject. If only' s are stated all the time. If only Princess Theodora knew/would learn Greek, if only Pavlos/his children would learn Greek, etc, etc, etc............. If only I knew my grandmother's native language of Cajun French, but in reality, I do not and probably never will. My only point is - change is inevitable. Time is the measure of the way all things change and not the other way around. I know in your heart of hearts, you only want the best for your country's former royal family and only mean well toward them. It saddens me to realize you are very heart-broken that the former GRF has not taught Greek to the next generation of their family. Remember, change is inevitable - simply by the definition of 'time' itself. My heart does sincerely go out to you and I hope my comments have not saddened you further.

[IloveCP]

I understand that they don't know Greek since they don't live in Greece.Plus,it's not an easy langauge to learn!

[roimat]

Sorry, but not living in Greece isn't an excuse, especially for the wanna be Queen of Greece and her children. It's just a matter of priorities. Princes Pavlos and Nikolas lived abroad, but speak Greek perfectly, and also Princess Alexia does. Mrs Chantal Miller has other priorities, and she grows up her children as Americans. My question is, why King Constantine and Prince Pavlos let her doing that? Unless they don't have problem with that, witch, in that case, tell me a lot about what they think about the future...

[Cory]

I suppose the children are learning Greek from their own father.

[fandesacs2003]

We know that Marie-Chantal does not speak greek but the children might go to the Hellenik College of London.

[stef]

They have a Greek tutor:)

[Carminha Stalker]

Stef: I am not Greek but I LOVE the GRF. I think that they enhance the image of Greece nuch more than faceless politicians would. I don´t care what passports they have and that somebody decreed that Pavlos is not Greek even though he was born there, as well as his father was. It´s patent for me that they love to be there, not only for holidays, but for important occasions such as weddings and christenings.You are so right to believe in them.

[fandesacs2003]

I'm Greek, I'm not royalist, but i fully agree with you. This passeport story was a shame, and a stupidity. And how can you deny national feelings to someone, who is living somewhere for 4 generations!

[emmeleia]

I am also Greek...
The story with the passport had to do with the abolition of monarchy in Greece and the fact that the grf were prohibited to come to Greece....The fact is, as I have heard it from my parents because I was not born then, that in 1974 the political situation in Greece was way toooooo against the ex King....He represented sth old and everyone wanted to go forward and leave behind the old era of suppression...He made a lot of mistakes, this is undoubtful and he payed in a rather harsh way....

In my opininion, Pavlos and his family see Greece as a sightseeing attraction and as a part of their ancestors' history, concerning their glory and their success as royals and european aristocrats. They are european aristocrats far more that being Greeks....
And the fact that they do not speak greek proves it greatly.... I have heard Pavlos speaking greek...he has not an excellent level of knowledge of the greek language, by any means no. He speaks adequately, he can find his way as a tourist but he cannot develop a subject. Nikolaos speaks Greek a lot more better than his brother and Alexia also....
Children not learning greek? The last ten or more years I read that the children have a greek tutor, they study greek language etc. And yet they do not speak greek because MC says that it is difficult away from Greece..... ha ha ha ha. I speak english because I have studied it from 8 years old in school but I have never gone to England.... This is a view over learning? in order to learn sth, you have to live with it?

MC, for me, wants her children to be european aristocrats and businesspeople....
I cannot believe in any way that they want to come here.... Live in London in wealth and glory and come in Athens? it is a joke!
Constantine is another chapter because he has lived in Greece and bears the pain of losing his monarchy...

[Devoe]

On the subject of languages.

I speak, read and write English and French fluently. I can speak and read tourist Spanish and I speak and understand Low German. I am of Irish descent. I do not speak Gaelic, but I still consider myself Irish. I am sure that HRH Crown Prince Pavlos and his family feel the same way. That said, anyone who thinks that learning a foreign language is a waste of time if you don't live in a country where that language is spoken? They live in a very small world, and its not one I would personally want to be a part of.

As for the fact that Greek should be the children's first language - I have many friends whose parents speak too different languages. Usually the kids learn to speak one language to Dad and another to Mom. My ex-fiance was Low German, and my grasp of the language, pronunciation wise is weak at best - so our plan was English as a family, Low German to Dad and French to Mom - we have no way of knowing the personal details of how MC and Pavlos live their lives unless they make it public. So perhaps we shouldn't judge.

[carlota]

in this interview pavlos and MC gave to hola in 2000, they mentioned they got a greek nanny and learnt some phrases from her (i guess she´s talking about herself, as pavlos, i believe, speaks greek).

Hello interview, October 24, 2000

With that in mind, the couple plan to ensure that their children grow up with a strong awareness of Hellenic culture. "We had a Greek nanny spend three months with us in the summer," says Marie-Chantal. "She didn't speak a word of English, so she and my husband were always speaking Greek together, and you'd be surprised how many words and phrases picked up. We are so far from Greece, but we are doing our best."

[wartenberg7]

[QUOTE=emmeleia;1324951]I am also Greek...
The story with the passport had to do with the abolition of monarchy in Greece and the fact that the grf were prohibited to come to Greece....The fact is, as I have heard it from my parents because I was not born then, that in 1974 the political situation in Greece was way toooooo against the ex King....He represented sth old and everyone wanted to go forward and leave behind the old era of suppression...He made a lot of mistakes, this is undoubtful and he payed in a rather harsh way....
And the fact that they do not speak greek proves it greatly.... I have heard Pavlos speaking greek...he has not an excellent level of knowledge of the greek language, by any means no. He speaks adequately, he can find his way as a tourist but he cannot develop a subject. Nikolaos speaks Greek a lot more better than his brother and Alexia also....



Of course you can learn a language though not living in this country, but certainly not properly as a native speaking person!
It is very unfair to blame Pavlos or the younger children of C and AM for not being too good at speaking greek while at the same time knowing they were prevented all their childhood from living in their homecountry!
As for King Constantines "mistakes": What mistakes has he been done in your opinion apart from being a twentysomething, unexperienced head of state? He stated over and over again if he stayed in Greece a civil war might have broken out. He tried to overthrow the Junta regime after months of secret planning with his last faithful ones. They failed as we know. I believe him that he tried everything he could!
There are lots of heads of states, not only monarchs, who make mistakes even on purpose, and normally they get away with it. King Constantine has been punished way too hard for something he didn´t do. (It wasn´t him to stage a coup!!!). I guess the whole experience in 1967 was a welcomed situation for some to get rid of the monarchy - and afterwards people claim "Oh, that´s all right! Constantine made many mistakes and brought the country into deep trouble..."
As for the endless, tyring discussions about his title: I have never heard of a king or an emperor not to use the kingly title after being deposed! That also seems to be a typical greek thing... When we talk about King Michael of Romania we know he was deposed by the communists and is not the current head of state. The same goes for King Simeon of Bulgaria. No one in Germany would call Wilhelm II Wilhelm Hohenzollern altough only a few people wish for a restoration. I could name more and more Kings in history being send into exile but still called by their royal title. I stick to Queen Elizabeth II: She claims once a monarch, always a monarch - deposed or not. And she´s, as always about royal issues, perfectly right!

[crm2317]

As per a photo on Marie-Chantal's Instagram she, Pavlos and Maria Olympia went for a tour of Georgetown University. They were accompanied by two of their sons; Odysseus Kimon and Aristide Stavros.

[emmeleia]

Originally Posted by wartenberg7

Of course you can learn a language though not living in this country, but certainly not properly as a native speaking person!
It is very unfair to blame Pavlos or the younger children of C and AM for not being too good at speaking greek while at the same time knowing they were prevented all their childhood from living in their homecountry!
As for King Constantines "mistakes": What mistakes has he been done in your opinion apart from being a twentysomething, unexperienced head of state? He stated over and over again if he stayed in Greece a civil war might have broken out. He tried to overthrow the Junta regime after months of secret planning with his last faithful ones. They failed as we know. I believe him that he tried everything he could!

I said that Pavlos' knowledge of greek is not adequate, he speaks like a tourist, that meaning he speaks basically. I disagree that this lack is due to the fact they live abroad. How many Greeks live in Australia, Canada, USA, Germany, third and fourth generations, and their greek is perfect like mine, like eveyone's residing in this country... Sometimes I hear them speaking and I cannot tell the difference.
It is not at all unfair, it is simple common sense: I try to learn a foreign language, use the internet, books, free seminars, etc, and Pavlos has all the wealth and potential to get the best tutors and methods to make his greek better and he doesn't. Is it unfair for me when I have no money beside me and I try to find free ways to learn or unfair for him who has the money, the potential and an impressive aristocratic title?

And yes, it is disturbing for me to watch someone who wants to be called CP of Greece and not speaking greek. Although, personally, I like them as persons and as family, as a greek citizen I don't like it.
Would you like to see a german prince not speaking german adequately? How would you feel?

Concerning ex-King, his mistakes were during all his kingship, he was too involved in the political affairs, forcing ministers etc to resign. Let's say he had bad counsellors, as he himself has stated, the result is the same. He himself has stated that he was fully prepared for becoming the King, all his life he was prepared. But then how it is possible to commit such mistakes? The junta was just the top of the iceberg. I don' t like the fact he left the country. I also don't like the fact the grf left the country during WW2. Would you imagine King George in England leaving his country?

My opinion is that they always were european royals and not greeks. They see Greece as a vacation place and a place where their dynasty had some good moments.

[polyesco]

Originally Posted by crm2317

As per a photo on Marie-Chantal's Instagram she, Pavlos and Maria Olympia went for a tour of Georgetown University. They were accompanied by two of their sons; Odysseus Kimon and Aristide Stavros.

Here is the pic
http://distilleryimage7.s3.amazonaws...0d74e4df_8.jpg

[Chris922]

Goodness! MO certainly has a mouthful of teeth, doesn't she?

[julliette]

When is Maria Olympia supposed to start university? Next academic year?

[wartenberg7]

Originally Posted by emmeleia

I said that Pavlos' knowledge of greek is not adequate, he speaks like a tourist, that meaning he speaks basically. I disagree that this lack is due to the fact they live abroad. How many Greeks live in Australia, Canada, USA, Germany, third and fourth generations, and their greek is perfect like mine, like eveyone's residing in this country... Sometimes I hear them speaking and I cannot tell the difference.

Pavlos had to leave the country as a baby - so he´s not to blame; I consider myself being pretty good in english (by all the things you mentioned: Internet, books, school etc.) - but I´m sure, after all these years, a native english speaker could still hear that I´m not british! Simply because I don´t live in England, the US or where ever.
Here at my place many people from Turkey, for instance, live here since the 1960s - they all have thick accents and their grammar is often very bad indeed (many from the older generation don´t speak a word of german even after 30 or more years in this country!). Even their children or grandchildren, born and raised here, often have accents, use the "he, she, it" in a wrong way etc. Not everyone, but many.

Would you like to see a german prince not speaking german adequately? How would you feel?

Well, all the german princes we have didn´t have to leave the country. Except from the Kaiser and his wife many from the imperial family stayed after 1918.
A german Prince talking with a slight accent is the current head of the house of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Prince Andreas, because he lived during the Cold War in the USA. If Germany would restore a monarchy and they would choose him, why not? It wouldn´t bother me at all!

King Constantine was trained for 23 years, actually less than 20 years as they were abroad during WWII - others become King at the age of 45, 50 or even older. So how can you say he was prepared for "all his life" when he had to take over at an age when many are almost half kids, thinking to go to university or do something else and trying to find out, who and what they are!
It was NOT his mistake that the system of this particular monarchy gave the monarch the right to mingle into politics. He didn´t abuse this right, it was in fact expected of him! Another reason why I think royals should always be constitutional monarchs and not political ones because you can never act poltically and satisfy everyone. There will always be some who don´t like your decisions.
Many royal families HAD to leave the country at WW II (Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, Yugoslavia) as they didn´t live on an island like the brit. Royal family. Have you ever seen old movietones of the norwegian or dutch royal families returning home?! Thousands and thousands of people mobbed and cheered them all their way to the palace because everyone was so thrilled and happy to have them back again!
Of course the brit. King would have left the country if he lived on the continent and not on this safe island. And they knew exactly if an invasion was close at hand or not. The danger and threats of what the Nazis could have done with George VI or use him and his family to blackmail the brit. government would have been much too great!

My opinion is that they always were european royals and not greeks. They see Greece as a vacation place and a place where their dynasty had some good moments.

The King was born in Greece, was his head of state, won the first olympic medal ever for his country, so of course he is greek and to deny this is simply outrageous!