King Paul I (1901-1964) and Queen Frederika (1917-1981)


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Or maybe she was named after her aunt Irene, then Duchess of Aosta, who maybe was herself named after her aunt Irene, Princess Heinrich of Prussia...
 
:previous: She was born in 1942 and named Irini like many girls during the war because it means peace in Greek.

http://www.theoi.com/Ouranios/HoraEirene.html

a video clip with quotes from her book which shows her loyalty towards Greece during WW II and her visiting Greek armies during the Greek civil war which made her hugely popular (note she very often went alone, without her husband)

YouTube - A Measure Of Understanding Queen Frederica of the Hellenes

Alexandria said:
I have just found a great website that connects booksellers from around the world and sells specifically out of print and rare books and maps. I found 18 copies of Queen Frederika's book there, but the prince range was tremendous. For those who have read it, what would you say is a reasonable price for this book?

And so I have a better understanding, what is the book about specifically? Her life story or certain parts of her life?
Click to expand...
 
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Excuseme! It has an error, Irene was born in Cape Town, "Irene" was a town where Smuts had a house in Pretoria, now is a museum.Irene was born in Cape Town, I think that she was born in 'Grooteschuur House'....


http://img33.imageshack.us/my.php?image=museumirene.jpg

It is the house of Smuts in the Village of Irene in Pretoria.

http://img33.imageshack.us/my.php?image=southafrica.jpg

'Grooteschuur House', I think that she was born in this house.

Other picture of Smut it is airpot of Athens:

Imageshack - smuts

I agree with Susan Alicia. Irene means peace, and in time of war is very common this name
 
Like Prince Michael once said, King Constantine is the greekest Royal ever:)
And I´m proud that his/our grandmother, Duchess Viktoria-Luise of Braunschweig-Lüneburg, is related to the Greek Royal Family:)
 
talking about the funeral of Queen Frederika, I read newspapers of the time, she died on 6 of February at 23:30 pm, at the Palace of Zarzuela of a heart attack. this afternoon she was operated of Xanthelasma,it is a sharply demarcated yellowish collection of cholesterol underneath the skin, usually on or around of the eyes.
The Queen Sofia was in Baqueira Beret ,in Catalonia, she did not knew of the operation .. The intervention was simple and required only local anesthesia, but I found a newspaper of the time that said that the intervention was rejected by the personal physician of Queen federka in London,
his London physician had forbidden her to make that intervention, it is possible that this was because the Queen Frederica had a heart disease but she went to Spain and made it.
Her physician had forbidden her , months before,the operation.
This is the reason because she didn´t said nothing to sons.
 
That must have been such a shock to her children, which I'm sure made her death much harder. She really wasn't very old.
 
when she died was 63 years, and it was a shock to all.The spanish magazines said that Queen Sofia was all night in the room with the body of her mother, she didn´t want seperate of her mother...
 
I always read that this was a very serious medical negligence.
 
thank you by picture!!!!!!, the Queen Federika was very young
 
Thanks for the Pictures, Beltraneja, especially the one within the church! It must be rare!!!
 
IRIS1983 said:
I always read that this was a very serious medical negligence.
Click to expand...


That couldn´t be more wrong, she was extremely well looked after, it could happen to anyone, please read what Beltraneja said about it above.
 
BELTRANEJA said:
talking about the funeral of Queen Frederika, I read newspapers of the time, she died on 6 of February at 23:30 pm, at the Palace of Zarzuela of a heart attack. this afternoon she was operated of Xanthelasma,it is a sharply demarcated yellowish collection of cholesterol underneath the skin, usually on or around of the eyes...... The intervention was simple and required only local anesthesia, but I found a newspaper of the time that said that the intervention was rejected by the personal physician of Queen federka in London,
his London physician had forbidden her to make that intervention, it is possible that this was because the Queen Frederica had a heart disease but she went to Spain and made it.
Her physician had forbidden her , months before,the operation.
This is the reason because she didn´t said nothing to sons.
Click to expand...

You always present very good information which allows many conclusions to be drawn.

In Queen Frederika's case, based on the above information:
1) In general, operations with local anesthesia carry negligible, practically zero, risk, even for people who suffer from serious heart disease.
2) The fact that she had xanthelasmata suggests that her blood cholesterol was high and, possibly, she was suffering from coronary artery disease.
3) Thus, sudden cardian death or cardiac death due to an ischemic episode (=coronary artery event) was likely. But again, it would be hard to attribute it, etiologically I mean, to the operation that occurred a few hours earlier. What is likely is that the two events coincided by mere chance.

After all, it would be hard to believe that any physician taking care of any high-risk patient, let alone a public figure (which could have serious career repercussions for him), would have been that frivolous - even if the patient insisted on risk-taking.

Thanks again for the important information.
 
I do not think it was negligence because in the decade of the 80 medical advances were not like today, now the doctors require medical tests to intervention .... then it is possible that this was not required.I'm no doctor, but you can have reason and the intervention was not the cause of the stroke it could be a coincidence in time, it is possible ...The doctor was very prestigious in Spain.
 
Misunderstood

Queen Frederika was hated because Prime Minister Karamanlis asked why they led such what he considered an ostentatious lifestyle? Soon this simple question which was baseless spread among the people that the Queen was the ringleader of ostentatious living at the expense of the people.The people began to resent what appeared having to pay and pay for this ostenatious living which was never proved.At the Psychiko Villa on Diamantidou Street there is a Hindu bell in a mini temple the Queen had set up there and is now deserted.Karamanlis did not want the monarchy after Frederika because she was not easy to deal with as she held her ground successfully. Also I might add since her marriage to King Paul in 1938 she was stalwartly in Greece throught turbulent years in its history and just as things had started to smooth out so did she have to go to exile.1967
As for her untimely death Frederika had a heart condition and so should have had a certain element removed from the anaesthetic. However they did not remove that element which was integral to keep her alive and out of danger and she died due to heart failure as they had given her the works without probably bothering to check that she should have had that element removed or not entertained surgery at all.
 
I think , the Queen Federik was consort Queen , she made political statements,, it is possible that for a long time her political statements were respected by politic because the monarchy was a means of struggle against communism and because of steps which the monarchy had done to integrate to Greece in Marshall plans, but after her statements became a nuisance for politic and a weapon to attack the institution of monarchy.The economic sphere is always a critical element of the European monarchies by Republicans ...
 
Beltraneja is making excellent remarks!
Evidently, according to several accounts, Queen Frederika (QF) was as much loved until past the end of the civil war as she was hated starting in the early-mid 1950s and thereafter.
Fairly or unfairly to her, rightly or wrongly, the Right-wing governements of Marshall Papagos and later of C. Karamanlis, spanning the 1953-1963 decade, allowed the populus to form the belief that QF was mingling in politics and, worse, at times, that she was maintaining some type of contact with extreme Right-wing paramilitary organizations that were hated by the people.
The latter issue was blown out of proportion upon the assassination of professor of Obstetrics and EDA (Left-wing party) member of parliament Grigoris Lamprakis. At that time, prime minister Constantine karamanlis uttered in despair, "I wonder who is running this country" and shortly afterwards, he and Mme karamanlis (disguised as Mr. and Mrs. Triantafyllidis) left secretely the country. Indeed, history proved that he (Karamanlis) had no involvement in the activities of these organizations which were tormenting the people and, to a lesser or greater extent, controlling state affairs.
The implication of his innuendo was obvious, QF. Unfortunately, the Palace, did nothing at the time to protest the indirect accusation, to condemn the assassination, or to distance itself from various personalities that were closely linked to the ranks of the paramilitary.
For example, a brilliant public relations aide could or would have advised the Palace to send the then popular Diadoch Constantine to attend the funeral of G Lamprakis, which turned out to be a massive public affair.
 
If King Pavlos did not die so suddenly from cancer perhaps they will still be a Kingdom in Greece. Constantin was to young and Frederika , consort Queen and suddely Queen Mother took the first place and became un-popular ... SAD
 
thank you!!Vlaha Karatsokaros .. I admire to Queen Federika but I acknowledge that she was not perfect


When her remarks began to be criticized by politicians,they stressed that she was Queen Consort .When her husband died .... she ceased to be Queen of Greece so that her statements were more critical because she was not Queen of Greece . This is turned into perfect weapon for criticizing the monarchy and make unpopular to the institution ... King Constantine was 23 years old when he became King, the Queen Anne Marie became queen when she was 18, they had no experience in politics ... , the Queen Federik was 45 years old and politicians more young would had a higher age or resembling the Queen Federik .
 
maria-olivia said:
If King Pavlos did not die so suddenly from cancer perhaps they will still be a Kingdom in Greece. Constantin was to young and Frederika , consort Queen and suddely Queen Mother took the first place and became un-popular ... SAD
Click to expand...

As stated earlier, Queen Frederika's unpopularity started in the 50s. Although the Greek people believed strenuously that QF was ruling the country after King Paul's death, the truth is that King Constantine, who was quite opinionated (and this shows even today with his perseverance with minor issues), was heavily manipulated by bad advisors and this is what prompted the demise of the monarchy.
 
I think the main problem of the greek monarchy was that it had still too much political influence and power in contrast to other european monarchies. I mean, what´s a prime minister for when the king can easily turn down his decisions?
If the greek monarchial system had been altered in the late 1950s or early 60s, it still could be there - with or without a strongwilled Queenmother.
It´s so sad as this family is so sympathetic and they could be great REPRESENTATIVES of greece!
 
Thanks Vlaha and Wartenberg 7 for your interesting informations I didn't know.
 
I don't think she ever was a universaly liked queen. Even some monarchists disliked her because they though she was too headstrong and would damage the institution. One thing is for sure: up until today no one who has lived during the monarchy has a neutral opinion about her. Those who were supporting her really adored her. Those who were against her really despiced her! She was certainly a lady which provoked great passions!

I personally am no fan of hers and I think she was just not suitable to be a queen. I don't mean she was not worthy to be a queen. I mean she didn't have the neccesary personality to be a queen. She should be a national, neutral, unifying fugire and she clearly wasn't. Far too meddling into politics. I do not know if she meddled for good or bad because I haven't research it myself but no one can deny that she was just too involved in politics. I realised what a stereotype she had created in greece when I asked a friend of my great aunt what was her opinion about Anne Marie and she said she always liked her because "she was always sweet and charming and the importantly she never meddle into the government like Frederica she just minded her own bussiness!"
 
Do you think Queen Frederica's German birth had anything to do her unpopularity in Greece? They have just had to endure her mother-in-law, Queen Sofie.... another German who wasn't well liked on a whole either...
 
CarolinaLandgrave said:
Do you think Queen Frederica's German birth had anything to do her unpopularity in Greece? They have just had to endure her mother-in-law, Queen Sofie.... another German who wasn't well liked on a whole either...
Click to expand...

Yes , her being German was a reason for dislike. But it was more than her origin that led to her unpopularity. In fact every Queen in Greece was accused of beihg a spy occasionaly but it went off after a while ( when it comes to Sophie, I believe that people blame more her husband for beigh close to the Kaiser than Sophie.). But in Frederika's case she was accused for much more than just being a German
 
It baffles me how the masses will search out a scapegoat anywhere..... For it was the Sophie who the Greeks accused of having a special line to Berlin in the Palace in Athens...... yet it was Sofie who broke off relations with the Kaiser when her "excommunicated" her from the Lutheran Church when she converted to Greek Orthodoxy...... oh the tangled webs!!!
 
Well Sophie might have been accused of being a German spy, but no one ever though of Konstantine as an innocent man who was misleaded by an evil German witch. In fact up until today most people believe that the fact he got married to a German just proved his german sympathies. Many Greek people watch Sophie as the proof of Konstantine's german sympathies and even by her worst emenies was not accused of being the one leading the countrie 's faith alone.
 
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