Alexander I, King of the Hellenes, ruled Greece from 1917-1920. He was born on 21 July (O.S.) = 1 August 1893 at Tatoi near Athens, the second son of Constantine I and his wife, Princess Sophie of Prussia.
In 1917, Constantine I, known for his pro-German tendencies, insisted that Greece remain neutral in World War I, while Prime minister Eleftherios Venizelos was determined to go to war in support of the Triple Entente. At Venizelos' invitation, French and British troops entered Greece and forced Constantine I and his first born son Prince George into exile. Young Alexander was enthroned as king; in reality he had absolutely no power, and his only real task was to frequently visit the front and rally the troops. On one major issue, however, he did defy Venizelos: On 4 November 1919 he eloped with a commoner, Aspasia Manos (1896-1972), daughter of Colonel Petros Manos, causing a scandal and infuriating Venizelos who had wanted the young king to marry princess Mary, daughter of king George V of England. The royal couple was forced to temporarily flee to Paris, until the crisis was resolved and his wedding was legalized. On 25 October 1920 he died at Athens, of sepsis, after been bitten by a pet monkey. After his death, his father was permitted to return to Greece as a king. His only child, born after his death, was Alexandra of Greece (1921-1993), who later married Peter II, King of Yugoslavia. References * Hindley, Geoffrey (2000). The Royal Families of Europe. New York: Caroll & Graf. ISBN 0-7867-0828-X. * Encyclopedia Britannica, edition 15 (1990). Article: Alexander (Greece) * Miroslav Marek. "Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg." Genealogy.Eu. Accessed on Jun 30, 2005. More at, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_of_Greece_(king) Avelino Bastora/Kuwait _________ Seb dc wrote: From: "D'Souza, Avelino" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >>One day while he was trying to stop his gardener's pet monkey from attacking his pet Alsatian (Fritz), Alexander I of Greece was bitten on the leg. By whom? the Monkey or the Dog?? Just joking.... >>After enduring eleven operations, the king died of blood poisoning. Though an early amputation would surely have saved him, Alexander's doctors refused to perform the operation - on the grounds that the leg was Royal. How about Cold blooded and Pure blooded ? as someone pointed out on goanet recently about Ms. Mascarenhas. >>Alexander I, (?-1920) Greek king Why the ? mark, When was he born. Do I need to quote Karl M.:-) hAVE a nICE dAY Seb..
