Greek State Visit to Germany, 1956

Embed from Getty Images

After a State Visit to France earlier that year, King Paul  and Queen Frederica of Greece, joined by Crown Prince Constantine and Princess Sophia, went on a 10-day State Visit to Germany on this day in 1956, starting in Bonn, where they were hosted by President Theodor Heuss. On their first evening, the President hosted a State Banquet in honour of the King and Queen (in the Greek Emerald Parure) at the Presidential Palace in Bonn, at which the Queen’s four brothers, the Prince and Princess of Hannover (wearing the Hannover Diamond Necklace Tiara), Prince George William and Princess Sophie (in the Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara), Prince Christian Oscar and Prince Welf Henry, were invited but her mother, Princess Victoria Louise, Duchess of Brunswick, was not due to family disagreements, as stated:

At the beginning of October 1956, while the trial was pending, Kings Paul and Frederick paid an official visit to Germany. Then various comedic-tragic events took place, which, coming to light, were commented on unfavorably. The Greek Royal Court asked the President of the Republic not to invite the King’s mother-in-law to the official reception at the Presidential Palace in Bonn. The President found himself in a difficult position but obeyed (the Queen’s four brothers were invited and came to the reception). When asked by the Greek ambassador in Bonn not to invite Victoria-Louisa to the official reciprocal reception that the Kings would give at the historic Petersburg Hotel, the frightened ambassador replied that the invitation had already been sent!

The State Visit included visits to a number of cities historically associated with the House of Hannover, the family of Queen Frederica; Essen, Hannover, Brunswick, Celle, and Lunenburg. When the Greek Royal Family arrived at the family seat of Schloss Marienburg, they visited Prince Victoria-Louise in her apartment and then went to attend a Reception in the State Rooms. Later, when the residents shouted for the royal couple on the balcony, they went out, everyone cheered for them but some voices said “where is your mother?”, which prompted Princess Victoria-Louise to go out on her own separate balcony.

King Paul and Queen Frederica (wearing the Greek Ruby Parure) were joined by Crown Prince Constantine and Princess Sophia, the Prince and Princess of Hannover (wearing the Hannover Diamond Necklace Tiara), Prince George William and Princess Sophie (in the Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara), Prince Christian Oscar and Prince Welf Henry of Hannover at the aforementioned Return Banquet at the Petersburg Hotel in Bonn (though it appears to be Schloss Marienburg in the footage), where again Princess Victoria Louise was conspicuous by her absence though she had been invited by the Greek Ambassador.

25

25

Greek Royal Chronicles

Leave a Reply