Princess of Greece and Denmark
Helen was born in Athens, the third child of Crown Prince Constantine of Greece (later King Constantine I) and of his wife, Princess Sophia of Prussia. Helen had three brothers each of whom reigned as kings of Greece - George II, Alexander, and Paul - and two sisters, Irene and Katherine.
In 1910 Helen went into exile with her parents and siblings as a result of a military plot to put her father on the Greek throne in place of her grandfather King George I of Greece. The family spent the summer at Schloss Friedrichshof, the home of Helen's maternal aunt Margaret, Landgravine of Hesse. They spent the winter at a hotel in Frankfurt before returning to Athens.
In 1917 Helen and her family went into exile a second time as a result of her father not supporting the Allies in World War I. After a brief stay at St. Moritz, the family moved to a villa near Zurich. Their movements were severely restricted by the Allies; they had to reside in the German-speaking part of Switzerland, their French and English staff had to be dismissed, and they were not permitted contact with other French and English people.
Read more about this topic: Helen Of Greece And Denmark
Famous quotes containing the words princess and/or greece:
“My generation had Doris Day as a role model, then Gloria Steinem—then Princess Diana. We are the most confused generation.”
—Erica Jong (b. 1942)
“Tell Greece that her spring has been taken out of her year.”
—Herodotus (c. 484–424 B.C.)