When the Olympian King married his Danish bride: How sailing gold medalist Constantine of Greece tied the knot with Queen Anne-Marie 60 years ago in gilded Athens ceremony... and Princess Anne was a bridesmaid
Today would have been the diamond wedding anniversary of the late King Constantine II of Greece and his beloved wife Queen Anne-Marie. The couple married 60 years ago, on September 18, 1964, just six months after Constantine had been crowned King. Wearing a diamond cross pendant, 18-year-old Anne-Marie walked down the aisle and stood opposite her beau, who at 24 was already an Olympic gold medallist after triumphing in sailing four years earlier in Rome. The Daily Mail told at the time how Athens was 'rampant with royalty', as gilded guests arrived from all over the world. Chief among the guests were his relatives, the British royals. Prince Philip - Constantine's father's first cousin - led his two eldest children, Prince Charles, 15, and Princess Anne, 14, who was a bridesmaid. Constantine and Anne-Marie, who had met a few years earlier, would go on to have five children during their 58-year marriage, which ended when the king died aged 82 in January 2023. Just as she had been at his wedding, Anne attended his private funeral in Athens, before King Charles and Queen Camilla led a host of British and European royals at a service of thanksgiving at Windsor Castle in February this year.Anne-Marie, who is now 78, showed her love for her husband by wearing the diamond cross pendant at his funeral. King Constantine of Greece and his wife Queen Anne-Marie on their wedding day in Athens on September 18, 1964 Princess Anne, then 14 was a bridesmaid for the couple. Above: Anne (bottom left) flanked by other bridesmaids as the happy couple pose with family and delighted guests Queen Anne-Marie wore the same diamond cross pendant that she wore on her wedding day to her husband's funeral last year (left). Right: King Constantine at the birthday dinner of his sister-in-law Queen Margrithe of Denmark in 2015Constantine and Anne-Marie courted speaking in English as it was the only language they could both understand, the Daily Mail reported at the time. Their regal wedding ceremony, held at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Athens, was attended by royals from around the world. The guest list also included Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, Queen Fabiola of Belgium, the Queen of Sweden and others. In line with Greek tradition, the wedding rings were slipped on and off the bride and groom's fingers three times and they drank wine from the Communion chalice thrice too. One million people lined the streets to watch the wedding procession in jubilant Athens. The newly-wed King Constantine and Queen Anne-Marie outside the Metropolitan Cathedral in Athens after their wedding The ceremony followed Greek tradition and the wedding rings were slipped onto the bride and groom's fingers three times, while they drank wine from the Communion chalice thrice too. Above: The happy couple with their families and bridesmaids, including Princess Anne Queen Anne-Marie wearing the cross pendant on her wedding day in 1964. She would wear it again at her husband's funeralAnne-Marie wore a white dress with a 20-foot train and a diamond tiara while Constantine wowed in a field marshal's uniform.The couple kissed a Bible and crossed their right hands over before walking around a table in a traditional Greek marriage dance. Though they should have gone around three times, they had to stop after one loop when Anne-Marie's train got caught. Constantine was the youngest reigning monarch at the time after ascending the throne aged just 23. King Constantine II of Greece and Queen Anne Marie pose for photos on their wedding day in Athens A Daily Mail newspaper clipping from the day before the wedding, detailing a royal ballAlthough the monarch was hugely popular at first, his support diminished after he played an active role in the machinations that brought down the elected government of prime minister George Papandreou.The episode, still widely known in Greece as the 'apostasy' or defection from the ruling party of several politicians, destabilised the constitutional order and led to a military coup in 1967.Constantine eventually clashed with the military rulers and was forced into exile when the Greek monarchy was abolished by the dictatorship in 1973. The Mail reported at the time how Princess Anne and Prince Charles attended the celebrations George Vine wrote a detailed account of the wedding day in the Daily MailThe couple spent many years in the plush Hampstead Garden Suburb in north London. They returned to Greece occasionally over the years but eventually moved back permanently and set up a home there in 2010. Constantine was said to be especially close to his second cousin King Charles, as well as the late Princess Diana. This depth of this relationship was evidenced by the fact that he was Prince William's godfather.
