Friederike von Hannover

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Queen Friederike with King Paul and Theodor Heuss (1954)
Friederike as Queen (1958)

Friederike Luise Thyra Victoria Margarita Sophia Olga Cecilia Isabella Christa Princess of Hanover, Duchess of Braunschweig-Lüneburg (born April 18, 1917 in Blankenburg (Harz) ; † February 6, 1981 in Madrid ) was Queen of Greece from 1947 to 1964 . On the one hand, their work was shaped by social engagement, but their later political influence damaged their reputation in the long term.

Life

Friederike von Hannover was born as the only daughter of Duke Ernst August von Braunschweig (1887–1953) and his wife Viktoria Luise (1892–1980), the daughter of Emperor Wilhelm II. , In the Little Palace in Blankenburg. She spent her childhood there and in Gmunden , Austria . She completed her studies in England and Florence .

In January 1938 she married Prince Paul of Greece, whom she had already met in Florence. Paul and his brother Georg, who ruled until 1947, were sons of Constantine I of Greece and Princess Sophie of Prussia , the sister of Emperor Wilhelm II. Friederike married her second uncle (= a cousin of her mother ). While she was still a member of the Association of German Girls in Germany , she opposed the “ Third Reich ” in Greece during the war and viewed a possible accession of Greece to the Axis powers as contradicting Greek interests. The couple heir to the throne spent World War II in exile in South Africa.

Paul succeeded his brother George II on the royal throne on April 1, 1947 , in the middle of the Greek Civil War (1946–1949). Queen Friederike was able to gain recognition by setting up a social work (founding nurses' training centers, children's homes, agricultural schools). The fund was also financed by taxes that were payable on the purchase of vehicles, for example. Friederike alone determined the distribution of the funds. Thanks to her commitment, 20,000 children in 51 children's villages were able to receive schooling and vocational training, for which Friederike also solicited donations abroad.

However, their activities were not limited to the social sphere. In correspondence with politicians and influential personalities, she was able to gain a lot of sympathy for Greece, but later she influenced politics in a legally questionable, often unconstitutional manner. So she used the appointment of governments as an instrument of power. Critical politicians were refused appointment despite the approval of parliament because they feared that they might call the monarchy into question. She was also blamed for the quarrel between Prime Minister Konstantinos Karamanlis and King Paul, which in 1963 became the starting point for unstable and crisis-ridden years. During her husband's lifetime, it was mocked that she towered over her 1.90 m-measuring husband with her 1.60 m. After his death in 1964, Prime Minister Georgios Papandreou advised her to retire to her country estate in the Austrian Salzkammergut and to claim the annual state pension of the equivalent of 400,000 marks.

Her involvement in setting up re-education camps for communists is also controversial.

Grave of King Paul and Queen Friederike in Tatoi

After her son King Constantine II's failed counter-coup against the military junta in December 1967, she left Greece. After the end of military rule, a referendum on the form of government was held in 1974 . Constantine promised to keep his mother away from the country and the political life of Greece in future; however, more than two thirds voted for the abolition of the monarchy. Friederike lived in exile in Spain (her daughter Sophia was the wife of Juan Carlos I, Spanish queen), where she also died. She was buried in Greece in the Royal Cemetery in Tatoi .

progeny

His marriage to Prince Paul of Greece , who later became King Paul I , in 1938 had three children:

  • Sophia (born November 2, 1938), later Queen of Spain ,
  • Constantine (born June 2, 1940), later King Constantine II of Greece
  • Irene (born May 11, 1942), Princess of Greece.

Awards (selection)

literature

  • Queen Friederike the Hellenes . From d. Engl. Trans. by Annette Dreikandt. Wunderlich Leins, Stuttgart 1971 (autobiography).
  • Friederike Luise , In: International Biographical Archive. 23/1981 of May 25, 1981, in the Munzinger archive ( beginning of article freely accessible)
  • Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker : Friederike von Greece (1981) . In: Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker: Perception of the modern age . Pp. 171-177. Hanser, Munich 1983, ISBN 3-446-13856-0 .

Web links

Commons : Friederike von Hannover  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Stay in the country . In: Der Spiegel . No. 41 , 1964 ( online ).
  2. ↑ a b c Antonius Lux (ed.): Great women of world history. A thousand biographies in words and pictures . Sebastian Lux Verlag , Munich 1963, p. 174.
  3. ↑ Theo Sommer : Prince's wedding, pomp and politics . In: Die Zeit , No. 20/1962
  4. ^ Crisis in Greece. In: The time . No. 25/1963
  5. ^ Richard Clogg: History of Greece in the 19th and 20th centuries. Cologne 1997, ISBN 3-923889-13-7 , pp. 193, 268.
  6. ^ Letter to the editor to Marion Countess Dönhoff regarding Zeit-Artikel 1951/1991
  7. ↑ WJP Curley: Monarchs In Waiting. London 1975, ISBN 0-09-122310-5 , p. 42. (English)
predecessor Office Successor
Elisabeth of Romania Queen of Greece
1947–1964 		Anne-Marie of Denmark
personal data
SURNAME Friederike von Hannover
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Friederike Luise Thyra Victoria Margarita Sophia Olga Cecilia Isabella Christa Princess of Hanover Duchess of Braunschweig-Lüneburg (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German noblewoman, Queen of Greece (1947–1964)
DATE OF BIRTH April 18, 1917
PLACE OF BIRTH Blankenburg
DATE OF DEATH February 6, 1981
Place of death Madrid