Alexander of Greece

Who was Alexander of Greece?

Alexander was King of Greece from 11 June 1917 until his death from the effects of a monkey bite at the age of 27.

The second son of King Constantine I, Alexander was born in the summer palace of Tatoi, on the outskirts of Athens. He succeeded his father in 1917, during World War I, after the Entente Powers and the followers of Eleftherios Venizelos pushed Constantine I, and his eldest son Crown Prince George, into exile. Having no real political experience, the new king was stripped of his powers by the Venizelists and effectively imprisoned in his own palace. Venizelos, as prime minister, was the effective ruler with the support of the Entente. Though reduced to the status of a puppet king, Alexander supported Greek troops in the war against Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire. Under his reign the territorial extent of Greece considerably increased, following the victory of the Entente and the start of the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–22.

Alexander controversially married the commoner Aspasia Manos in 1919, provoking a major scandal that forced the couple to leave Greece for several months.