Many Balkan Kings were really from northern Europe, in the case of Greece, the King was Danish. So perhaps he was not ideal in providing the stability and continuity of an ideal Royal family. Yet there was always the hope and so King George II kept his suitcase packed whether in country or during his frequent exiles. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
I have always admired Royal death stamps with their perforated white area redone with a black frame suitable for mourning. This is perhaps the worst version of such a stamp I have seen. George by all accounts a dower and aloof man. This is reflected in the stamps portrait. The black frame done as a cheap overprint and then the bad situation of 1947 Greece is further shown by overprinting a 50 Drachma new value on a not old I Drachma stamp. Gosh George, we know you were gone a lot, but couldn’t you have left your people in a better place?
Todays stamp is issue A67, a 50 Drachma stamp issued by the Kingdom of Greece on April 15, 1947. It was a 3 stamp death issue for King George II who had died April 1st. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 60 cents unused. A mistaken double overprint of the new denomination would up the value to $72.50. The original 1 Drachma version of the stamp from when he was alive is worth 25 cents.
Greece in the early 20th century suffered numerous changes in government. Charles II’s Grandfather was assassinated and soon after assuming the Throne his Father was forced into exile in favor of Charles’s younger brother. This was as preparation to becoming a Republic which then did not happen. Charles received military training in Germany and married German Romanian Princess Elisabeth. After World War I, Charles was invited to come back to Greece and restore the natural Royal Line. Charles and Elisabeth came back but by 1923 they were again back into exile. At first they went to Bucharest where Elisabeth was happy with her family but Charles was bored. He moved to London, taking a house in Belgravia that he shared with his mistress Joyce.
Between 1923 and 1935, Greece had 23 governments. There was increasing support for a return of the Monarchy. When Queen Consort Elisabeth heard of this, she did not desire a return to Greece. Among her lovers was a banker named Alexandru who had made her rich. Without telling George in London what she was up to, Elisabeth divorced George in a Bucharest court on the grounds of his abandoning the family home. He returned to Greece alone and childless but back on the Throne.
Greece was closely divided between communists and the far right. Middle of the road political figures could not gain traction. George supported a far right figure named Metaxas as Prime Minister who ruled as a Dictator but left George on the Throne. During WWII, Greece tried to side with the Allies but was quickly overrun by Germany. George was again off to exile in his beloved London. The Allied victory was complicated for Greece. Britain did not want a return of the prewar far right regime and so did not want George to return to Greece. They forced him to appoint a Cleric as Regent who then appointed a moderate left government. This was not going to do as the numerous communists were in open violent revolt. A 1946 plebiscite that the left boycotted saw a return of a hard right government with a concomitant invitation for George to return to Greece and resume his reign. His now ex wife Elisabeth was financially supporting the communist insurgency. He returned to find his Palace looted and died shortly after returning. His younger brother Paul succeeded him.
Queen Consort Elisabeth continued her interesting life after the divorce. Sensing change coming she became involved romantically with several prominent communists in Romania. The young King of Romania referred to her as his “Red” aunt. She was not allowed to stay in communist Romania but was given several days to pack and a private train to leave on. She much enjoyed looting her own Palaces. She left room on her train for Alexandru. However once in the south of France, she took up with a much younger would be artist named Marc. Unable to secure for him a title so that they could marry, she instead adopted him three months before her death in 1956 at age 62. Marc was 32.
Well my drink is empty. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.