11 January 2023 , 12:55
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Prince William has received sad news as he continues to weather the fallout of Prince Harry's memoir Spare.
It has been announced that his godfather, King Constantine of Greece, has died at the age of 82.
The former and last king of Greece was also a nephew of the late Prince Philip and is said to have been close to his second cousin King Charles.
He was one of William's six godparents, who also include Lady Susan Hussey and Princess Alexandra, and attended his confirmation in March 1997.
His death was announced yesterday - the same day that Harry's memoir was released, which makes several bombshell claims about William and the rest of the royal family.
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Prince William, whose godfather King Constantine of Greece has died (Getty Images)
William with King Constantine at the Greek Cathedral of Saint Sophia in London in 1999 (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)Constantine had been suffering from ill health of late and had been treated in an intensive care unit at the private Hygeia Hospital in Athens.
When he acceded to the throne as Constantine II at the age of 23 in 1964, the youthful monarch, who had already achieved glory as an Olympic gold medallist in sailing, was hugely popular.
However, by the following year, he had squandered much of that support with his active involvement in the machinations that brought down the popularly elected Centre Union government of prime minister George Papandreou.
William and wife Kate with Constantine at Windsor Castle in 2012 (Getty Images)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.
The dictatorship abolished the monarchy in 1973, while a referendum after democracy was restored in 1974 dashed any hopes Constantine had of reigning again.
Constantine died aged 82 in Athens (AFP via Getty Images)Reduced in the following decades to only fleeting visits to Greece, which raised a political and media storm each time, he was able in his waning years to settle again in his home country, when opposing his presence no longer held currency as a badge of vigilant republicanism.
For most of his years in exile, he lived in Hampstead Garden Suburb, London, and was said to be especially close to the now-King Charles. He was said to be too unwell to attend the Queen's funeral last September.
He is survived by his wife, the former princess Anne-Marie of Denmark, the youngest sister of Queen Margrethe of Denmark, and their five children, Alexia, Pavlos, Nikolaos, Theodora and Philippos. His older sister Sophia is the wife of former king Juan Carlos I of Spain.