page_title: Constantine II of Greece
section_title: Early life
hierarchical_section_title: Constantine II of Greece / Early life
caption_attribution_description: Constantine II of Greece (left) and Danish yachtsman Paul Elvstrøm at the Rome Olympics
context_page_description: Constantine II reigned as the King of Greece from 1964 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1973.
  He acceded as king following the death of his father King Paul in March 1964. Later that year he married Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark with whom he eventually had five children. Although the accession of the young monarch was initially regarded auspiciously, his reign soon became controversial: Constantine's involvement in the Apostasia of July 1965 created unrest among sections of the population and aggravated the ongoing political instability that culminated in the Colonels' Coup of 21 April 1967.
  The coup was successful, leaving Constantine, as the head of state, little room to manoeuvre since he had no loyal military forces on which to rely. As a result, he reluctantly agreed to inaugurate the Greek military junta of 1967–1974 on the condition that it be made up largely of civilian ministers. On 13 December 1967, Constantine was forced to flee the country, following an unsuccessful countercoup against the junta. He remained the head of state in exile until the junta abolished the monarchy on 1 June 1973. The 1973 Greek republic referendum on 29 July, ratified the abolition.
context_section_description: Constantine was born at the Psychiko Palace in Psychiko, a suburb of  Athens. He was the nephew of King George II, and also the second child and only son of the king's brother and heir presumptive, Crown Prince Paul. His mother was Princess Frederica of Hanover. Constantine's older sister, Queen Sofía of Spain, is the wife of the retired King Juan Carlos I of Spain, while his younger sister, Princess Irene, has never been married.
  Constantine was just one year old when Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany invaded Greece, and he spent the next four years in exile in Egypt and Cape Town, South Africa, (where his sister Irene was born) with his family. He returned to Greece with his family in 1946. King George died in 1947, and Constantine's father became the new king, making Constantine the crown prince. He was educated at a preparatory school and later a boarding school (Victoria College of Alexandria, Egypt, where his classmates included King Hussein of Jordan and actor Omar Sharif). A fellow student recalled him as "a good chap, a young man with all the right instincts. He was at his best on the playing fields."
  Constantine served in all three branches of the Hellenic Armed Forces, attending the requisite military academies. He also attended the NATO Air Force Special Weapons School in Germany, as well as the University of Athens, where he took courses in the school of law. He is an honorable member of the International Soling Association and honorable President of the International Dragon Association.
  Constantine was an able sportsman. In 1960, aged 20, he won an Olympic gold medal in sailing (dragon class), which was the first Greek gold medal in sailing since the Stockholm 1912 Summer Olympics. He was also a strong swimmer and had a black belt in karate, with interests in squash, track events and riding. In 1963 Constantine became a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). He resigned in 1974 because he was no longer a Greek resident, and was made an Honorary IOC Member.
caption: Constantine (left) at the 1960 Olympics
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