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Queen Camilla attends the Thanksgiving Service for King Constantine of the Hellenes at St George's Chapel© Getty

Queen Camilla steps in for King Charles as Prince William drops out of King Constantine II's thanksgiving service

Constantine was the second cousin of King Charles and a godfather to Prince William

Ainhoa Barcelona
Content Managing Editor
Updated: February 27, 2024
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Queen Camilla led the British royal family in attending a thanksgiving service in Windsor for the late King Constantine II.

Constantine, who was a second cousin of King Charles, a first cousin of the late Duke of Edinburgh, and a godfather to Prince William, enjoyed a close relationship with the British royals. 

The memorial service to celebrate his life was held at St George's Chapel on Tuesday morning, with Camilla stepping in for her husband Charles, who is unable to attend due to his ongoing cancer treatment

Prince William had also been due to attend, but pulled out last-minute due to a "personal matter". He was expected to give a reading, but Constantine's son Crown Prince Pavlos did the honours instead.

Britain's Queen Camilla arrives to attend a thanksgiving service for the life of King Constantine of the Hellenes© Getty

Queen Camilla

Queen Camilla stepped in for her husband King Charles, who was unable to attend the memorial due to his cancer treatment.

Princess Anne and Queen Camilla © Getty

Princess Anne and Queen Camilla

Queen Camilla was seated next to Princess Anne. The service, which took place in the nave of St George's Chapel, was led by the Dean of Windsor, The Right Reverend Dr Christopher Cocksworth.

Princess Anne with members of the royal family© Getty

British royals

Several members of the British royal family were in attendance.

Zara and Mike Tindall were joined by Princess Anne© Getty

Mike and Zara Tindall

Mike and Zara Tindall seen walking to the service with Princess Anne. 

Lady Helen Taylor and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent© Getty

Duke of Kent

The late Queen's cousin, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent attended the service with his daughter Lady Helen Taylor. His wife, Katharine, Duchess of Kent, who turned 91 last week, rarely attends public engagements. 

Princess Michael of Kent and Prince Michael of Kent attend the Thanksgiving Service for King Constantine of the Hellenes at St George's Chapel© Getty

Prince and Princess Michael of Kent

Prince and Princess Michael of Kent were among the guests. The couple were very close to King Constantine, choosing him as one of their daughter Lady Gabriella Kingston's godparents. 

Princess Anne, Mike and Zara Tindall, Princess Beatrice, Lady Sarah Chatto at King Constantine memorial© Getty

Lady Sarah Chatto

King Charles' cousin, Lady Sarah Chatto, was pictured arriving at the chapel with Princess Anne, Mike and Zara Tindall and Princess Beatrice

King Felipe and Queen Letizia© Getty

Spanish royals

King Constantine's nephew King Felipe of Spain and his wife Queen Letizia were among those to attend the special service.

Crown Princess Marie Chantal of Greece and Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece attend the Thanksgiving Service for King Constantine of the Hellenes© Getty

Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal

Royals from the UK and Europe flocked to Windsor for the event, given Constantine's expansive links with other European royal families. His eldest son Crown Prince Pavlos, along with Pavlos' wife Crown Princess Marie-Chantal, led the Greek royals in attendance.

Princess Nina of Greece and Denmark aka Nina Flohr and Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark attends the Thanksgiving Service for King Constantine© Getty

Princess Nina and Prince Philippos

Constantine's son Prince Philippos and his wife Princess Nina were also pictured arriving at the chapel.

Constantine is also survived by his other children: Princess Alexia, Prince Nikolaos, Princess Theodora.

Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester and Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester attend the Thanksgiving Service for King Constantine© Getty

The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester

Prince Richard and Duchess Birgitte also represented the British royal family.

Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Sarah, Duchess of York attend the Thanksgiving Service for King Constantine of the Hellenes© Getty

Prince Andrew and Sarah, Duchess of York

Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, who live close by in Windsor, also paid their respects.

Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo, Infanta Cristina of Spain and Juan Valentin Urdangarin attend the Thanksgiving Service for King Constantine of the Hellenes© Getty

Constantine's elder sister was Queen Sofia of Spain. 

Representing the Spanish royals were Sofia's daughters Infanta Elena and Infanta Cristina, as well as Cristina's eldest child, Juan Valentin Urdangarin.

Juan Carlos I and King Felipe © Getty

King Felipe

Juan Carlos I and his son King Felipe seen leaving the Thanksgiving Service together.

Constantine died at the age of 82 in January 2023. He had been suffering from ill health for a number of years and was treated at the private Hygeia Hospital in Athens.

His funeral took place at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Athens, with a whole host of European royals in attendance, including Princess Anne and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, who were representing King Charles and Queen Camilla, and Lady Gabriella Windsor, who was there on behalf of Prince William. Gabriella counted Constantine as one of her godfathers.

William had a "private" engagement on the day of the funeral, while Charles and Camilla had a scheduled meeting with the President of the Republic of Cyprus.

St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle© Getty
The thanksgiving service will take place at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle

Other European royals in attendance at the funeral included King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, Prince Albert of Monaco, King Felipe of Spain's sister Infanta Cristina, Queen Mathilde and King Phillipe of Belgium, and Queen Silvia and King Carl XVI of Sweden.

Constantine was later buried at Tatoi Palace cemetery, close to Athens. 

Constantine acceded to the Greek throne in 1964 following the death of his father, King Paul I. He was proclaimed King of the Hellenes at the age of 24, however, he ruled for only a decade after a military junta abolished the monarchy. He was the last king of Greece.

LISTEN: King Charles gave Prince William 'permission' to spend time with family away from royal duties

Two referendums were held, a disputed one in 1973 before a second one in 1974, with both returning results in favour of the abolition of the monarchy. 

Constantine lived in exile for many decades in London, before eventually returning to his native country in 2013, where he spent the last ten years of his life.

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