Hello Monaco magazine HelloMonaco 2018#04_Summer_Autumn_WEB | Page 21
Did you know?
The Principality of Monaco,
the last refuge of Prince
Andrew of Greece
A
thens, 1882. The family of the
King of Greece George and
Grand Duchess Olga Kon-
stantinovna are happy to welcome
their fourth son, Andrew. But by
that time his genealogical tree had
already spread throughout and be-
yond Europe.
Andrew’s mother, Olga, was a Ro-
manov and a granddaughter of Em-
peror Nicholas I. Her husband George I
of Greece was son of the King of Den-
mark, as well as brother of the English
Queen Alexandra and Empress Maria
Feodorovna, mother of Nicholas II.
The Greek royal family had eight chil-
dren, and Andrew was only the fourth
in line for the throne. He was educated
mainly in military schools. It is not a
surprise then that at the age of 19 the
young prince joined the Greek army.
Since then, his life was all about mili-
tary service. He liked the lifestyle of a
soldier and was purposefully making a
military career.
In 1902, during the coronation of King
Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark,
Andrew met his future wife Alice Bat-
tenberg. A 17-year-old princess, one of
the most beautiful in Europe, caught
the young man’s attention straight
away. A year later, the couple were
wed. Alice was a good match for her
husband: born in Windsor Castle and
a great-granddaughter to the English
Queen Victoria.
In 1909, the political situation in Greece
was heated and the coup d’état there
caused Andrew to resign. After 1917,
the family which then had four chil-
dren left Greece. Prince Andrew was
a frequent visitor to the Côte d’Azur
and Monaco back in the nineteen thir-
ties. He settled in the south of France
with his mistress, Andrée de la Bigne, a
wealthy widow and former actress. She
had quite a family tree herself: a grand-
daughter of Valtésse de la Bigne, a
French courtesan who had Emperor
Napoleon III among her lovers.
The couple were often seen in Cannes,
Nice and Monaco. They would spend
their summer on board the yacht Da-
vida. The Greek prince was also a regu-
lar at the famous Monte Carlo Casino
and the Metropole hotel became his
second home. Andrew’s hopes for a
return to Greece eventually faded and
he didn’t seem to mind spending more
time on the Côte d’Azur.
He was known to spend about 3,500
pounds a year making profit from his
Westminster Bank shares. However, his
luxurious life came to an end in 1931
as the prince was forced to live on a
modest budget of 50 pounds received
from the king.
Despite the fact that Andrew and
Alice actually lived separately and
hardly saw each other, they never got
officially divorced. The princess would
talk of his mistress, if not warmly, then
at least without hatred, describing her
as «a friend who so tenderly looked
after the father [of Philip] to the end
of his days.»
The Greek prince died at the Metro-
pole hotel in December 1944 from
heart failure. He was first buried near
the Russian Orthodox church in Nice
and then transported to Greece.
According to Hugo Vickers, a royal his-
torian and author of Princess Alice’s
biography, the last days of the Greek
prince were not so joyful since «no
member of the royal family should
live in exile.»
Philip, the only son of Alice and An-
drew, still bears the title Duke of Ed-
inburgh and husband of Queen
Elizab eth II. He celebrated his 97th
anniversary this June.
upload.wikimedia.org
Княжество Монако —
последнее прибежище
принца Андрея Греческого
Prince Andrew
© rebeccastarrbrown.com
Marriage of Andrew and Alice
Hello Monaco Summer–Autumn 2018 / 19