top of page
254174_135682043176901_4933303_n.jpg

PRINCESS ANDREW OF GREECE & DENMARK 
Page 3/3

23790270-9039761-Princess_Alice_of_Greece_the_mother_of_the_Duke_of_Edinburgh_at_-a-8_1607


Mother-Superior Alice-Elizabeth (Princess Alice - Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark)

In January 1949, the Alice founded a nursing Order of Greek Orthodox nuns - the Christian Sisterhood of Martha and Mary, modelled after the convent founded in 1909 in Russia by her aunt - Grand Duchess Elizabeth 'Ella' Feodorovna of Russia, formerly Princess Elisabeth of Hesse & By the Rhine (1864-1918) and who later became a Holy Martyr.  Alice raised funds in America and sold the last of her jewels for the Order and bought premises in Athens and became known as Mother Superior Alice-Elizabeth, deciding to wear a grey nun’s habit.  However, the Order eventually was wound up due to the lack of suitable applicants but the orphanage she founded is still in use today as a community centre.  At the Coronation of her daughter-in-law - Queen Elizabeth II (1926(1952-2022) on 2nd June 1953, Alice attended in her habit (in sheer contrast to the tiaras, medals, uniforms and ermine) and led members of the Mountbatten family in the processional within the Abbey. 

On 21st April 1967, just weeks before the scheduled elections in Greece, a group of right-wing Army officers seized power in a coup d'état - called 'The Colonel’s Coup', and Alice (along with the rest of the Greek Royal Family) were forced to flee Greece. Her great-nephew - King Constantine II, the King of the Hellenes (b.1940) left Greece soon after and went into exile after the failure of a counter-coup.  By this time Alice’s health was of concern and she was invited by Prince Philip and The Queen to reside permanently at Buckingham Palace, London - where she stayed until her death on 5th December 1969.  Her only possessions were three dressing-gowns.

 

Prior to her death, Alice made it clear that she wished to be buried at the Church of St Mary Magdalene, near the Garden of Gethsemene, on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, Israel. This Russian Orthodox church was built by Tsar Alexander III of Russia (1845-1894) in honour of his mother and was the last resting place of her aunt - Grand Duchess Elizabeth 'Ella' Feodorovna of Russia, formerly Princess Elisabeth of Hesse & By the Rhine (1864-1918) who later became a Holy Martyr.  Initially her remains were kept in the Royal Crypt under St George’s Chapel, at Windsor Castle, but on 3rd August 1988, Alice’s remains were finally transferred to the crypt under the Church of St Mary Magdalene in accordance with her final wishes.

BELOW: The final resting place of

Princess Alice - Mother-Superior Alice-Elizabeth
(Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark)

at The Church of St Magdalene,

on the Mount of Olives, Jerusalem, Israel

guests6.jpg

ABOVE: Princess Alice -

Mother-Superior Alice-Elizabeth
(Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark)

leading members of her family

in Westminster Abbey

at the Coronation of

Queen Elizabeth II in 1953

RIGHT: Princess Alice -

Mother-Superior Alice-Elizabeth

(Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark)

Alice,  Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark
R (4).jpg
800px-Church_of_Mary_Magdalene1.jpg

 

The Church of St Magdalene, on the Mount of Olives,
Jerusalem, Israel

R (2).jpg

 

The 'Righteous Among The Nations'

medallion

On 31st October 1994, a ceremony was held at Yad Vashem (the Holocaust Memorial) on the Mount of Remembrance in Jerusalem, Israel, to be honoured as 'Righteous Among The Nations' - an honour given by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis.  The ceremony was attended by her son - Prince Philip, 1st Duke of Edinburgh (1921-2021) and her only living daughter - Princess George William of Hanover, formerly Princess Sophie of Greece & Denmark (1914-2001).

 

Prince_Philip_and_Princess_Sophie_laying_a_wreath_at_Yad_Vashem_-_1994.jpg

Prince Philip, 1st Duke of Edinburgh

and his sister - Princess George William of Hanover

(Princess Sophie) in October 1994,

laying a wreath at Yad Vashem, in honour

of their mother - Princess Andrew

of Greece & Denmark (Princess Alice)

dddd.jpg

'The British Hero of the Holocaust' medallion

​ Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh & his sister -  Princess Sophie, Princess George William of Hanover planting a tree at Vad Yashem in honour of their mother ​


Prince Philip, 1st Duke of Edinburgh

and his sister - Princess George William

of Hanover (Princess Sophie),

in October 1994, planting a tree

at Yad Vashem, in honour of their mother

- Princess Andrew of Greece

& Denmark (Princess Alice)

In 2008, the Holocaust Educational Trust initiated a campaign to posthumously honour British citizens who had helped to rescue members of the Jewish community during the Holocaust.  In April 2009, the then Prime Minister - The Rt Hon. Gordon Brown (b.1951) announced that the Government would create a new national award, outside of the Honours System - which precludes posthumous honours.  In March 2010 the first list of 27 recipients was announced - Alice was one of the first to be honoured.  The award is a solid silver medallion, and bears the inscription "in the service of humanity" on the front, and on the reverse, a recognition of the recipient's "selfless actions [which] preserved life in the face of persecution" and recognised as a 'British Hero of the Holocaust'. 

 

Prince William, The Duke of Cambridge visited the grave of Alice,  Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark (his great-grandmother) whilst on an official visit to Israel in 2018

ABOVE: Prince William,

now The Prince of Wales

visited the grave of his

great-grandmother - 

Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark

(Princess Alice) whilst on

an official visit

to Israel in June 2018

RIGHT: A short film by

Associated Press showing

the visit by King Charles III

 in January 2020

to the grave of his grandmother -

Princess Andrew of Greece & Denmark

(Princess Alice)

Prince William, now The Prince of Wales (b.1982) visited the grave of his great-grandmother in June 2018.  He was the first member of the British Royal Family to undertake an official visit to the State of Israel.  King Charles III (1948(2022-    ) did visit the grave of his grandmother privately in October 2016, whilst he was in Jerusalem attending the State funeral of the former President - Shimon Peres (1923-2016), but was able to  visit Alice's grave once again in January 2020 whilst on an official visit to Israel.

 

imagesQ4MA7NQ4.png
bottom of page