Chapter 31: The Coronation of King Leo I
The election of Leopold as King of Greece was a bittersweet moment for him. On one hand, it was the culmination of his life’s work, having finally become a King in his own right due to his own merits. But there were some drawbacks to this decision. By accepting the Crown of Greece, Leopold was forced to give up his yearly allowance of £60,000 from Parliament which by itself was an undesirable turn of events for Leopold, who had become quite the wealthy man collecting his yearly pension. No, the true sacrifice was the loss of his home of 14 years, the beautiful Claremont House. While Leopold and Charlotte had lived in the estate in their short time together, it was a property managed and owned by the British Government, and could not be retained by a foreign head of state. As such, he was forced to surrender his last physical connection to Charlotte for the sake of his crown. The move to Greece also took him far away from his sister Victoria and her daughter, the heir presumptive Princess Alexandrina Victoria (OTL Queen Victoria). Of all his sacrifices, this was the hardest as he had come to adore his niece with all his heart and would miss her most of all.
Still, the Powers had met all his demands, much to his pleasant surprise, and he had reaffirmed his commitment to Greece when the Treaty of London was signed on the 29th of May. Now all that remained was to organize his transport to Greece and prepare for his coronation. Before embarking, Leopold made one last stop to St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, where he solemnly bid farewell to his beloved Charlotte before leaving for Greece. Making his way to the port of Dover, Leopold said his goodbyes to his sister and his niece Victoria who had arrived to see him off in what was a genuine display of emotion rarely seen in the man since his wife’s death all those years ago. Promising to write each other letters whenever their busy lives would permit it, Leopold gave the pair a long embrace before he boarded the HMS
Madagascar and set sail for Greece on the 20th of June.
[1]
Among Leopold’s company was his longtime companion Doctor Stockmar, the Governor of Greece Ioannis Kapodistrias, the Greek consuls to Britain Andreas Louriotis and Ioannis Orlandos, the former ambassador to the Ottoman Empire Stratford Canning, the British diplomat Edward Dawkins, the British Philhellenes Lord George Byron, Colonel Thomas Gordon, Colonel Leicester Stanhope, and Edward Trewlany, the Scottish historian George Finlay, the Prussian Philhellene and Leopold’s longtime confidant Baron Heinrich Friedrich Karl von Stein, and several others. By all accounts it was a relatively quiet voyage down the Atlantic coast of Europe and into the Mediterranean Sea. Passing the Straits of Gibraltar, the
Madagascar was joined by the ships of the Allied Fleet and escorted to the Ionian Islands where they would make their final layover. Arriving off the coast of Zante on the 10th of July, Leopold and his entourage waited for three days before transferring from the
Madagascar to the Greek warship
Hellas as they made their final approach to the Greek capital of Nafplion on the 14th.
As they neared the harbor of Nafplion, the calm waters of the Argolic were broken by a volley of cannon fire coming from the mighty guns of Palamidi and Akronafplion in a royal salute. Pulling into the harbor throngs of people came into view as a crowd of 10,000 soldiers and sailors, merchants and farmers, landlords and peasants, men and women from all the islands and all the hills of Greece had come to see their new king. First to disembark from the ship was Ioannis Kapodistrias, followed soon after by the other Greek dignitaries. Next went the various Philhellenes and foreign representatives in their company. Last to land was Leopold himself who was adorned in a brilliant military uniform of a Greek General. His navy-blue coat and trousers were perfectly pressed and pleated, his scarlet sash glittered exquisitely, his black boots were polished to perfection, and his golden embroidered belt and epaulettes, which bore the insignia of a Lieutenant General, glistened in the light of the Greek sun. He was truly a sight to see as his physique still retained vestiges of the strength and grace from his younger years and his face remained as handsome as ever.
Leopold Arrives in Nafplion
From the dock, Leopold and Kapodistrias made their way down the cobbled streets of the city on a long tour, seeing the sights and visiting with the people all the while making their way to the Greek Senate building in the center of town. Inside, he was greeted by all 30 Senators, various ministers, bureaucrats, and administrators amounting to the entirety of the Greek Government and the Metropolitan of Argos, Bishop Meletios. The congregation formally welcomed Leopold to their country and beckoned him to join them in the festivities prepared for his arrival. First among them was a National Assembly, which was little more than a ceremonial approval of the Treaty of London.
[2] While some men in attendance would have liked more from the treaty, they recognized it was the best they could hope for given the circumstances and ratified it in its entirety with little debate. The Greek Constitution was also amended to reflect the change in government from a Republic to a Constitutional Monarchy.
With the Treaty of London formally sanctioned by the Greek Government and the Constitution appropriately amended, Leopold was legally recognized as King of Greece. There now remained only one matter which might trouble his coronation, his faith. The topic had been brought up before on several occasions during the Conference of London earlier in the year, yet Leopold had remained auspiciously mum on the topic throughout. Now cornered, Kapodistrias and the multitude of Greek dignitaries in attendance once more called on Leopold to convert to the Orthodox faith as a sign of unity with his new people. Once more though, Leopold evaded the issue. Citing fatigue from the long journey, the King to be asked for a night of rest, thought, and prayer before coming to his decision which he promised the following morning. To that the assembled mass agreed, disappointedly, before departing for the night.
From the Senate Hall, Leopold was directed towards a vacant manor on the north side of town. It was a pleasantly quaint looking building, standing two stories tall with a façade of five large windows and a fresh coat of plaster. The previous owner, a Turkish merchant, had long since abandoned the building to the Greeks when the city was first liberated from the Ottomans in 1821. Of all the homes in Nafplion, it was one of the nicest, which wasn’t a difficult feat to manage given the poor state of the town, still it sufficed as a temporary court for the new King Leopold and some work had been done recently to improve its appearance in preparation for his arrival. The manor was also furnished with a variety of wares, donated from the local magnates and complimented with the rather meager cargo Leopold had brought with him from Britain, which was surprisingly little for a man of his standing. The interior had similarly been plastered recently, with fine stone floors, and high ceilings, it was a relatively comfortable house by all standards and suited Leopold just fine for the moment.
Before retiring for the evening, Leopold and his companions were treated to a brilliant celebration by the local Greeks who lauded tales of days past and sung songs of ancient glories. They provided their finest wines and their most treasured delicacies. Joining in the festivities were the various bands of the British, French, and Russian ships who played their songs and anthems with great vigor. The streets were filled with various peoples of various lands speaking various languages partaking in a display of joyousness that hadn’t been seen in this land for generations. The strife that had so divided the Greeks was for one single moment put aside in celebration of their independence and their new king. On and on the merriment went, going well into the hours of the night and in some parts of the town, the revelry could still be heard at the crack of dawn. Leopold for his part stayed as long as was proper before thanking his generous hosts for the feast and entertainment before departing for bed. When morning arrived the following day, Leopold returned to the Senate building where he gave his answer. He would officially convert to the Greek Orthodox Church, though he asked clemency should he fall into the practices of his old faith.
Leopold was not a particularly pious man by any measure. Though he continued to attend church, sing the hymns, and read the prayers, his faith had been thoroughly shaken when his wife and child died that cold November day. Leopold had also been somewhat of a liberal in his youth and while he had moderated his views in recent years, he still retained some of his old views about religion. Still he recognized the importance it held to the Greeks and seeking to mollify their anxiety, he agreed to their demand. If nothing else, he wished to solidify himself upon his new throne before he made any enemies in this unfamiliar land. His response was met with applause from the delegates and the gathering crowd. With the matter agreed to, Leopold was baptized into Orthodox Church in a private ceremony in the church of Agios Spyridonas the following day. With this matter concluded, the final hurdle to his coronation had been cleared and the last preparations were being made.
Unfortunately, the number of foreign dignitaries in attendance was lower than expected given the events in Western Europe. News from overseas returned reports of revolution in France which had rightfully concerned their neighbors and sent Prime Minister Canning into a depression given his personal fondness of King Charles, who coincidentally was now the prestigious occupant of Claremont House. Portugal continued to be gripped in the throes of civil war and Spain continued to fight for their former colonies. Still the proceedings continued to progress and by the 14th of August, the coronation was ready to begin. Wearing the same military uniform, he had arrived in the month before, Leopold was departed his manor, which had been appropriately named Apló Palati (the Simple Palace) by the local people, for the Church of Agios Georgios. Traveling by way of open carriage, Leopold was seated in clear view of all who came out to see him as they made the procession of horses and carriages traveled down the narrow roads, roads which had become even tighter given the high number of people in them. All the way the streets were lined with people, many threw laurels in his path, soldiers and sailors saluted their new King as he came into view, while others shouted in adoration as Leopold passed by.
The Metropolitan Church of Agios Georgios[3]
At 10:00 in the morning the procession finally reached the Church of Agios Georgios and the ceremony officially began. Entering the Church, Leopold, his companions, Kapodistrias, and the members of the Greek government all took their places in the basilica, with Leopold going to the altar where a throne had been prepared for him. After an expedited church service, Leopold kneeled before the Bishop Meletios who blessed Leopold and gifted him the royal regalia, most of which had been purchased only weeks before from a jeweler in Paris, before prompting him to rise as King of Greece. Thunderous applause soon filled the small church as people reveled in this historic and patriotic moment. Leopold, was himself deeply moved by the outpouring of love by these people, his people, and felt compelled to speak. Addressing the crowd, Leopold promised to fulfill his duties as King to the best of his ability, to defend the sovereignty of Greece, and to uphold the constitution so long as he lived. Once more the people cheered for their king and for their country. The reign of King Leopold had begun.
Next Time: No Rest for the Weary
[1] The HMS Madagascar was the ship that took Otto to Greece in 1832.
[2] Technically, the National Assembly would have begun as soon as news arrived in Greece regarding the signing of the Treaty of London back on May 29th. Given Leopold departed from London only 22 days after its signing, it would make some degree of sense that they would have been in the midst of the Assembly by the time he arrived in the country, and opted to formally accept him as their king while he was in their presence.
[3] The Agios Georgios is one of the oldest and most historic churches in Nafplion. Originally built in the early 16th Century by the Venetians, the Church was converted into a mosque during the Ottoman occupation of the city in 1540, until the Venetians recaptured it in 1686. It was then converted back into a mosque when the Ottomans reconquered the Morea in 1715 until the Greeks finally liberated Nafplio in 1822. This is the church where the funeral service for Ioannis Kapodistrias took place and where Otto had intended on having his coronation. The bell tower and narthex were added during the regency of King Otto in 1834.
