A photographic exhibition by Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark is being launched at the Hellenic Museum in Melbourne.
Titled ‘Phos: A Journey of Light’, the photos were captured in Greece where he has lived since 2013, and where his family once reigned and his father was sovereign.
It will be another of many visits to Melbourne by members of the royal family since the Greek constitution was changed in the 1970s.
The great success of the Australian royal family, epitomised by the recent wedding at Windsor and the enormous interest by everyday people proves that such institutions can have a powerful positive impact in the 21st century.
Recently, Crown Prince Pavlos helped bring the Prince’s Trust International to Greece, helping young people gain employment and start their own businesses, a useful initiative in a country with a burgeoning rate of youth unemployment. He also serves as the Chairman of the Prince’s Trust International’s Global Advisory Board.
Prince Charles, son of another Greek prince, was received warmly last month in Athens and Crete with large crowds greeting him in every place visited over a three-day visit.
Even Princess Theodora, the younger daughter of the former king and queen, has done a reverse-Meghan Markle and is an actor with a long running stint on the Bold and the Beautiful.
It is fascinating to wonder what Greece would have achieved if there was stability at the top and the monarchy was allowed to continue with a symbolic yet stable king, one above the very robust domestic Greek politics we have seen since then.
I think if he had been given the chance King Constantine would have done a very good job. Certainly, as one gets older he learns from youthful mistakes we all have made.
Reintroducing the monarchy in Greece would bring a rich vitality to the nation. The tourism dollars alone would make it worthwhile. No tourist goes to Greece to see the president.
With no known short terms [sic] plans to move in this direction, it might be that a generation would need to be skipped and King Constantine will depart this life as a former king but not the last. He will always be a king though.
Just like a former US president, the title is kept for life. One addresses a former US president “Mr President”. Likewise with King Constantine, the same formality applies.
It is a curtesy that respects the office of head of state or head of government as much as it is to the person who held it.
I’m certain though King Constantine or any other members of the family won’t cause a fuss if certain prefixes, styles or names aren’t used. Like in any democracy, any citizen can call any office holder anything they like if you were to meet them I [sic] the street. Just don’t try it in Thailand.
However to say that someone like Prince Nikolaos isn’t Greek is ridiculous. That his family has made Greece their home is testament to that.
I’m sure his exhibition will be a success and it is another coup that the Hellenic Museum has been able to bring it to our city.
Having represented Oakleigh for almost six years now, I know the Greek community quite well. They value tradition, family and history. They want to continue the customs that came before them. These same ideals are [sic] underpin all western royal families.
The diaspora should be proud to welcome Prince Nikolaos as much as any other person who continues to represent and fight for a better Greece. Doing so adds to the reinvigoration as we move towards a third decade of this century.
* Theo Zographos is a Monash City councillor and former Liberal Party candidate.
