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Members of the Greek royal family have had their Greek citizenship reinstated. The family's private office made the big announcement on Dec. 23.
"It is with deep emotion that, after thirty years, we hold the Greek citizenship again. The law of 1994 deprived us of our citizenship, rendering us stateless with all that this entails in terms of individual rights and great emotional distress," the announcement read.
The last King of Greece, Constantine II, who died last year, ascended the throne in 1964 and reigned until 1973. A referendum on the future of the Greek monarchy was held in 1974, which brought the "Crowned Democracy of Greece" to an end.
"Our father and our family fully respected the result of the 1974 referendum," the royal family said in their recent statement. "However, the provision of the 1994 law on citizenship, a result of the political status at the time, was not befitting of a former head of the Greek state and an institution that served the country faithfully. The passing of our father marked the end of an era."
"Prerequisite for the reinstatement of our nationality was to declare a surname thus, we chose the one chosen by our late uncle, Michel De Gréce, that was the only familiar one to us since our family never bore a surname," the statement continued. "During the years we were deprived of our citizenship, we were driven by the duty and honor of serving our country with loyalty and devotion from wherever we were, with all our means. The same principles will continue to guide the course of our family."
According to The Greek Herald, citizenship was granted to 10 members of the royal family, including the late King's five children—Princess Alexia, Crown Prince Pavlos, Prince Nikolaos, Princess Theodora and Prince Philippos—and five of his grandchildren. The AP reported on Dec. 20 that members of the family had applied for Greek citizenship.
Per the AP, Interior Ministry official Athanasios Balerpas said that they had signed a declaration acknowledging the republican government and had adopted the surname “De Grece," which is French for “of Greece.”
“A historically pending matter is being resolved,” Balerpas reportedly told state-run radio. “Let’s look to the future now. I think it’s a good moment because it closes an account from the past and we can now look forward as a people.”