Helen and Carol are married in Athens

Marlene A Eilers Koenig collection

March 10, 1921


The wedding of Princess Helen of Greece and Crown Prince Carol of Roumania took place today at the Cathedral in Athens, according to a dispatch from the Associated Press. 
The cathedral was "crowded with relatives, members of the Cabinet, diplomatic, civil representatives and officers of the army and navy."
After the wedding, a gun salute was fired from the fortresses, and church bells all over the city were rung in celebration of the marriage between King Constantine's eldest daughter and the heir to the Roumanian throne.

The civil marriage took place in the palace.    The wedding itself at the Cathedral was elaborate.  The procession to the "cathedral was led by Carol and his bride, who in a golden carriage proceeding through the principal thoroughfares, which were lined with cheering thousands."

The mothers of the bride and groom, Queen Sophie of Greece and Queen Marie of Romania followed in the second carriage.  Marie's "striking beauty and animated features" contrasted "strongly with the sombre, immobile countenance of Sophie."

Next in the procession came King Constantine, Prince George, and the "remaining members of the royal families."  All told, fourteen Princesses and seven Princes were present at the ceremony.   Prince Christopher, the bride's uncle, came alone, as his wife, the American-born Princess Anastasia is unwell.

Princess Helen's gown was made from white satin and "trimmed with gold."  Her veil, which "was of rare beauty, was made by the women of Bucharest, and is valued at 500,000 francs."    Helen wore on her head a jeweled diadem, which cost 1,000,000 francs, and was a gift from her husband.
Crown Prince Carol wore the uniform of a General. 
The newlyweds will remain in Athens for a week, and then will spend their honeymoon in Sinaia, in the Carpathian Mountains.

This is the second marriage in two weeks between the Greek and Roumanian royal families.   Helen's brother,  Crown Prince George, married Carol's sister, Princess Elisabetta.

The mothers of the bride and groom are first cousins, both granddaughters of Queen Victoria.