Princess Irene, Duchess of Aosta

Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark (Πριγκίπισσα Ειρήνη της Ελλάδας και Δανίας) (13 February 1904 – 15 April 1974) was the fifth child and second daughter of Constantine I of Greece and his wife, the former Princess Sophie of Prussia.

Family and early life

Her paternal grandparents were George I of Greece and Olga Konstantinovna of Russia. Her maternal grandparents were Friedrich III, German Emperor, and his Empress consort Victoria. Victoria was a daughter of Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Queen regnant Victoria of the United Kingdom.

Irene was born in Athens, preceded in birth by three brothers, George (1890), Alexander (1893) and Paul (1901), and one sister, Helen (1896). Another sister, Katherine was born in 1913. In 1927, her brother, George, announced her engagement to Prince Christian of Schaumburg-Lippe, a nephew of Christian X of Denmark. but later instead married his cousin, Princess Feodora of Denmark.

Marriage

On 1 July 1939, Princess Irene married Prince Aimone, Duke of Aosta, Duke of Spoleto (b. 9 March 1900 in Florence, Italy) They had one child:

• Prince Amedeo Umberto Constantino Giorgio Paolo Elena Maria Fiorenzo Zvonimir of Savoy, born 27 September 1943

From 1941-42, she served with the International Red Cross in the Soviet Union. Prince Aimone became the 4th Duke of Aosta on 3 March 1942, following the death of his elder brother, Amadeo, the 3rd Duke. On 18 May 1941, taking the name Tomislav II, he was proclaimed King of the Independent State of Croatia. He never set foot on the territory of the state, and subsequently abandoned the crown on 12 October 1943, after the Italian withdrawal from the war.

Princess Irene was not in favour of her husband taking the Crown of Zvonimir, but supported his plans to avoid becoming the King of Croatia. After the Allied armistice' with the Kingdom of Italy, the princess was captured by the Germans and taken to a labour camp in Austria and later in Poland. She and her family were interned in a Nazi concentration camp in 1944. Amedeo, her son and heir, was at that time a small infant and often ill. Irene was liberated by the French. Prince Aimone died on 29 January 1948 in Buenos Aires. Upon his death, his son Amedeo succeeded him as the 5th Duke of Aosta.

Princess Irene died on 15 April 1974 in Fiesole, Italy after fighting a long illness.

Honours

•  Kingdom of Greece : Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Olga and Sophia -
•  Austria-Hungary : Dame of the Order of the Starry Cross -

Ancestry