King Constantine funeral: European royals expected to descend on Athens for service

Athens: The funeral of Greece´s last king, Constantine II, will take place on Monday with a host of European royalty expected to descend on Athens for the service.

The ceremony will see royals from Britain, Denmark, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain pay their respects to the former monarch, who died on Tuesday aged 82.

But there has been controversy in Greece over the funeral arrangements.

Constantine was a divisive figure in the country´s history and the government has decided not to grant him the honour of a state funeral.

The private service begins at noon at the Athens Metropolitan Cathedral, with almost 200 guests expected.

The entire royal family of Spain, Denmark´s Queen Margrethe II and Crown Prince Frederik, the Swedish royal family, the king and queen of the Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxembourg Henri, Norway´s Crown Prince Haakon, and Monaco´s Prince Albert II are set to attend.

The British Crown will be represented by Princess Anne, daughter of the late queen Elizabeth II. King Charles III, cousin of the former Greek king, and Constantine´s godson Prince William are not expected to join her.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and President Katerina Sakellaropoulou will not attend the funeral.

The Greek government will be represented by Deputy Prime Minister Panagiotis Pikrammenos and Culture and Sports Minister Lina Mendoni.