GREEK AMBITIONS,

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1844, 2 September 1913, Page 6

GREEK AMBITIONS,

Kino Constantine of Greece seems to think that the enlargement of his kingdom, as the result of the reccnt Balkan wars, ought to be accompanied by something in the way of personal aggrandisement, and. has, therefore, decided to be crowned with the Imperial Byzantine diadem, and to wear the purple mantle of tho Byzantine Emperors. It is not surprising to be told that this announcement is likely, to give offence. It certainly will not plesse the Turks, for it indicates that he has his eye on Constantinople, the an-, ciont "capital of the Eastern Roman Empire; and the other Balkan States will not look with favour on the claim of Greece to the paramount position in the Peninsula which this assumption of Imperial dignity implies. The first Roman Emperor to wear the diadem was Constantine the Great, who transferred his capital from Romo to Constantinople. His other insignia included the purple robe and the red boots. The present King of Greece will also attire himself in the purple robe, but his intentions regarding the red boots have not yet been disclosed. The diadem was the symbol of autocracy, while tho robe and the boots were symbolic of the 'office of Impcrator.or Commander-in-chief. It will be interesting to see whether. Constantine will chdnge his title of King of Greece to that of Emperor,, and follow the example o'f the monarchs of the later Roman Empire by claiming to derive his powers directly from God. The Ehi'ekor Basil, ad-

dressing his son Leo, said: "You received the Crown from God by my hand." The fact of the matter is that the King of Greece is in danger of making "himself ridiculous, for the magnificence he proposes to deck himself with is altogether too great for the size and importance of his kingdom.