CONSTANTINE AND THE WAR

Taranaki Daily News, 8 January 1921, Page 7

CONSTANTINE AND THE WAR

PRIVATE SECRETARY'S REMINISCENCES. At the time when Constantine has again ascended the throne of Greece after his exile in Swizerland there appears a book written by Major G. M. Melas, and entitled “Ex-King Constantine and the War.” Major Melas was for 30 years private secretary, and a close personal friend of Constantine, and as he remained in this relationship for at least a year after the Great War broke out he had exceptional opportunities for observing what went on behind the scenes at the Greek during those critical months. Constantine (states an reviewer of the book) is described 'by his “close personal friend”, as utterly lacking in moral training. He is intelligent, and. at bottom a good, sort of man, but no one had paid any at! ention to his moral development. And he has always been an autocrat. We are told that he was not influenced by German ideas in his youth, and even loved France and England. The personal influence of the ex-Kaiser did not become manifest until after the war, when he gave him the “ill-fated” baton of a German fieldmarshal. As for the people of Greece, says Major Melas, they not only loved their King, but they idolised him- The reason for this was that he was born in Greece, and bore the name of the last Byzantine Emperor of glorious memory, who was slain while defending his last stronghold against the Turks. Yet it was this other Constantine who refused to take arms against his country’s traditional foe because his wife was a German. On one occasion when informed of the pro-ally feeling of the people he said, “I care nothing for what the public say, I am not a man to be led by the nose.” He thought he ruled, when in reality it was others who were ruling him.

Venizelos, the great Greek statesman, who was defeated at the general elections a few months ago, was the archenemy of Constantine, but only in the sense that he respected the traditional pro-English feeling of the Greeks. His terms of office were marked by incessant conflict against -the Germanophile policy of Constantine and the emissaries from Berlin who , swarmed about the palace. The author from his own knowledge tells us that after an interview between Constantine and Venizelos the King’s wife, who is a sister of the exKaiser, was always the first to encounter her husband for fear that he had been led away from the side of Germany.

The late King Alexander, who succeeded to the throne when Constantine was deposed, and whose death has caused the present position, alone of all the Royal prices . never spoke of Venizelos save in terms of respect. On the day that he ascended the throne he is reported to have said:—“My grandfather reigned over Greece for fifty years because he never interfered with politics. My father (Constantine) did the contrary, and did not reign five years. I intend doing what my grandfather did.” In the opinion of Major Melas, the Al. lied policy in the East was a failure. Serbia was not allowed to fall on the Bulgarians at the propitious moment, because of the perpetual fear of “offending” Bulgaria, not then in the war, which ended by allowing Bulgaria to destroy Serbia- Even when Venizelos formed a provisional Government at Salonica in 1916 the Allies continued to bolster up Constantine in the chimerical hone of winning him over from the German cause. It was not until two years later that his dethronement was effected. “So,” writes the author, “after the great initial mistake in regard to Serbia, after suffering disappointment in Turkey, and committing third blunder in regard to Bulgaria, the Allies persisted deliberately in making a final and equally grave error in endeavoring to obtain the goodwill of Constantine. This sums up in a few words the Allied policy in the Near East.”