Otto of Greece
Otto (Greek: Όθων, Óthon, German: Otto Friedrich Ludwig von Bayern; 1 June 1815 — 26 July 1867) was a Bavarian prince who ruled as King of Greece from the establishment of the monarchy in 1832, under the until he was overthrown in 1862.
| Otto | |
|---|---|
| |
| Portrait by Friedrich Dürck, 1833 | |
| King of Greece | |
| Reign | 27 May 1832 — 23 October 1862 |
| Predecessor | Vacant (previously held by Constantine XI as Byzantine Emperor) |
| Successor | George I (1863) |
| Spouse | Amalia of Oldenburg (m. 1836)
|
| House | Wittelsbach |
| Father | Ludwig I of Bavaria |
| Mother | Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
The second son of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, Otto was elected king of Greece, the newly formed kingdom that gained independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1832. However, Otto did not reach Greece until on 6 February 1633. As a young man, the people of Greece were optimistic that Otto would be a great king as he was the first king of modern Greece after the Greeks suffered under the Ottoman Empire.
During his reign however, Greece was very unstable because he did not care about the people. He heavily taxed them, was not Greek Orthodox but was Roman Catholicism, invited more people from Bavaria to come to Greece, his closest advisors were Bavarian rather than Greek, and he could not speak Greek because he did not bother learning it. He only spoke his native German.
Otto was also an absolute monarch and never agreed to make Greece a constitutional monarchy as he was apparently a strong believer of absolutism. All of the bad things that Otto did in Greece made him highly unpopular and that the Greeks eventually overthrew him. Otto lived the remaining 5 years of his life in exile at his home country of Bavaria until he died in 1867 at the age of 52. When he was on his deathbed, Otto regretted treating the Greek people very bad. His last words were "Greece, my Greece, my beloved Greece!!!".
Otto Of Greece Media
Flag of King Otto of Greece
"The Entry of King Otto in Athens" by Peter von Hess, 1839
Map showing the original territory of the Kingdom of Greece, as laid down in the treaty of 1832 (in dark blue)
A portrait by Gottlieb Bodmer
Men of the Royal Gendarmerie Corps which was established after the enthronement of Otto in 1833
Personal coat of arms of Otto
A romantic portrayal of Otto in Evzonas uniform, in front of ancient Greek ruins, by Gottlieb Bodmer
Portrait of Otto by Joseph Karl Stieler
A painting representing the 3 September 1843 Revolution
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