Editing Alexander of Greece (section)

==Death==
[[File:Queen Sofia of Greece.jpg|thumb|Alexander's mother, [[Queen Sophia of Greece]], by [[Georgios Jakobides]], 1915]]
On 2 October 1920, Alexander was injured while walking through the grounds of the Tatoi estate. A domestic [[Barbary macaque]] belonging to the steward of the palace's grapevines attacked or was attacked by the king's [[German Shepherd|German Shepherd dog]], Fritz,{{efn|name=dog|The dog had been found in an enemy trench during World War I by a British officer, who had presented it to Alexander as a gift.<ref name="vdk119"/>}} and Alexander attempted to separate the two animals. As he did so, another monkey attacked Alexander and bit him deeply on the leg and torso. Eventually servants arrived and chased away the monkeys,<ref>"Monkey Bites King of Greece", ''[[The Portsmouth Herald]]'', 14 October 1920, p. 1; Van der Kiste, p. 122.</ref> and the king's wounds were promptly cleaned and dressed but not [[cauterize]]d. He did not consider the incident serious and asked that it not be publicized.<ref>Van der Kiste, pp. 122–123.</ref>

That evening, his wounds became infected; he developed a strong fever and [[sepsis]] set in. His doctors considered amputating his leg, but none wished to take responsibility for so drastic an act.<ref>Van der Kiste, p. 123.</ref> On 19 October, he became [[Delirium|delirious]] and called out for his mother, but the Greek government refused to allow her to re-enter the country from exile in Switzerland, despite her own protestations. Finally, the [[queen dowager]], [[Olga Constantinovna of Russia|Olga]], George I's widow and Alexander's grandmother, was allowed to return alone to Athens to tend to the king. She was delayed by rough waters, however, and by the time she arrived, Alexander had already died of [[sepsis]] twelve hours previously at a little after 4 p.m. on 25 October 1920.<ref>Van der Kiste, pp. 123–124.</ref> The other members of the royal family received the news by telegram that night.{{efn|name=death|[[Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark|Prince Nicolas]] received the news first but did not communicate it to Alexander's parents until the next morning because he did not wish to disturb their rest.<ref>Van der Kiste, p. 124.</ref>}}

Two days later, Alexander's body was conveyed to [[Athens Cathedral]], where it lay in state until his funeral on 29 October. Once again, the royal family were refused permission to return to Greece, and Queen Olga was the only member who attended.<ref name="vdk125"/> Foreign powers were represented by the [[Alexander I of Yugoslavia|Prince Regent of Serbia]] with his sister [[Princess Helen of Serbia|Princess Helen]] wife of [[Prince John Konstantinovich of Russia|John Constantinovich of Russia]], the [[Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden|Crown Prince of Sweden]] with his uncle [[Prince Eugen, Duke of Närke|Prince Eugene, Duke of Nericia]], and Rear-Admirals [[George Hope (Royal Navy officer)|Sir George Hope]] of the United Kingdom and Dumesnil of France, as well as members of the Athens diplomatic corps.<ref>"Royal Funeral in Athens", ''The Times'', 2 November 1920, p. 11.</ref>

After the cathedral service, Alexander's body was interred on the grounds of the royal estate at Tatoi.<ref name="vdk125">Van der Kiste, p. 125.</ref> The Greek royal family never regarded Alexander's reign as fully legitimate. In the royal cemetery, while other monarchs are given the inscription "King of the Hellenes, Prince of Denmark", Alexander's reads "Alexander, son of the King of the Hellenes, Prince of Denmark. He ruled in the place of his father from 14 June 1917 to 25 October 1920."<ref name="vdk125"/> According to Alexander's favorite sister, Queen Helen of Romania, this feeling of illegitimacy was also shared by Alexander himself, a sentiment that helps explain his mésalliance with Aspasia Manos.<ref name="vdk118" />