On Thursday September 28, Colonels Plastiras and Gonatas led Greek troops into Athens and arrested Gounaris, Stratos, Protopapadakis, Theotokis, Admiral Goudas and General Papoulas. Since he was now in London, Gilbert Bagnani might have been unaware of these arrests at the time when he wrote an article focussed on King Constantine’s eldest son and successor, George II.
“Prince George, Duke of Sparta, who is to be king Constantine’s successor, is the eldest of the three sons born to him and Queen Sophia. His birth took place at the Royal Villa of Tatoi on July 7, 1890, so that he is now in his 33rd year. He is a major in the Greek army, as well as the captain in the Greek Navy, and has acted as military Aide-de-Camp to his father. When King Constantine first abdicated the 1917 Prince George went with him into exile while his younger brother, Prince Alexander, was placed on the throne.
When King Alexander died in 1920 the Greek Government invited, not the ex-Crown Prince, but his youngest brother Prince Paul, who was then in his teens, to accept the Crown. Prince Paul was also asked to agree to the exclusion of his father and eldest brother from the succession. Prince Paul’s rejection of the invitation was followed shortly afterwards by the restoration of his father.
Princess Elizabeth [the daughter of King Ferdinand of Romania] during her residence in Athens has become very popular indeed. … But while the Princess was conquering all hearts in Athens her consort was not equally lucky. While in command of a large section of the troops in Anatolia he was popularly accused of having had them massacred without any need and of treating his soldiers in the regular Prussian manner as “cannon fodder.” This unpopularity culminated at the end of last year, when at a review of a large body of troops in Asia Minor the soldiers are said to have thrown discipline to the winds and to have received the Prince with hisses and hostile cries.
The attitude of the Army obliged him to leave Asia Minor, and since then, on account of his wife’s illness, he has taken but little part in politics. He’s much distrusted by the Venizelist party, who consider him a weak character dominated by his uncle, Prince Nicolas.”