Princess Alice of Greece, Prince Philip’s mother and King Charles’s grandmother, sheltered members of a Jewish family in Nazi-occupied Athens. Her actions helped them survive the Holocaust and later brought recognition from Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center.
Her name can be easy to lose among the many Alices in royal history. This Alice was born a princess of Battenberg, became Princess Andrew of Greece through marriage, and is remembered today for a decision made far from the ceremonies and portraits that usually frame a royal life.
Featured image: Princess Alice’s memorial tree at Yad Vashem, photographed on April 9, 2018. Sf2000 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The woman behind the family connection
Born at Windsor Castle in 1885, Alice was a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria. She married Prince Andrew of Greece in 1903 and became the mother of four daughters and a son, Philip. The National Portrait Gallery’s biography describes her deafness, her ability to lip-read and her fluency in several languages, as well as her nursing and relief work.
That biography places her wartime rescue within a longer life of practical service. During the Balkan Wars and the world wars, she cared for people through nursing, hospital work and soup kitchens. After the Second World War, she founded a Greek Orthodox nursing order.
Where Princess Alice fits in the family
Princess Alice was the mother of Prince Philip.
Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II were the parents of King Charles.
Alice was therefore Charles’s grandmother and Prince William and Prince Harry’s great-grandmother.
A refuge in occupied Athens
The most detailed account comes from Yad Vashem’s rescue record. It identifies Rachel Cohen and her daughter Tilde as taking refuge in the residence where Alice lived from October 1943 to December 1944. Rachel’s son Michel also received shelter when he returned to Athens.
The record describes the secrecy surrounding their presence and Alice’s regular visits to speak with Rachel. It also recounts German questioning, which Alice deflected by appearing not to understand because of her deafness. These details come from the memorial institution’s documented account, rather than a television dramatization.
The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust’s educational account also tells the rescue story. It explains that Rachel and Tilde could not safely make the escape attempted by the family’s sons. Keeping their names in view helps us understand the decision as protection of particular people facing persecution, rather than an abstract act of royal kindness.
Recognition came after her death
Alice died in 1969. Yad Vashem recognized her as Righteous Among the Nations on March 11, 1993, and Prince Philip and his sister Princess Sophie attended a ceremony honoring her there in 1994. The recognition honors her rescue of Jews during the Holocaust; it should not be confused with a British royal order or hereditary title.
Three dates in her legacy
1943: Alice provided refuge in occupied Athens.
1993: Yad Vashem formally recognized her rescue.
2020: Charles spoke at Yad Vashem about the inspiration he drew from his grandmother.
Why her story still matters to the family
Speaking at Yad Vashem on January 23, 2020, the then-Prince Charles said his grandmother’s actions continued to inspire him. His published speech placed that family memory within a wider responsibility to preserve survivors’ testimony and teach the history of the Holocaust.
The connection continued publicly in January 2025, when William and Catherine attended the national Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony in London. The Trust’s report records that William introduced a reading about Alice and that the couple met survivors. Her story reaches across generations through remembrance and education, rather than through a title alone.
We can admire Alice’s courage while keeping the Cohen family at the heart of what happened. Their survival gives this chapter its human meaning and reminds us why careful historical records matter.
For another account of service during the war, explore our account of Princess Elizabeth’s wartime mechanic training.
Sources
Yad Vashem’s rescue record; the National Portrait Gallery biography; Holocaust Memorial Day Trust’s educational material and January 27, 2025 ceremony report; and Charles’s January 23, 2020 Yad Vashem speech, linked above.
