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Juan Carlos I, King of Spain (baptized as Juan Alfonso Carlos Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias) was born on January 5, 1938 in Rome and is the reigning King (Rey de España) and Head of state of Spain. On 22 November 1975, two days after the death of Francisco Franco, Juan Carlos was designated King according to the law of succession promulgated by Franco. He successfully oversaw the transition of Spain to a democratic constitutional monarchy. For passing on personal power to democratize the country, he is widely revered by Spaniards.
His name, when rarely anglicised, is rendered as John Alphonse Charles Victor Maria of Bourbon (and Bourbon-Two Sicilies). He was given these names after his father (Juan de Borbon), grandfather (Alfonso XIII) and maternal grandfather (Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies).
Early lifeBorn as son of H.R.H. Infante Don Juan de Borbon, Count of Barcelona, son of Alfonso XIII of Spain, and Princess Maria Mercedes of Bourbon-Orleans. He has one older sibling, a sister, Infanta Pilar, and two younger ones, Infanta Margarita, and the late Infante Alfonso. He was baptised by Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli, the future Pope Pius XII. The future King's early life was dictated largely by the political concerns of his father and Franco. He moved to Spain in 1948 to be educated there after his father persuaded Franco to allow this. He began his studies in San Sebastián and finished them in 1954 at the San Isidro Institute in Madrid. He then joined the army, undergoing officer training from 1955-1957 in Zaragoza.
Starting in 1957, he spent a year in the naval school at Pontevedra and another in the air force school in San Javier in Murcia. In 1961, he graduated from the Complutense University, majoring in Political and International Law, Economics and Public Administration. He then went to live in the Zarzuela Palace, and began carrying out official duties. 'Prince of Spain', 1969-1975The regime of Francisco Franco had come to power during the Spanish Civil War, which had pitted republicans and socialists against conservatives, monarchists, and fascists, with the latter group ultimately emerging successful. Despite his alliance with monarchists, Franco was not eager to restore the deposed Spanish monarchy once in power, preferring to head a regime with himself as head of state for life. Though Franco's partisan supporters generally accepted this arrangement for the present, much debate quickly ensued over who would replace Franco when he died. Monarchist factions demanded the return of a hard-line absolute monarchy, and eventually Franco agreed that his successor would be a monarch. The heir to the throne of Spain was Juan de Borbón (Count of Barcelona), the son of the late Alfonso XIII. However, Franco viewed the heir with extreme suspicion, believing him to be a liberal who was opposed to his regime. Franco then considered giving the throne to Juan Carlos's cousin (and proven Francoist) Alfonso, Duke of Anjou and Cádiz, who had married Franco's granddaughter in 1972. In response, Juan Carlos started to use his second name Carlos to assert his claim to the heritage of the Carlist branch of his family. Ultimately, Franco decided to skip a generation and name Prince Juan Carlos as his personal successor. Franco hoped the young Prince could be groomed to take over the nation while still maintaining the ultra-conservative nature of his regime. In 1969, Juan Carlos was officially designated heir and was given the new title of Prince of Spain (not the traditional Prince of Asturias). Juan Carlos met and consulted with Franco many times while heir apparent and often performed official and ceremonial state functions alongside the dictator, much to the anger of hard-line republicans and more moderate liberals, who had hoped that Franco's death would bring in an era of reform. During those years, Juan Carlos publicly supported Franco's regime. However, as the years progressed, Juan Carlos began meeting with political opposition leaders and exiles, who were fighting to bring liberal reform to the country. Franco, for his part, remained largely oblivious to the prince's actions and denied allegations that Juan Carlos was in any way disloyal to his vision of the regime. During periods of Franco's temporary incapacity in 1973 and 1975 Juan Carlos was acting head of state. Near death, on 30 October, 1975, Franco gave full control to Juan Carlos. On 22 November, upon Franco's death, the Cortes Generales proclaimed Juan Carlos King of Spain and on November 27, Juan Carlos ascended the Spanish throne with an anointing ceremony called Holy Spirit Mass which was the equivalent to a coronation at the Jerónimos Church in Madrid. Restoration of the monarchyImage:Sofia, Laura Bush, George W. Bush and Juan Carlos.jpg King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia with President George W. Bush and Laura Bush After Franco's death, Juan Carlos I quickly instituted democratic reforms, to the great displeasure of fascist and conservative (monarchist) elements, especially in the military, who had expected him to maintain the authoritarian state. He appointed Adolfo Suárez, a former leader of the Movimiento Nacional, as Prime Minister of Spain. On 20 May 1977, the leader of the only-recently legalized Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) Felipe González, accompanied by Javier Solana, visited Juan Carlos in the Zarzuela Palace. The event represented a key endorsement of the monarchy from Spain's political left, who had been historically republican. Left-wing support for the monarchy grew when the Communist Party of Spain was legalized shortly thereafter, a move Juan Carlos had pressed for, despite enormous right-wing military opposition at that time, during the Cold War. On 15 June 1977, Spain held its first post-Franco democratic elections. In 1978, a new Constitution was promulgated that acknowledged Juan Carlos as rightful heir of the Spanish dynasty and King. This language justified Juan Carlos' position by deeming him Head of State of a democratic, historical monarchy, and not simply the appointed heir of the dictator Franco. The Constitution was passed by the democratically elected Cortes Generales, ratified by the people in a referendum and then signed into law by the King before a solemn meeting of the Cortes. Further legitimacy had been restored to Juan Carlos´ position on 14 May 1977, when his father, Don Juan (whom many monarchists had recognized as the legitimate, exiled King of Spain during the Franco era), formally renounced his claim to the Throne and recognized his son as the sole head of the Spanish Royal House, transferring to him the historical heritage of the Spanish monarchy, thus making Juan Carlos both the de facto and the de jure (rightful) King in the eyes of the traditional monarchists. Juan Carlos, who was already King since Franco's death, gave an acceptance address after his father’s resignation speech and thanked him by confirming the title of Count of Barcelona that Don Juan had assumed in exile. Under the new 1978 Constitution Juan Carlos relinquished absolute power and became a reigning but non-ruling monarch. The reforms of these years attracted considerable animosity from the armed forces, which ultimately culminated in an attempted military coup on 23 February 1981, in which the Cortes was seized by members of the Guardia Civil in the parliamentary chamber (see 23-F). According to the widely accepted version, the coup ended up being thwarted by the public television broadcast by the King, calling for unambiguous support for the legitimate democratic government. In the hours before his speech, he had personally called many senior military figures to tell them that he was opposed to the coup, and that they had to defend the democratic government. However, some authors (like Ronald Hilton) cast doubt over the King's role in the events. According to the explanation offered by Patricia Sverlo, author of a biography of Juan Carlos, the coup was actually organized by the Spanish establishment to neutralize the risk of a real coup by the army, moderate the left wingers' reformist demands, and increase Juan Carlos's popularity.
When Juan Carlos became king, Communist leader Santiago Carrillo nicknamed him Juan Carlos the Brief, predicting that the monarchy would be swept away with the other remnants of the Franco era. After the collapse of the attempted coup mentioned above, in an emotional statement, Carrillo told television viewers "God save the King". The Communist leader also remarked: "Today, we are all monarchists". If public support for the monarchy among democrats and leftists prior to 1981 was limited, following the King's handling of the coup, it became notably wider. According to a poll by "Sigma Dos" published in the newspaper El Mundo in November 2005, 77.5% of Spaniards thought Juan Carlos was "good or very good," 15.4% "not so good," and only 7.1% "bad or very bad." Role in contemporary Spanish politicsImage:2e es.png King Juan Carlos I, depicted on the Spanish €2 coin The election of socialist leader Felipe González to the Spanish prime ministership in 1982 marked the effective end of Juan Carlos' active involvement in Spanish politics. González would govern for over a decade, and his administration helped consolidate the democratic gains initiated by Juan Carlos and thus maintained the stability of the nation. Today the King exercises little real power over the country's politics, but is regarded as an essential symbol of the country's unity. Unlike many other European monarchs, under the constitution, the King has immunity from prosecution in matters relating to his official duties. This is so because every act of the King as such (and not as a citizen) needs to be undersigned by a government official, thus making the undersigner responsible instead of the king. He gives an annual speech to the nation on Christmas Eve. He is the commander-in-chief of the Spanish armed forces. He does however have informal powers such as giving speeches. This has been known to cause trouble when he spoke in order to see the handing back of Gibraltar in 1991 at the United Nations General Assembly, during which he described the issue as an unresolved colonial problem which affects Spain's territorial integrity. In 1979, King Juan Carlos I instituted the Ruta de Quetzal as a way to promote cultural exchange between students from Spain and Latin America. In 1987, he became the first King of Spain to visit the former Spanish possession of Puerto Rico.
Family and private lifeImage:Juan Carlos 2004.jpg Juan Carlos and his wife, Sofía Juan Carlos was married in Athens on 14 May, 1962, to HRH Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark, daughter of King Paul. She was Greek Orthodox but converted to Roman Catholicism in order to become Spain's Queen. They had two daughters, Elena and Cristina, and a son, the heir apparent, Felipe. In 1972, Juan Carlos, a keen sailor, competed in the Dragon class event at the Olympic Games, though he did not win any medals. In their summer holidays, the whole family meets in Marivent Palace (Palma de Mallorca), where they take part in sailing competitions. In winter, they used to go skiing in Baqueira-Beret and Candanchú (Pyrenees). In August 2006, it is alleged that Juan Carlos shot a drunken tame bear during a private hunting trip to Russia. The office of the Spanish Monarchy denies these claims, which are made by Russian regional authorities. [1] Juan Carlos speaks several languages. With the Queen he speaks English. He does not, however, speak his wife's native language, Greek, a fact he regrets. Besides Spanish and English, Juan Carlos speaks fluent French, Italian, Portuguese and Catalan. TitlesImage:Estandarte real.gif The Standard of the King of Spain The current Spanish constitution refers to the monarchy as "the crown of Spain" and the constitutional title of the monarch is simply rey/reina de España: that is, "king/queen of Spain". However, the constitution allows for the use of other historic titles pertaining to the Spanish monarchy, without specifying them. A decree promulgated 6 November 1987 at the Council of Ministers regulates the titles further, and on that basis the monarch of Spain has a right to use ("may use") those other titles appertaining to the Crown. Contrary to some belief, the long titulary that contains the list of over 20 kingdoms, etc., is not in state use, nor is it used in Spanish diplomacy. In fact, it has never been in use in that form, as "Spain" was never a part of the list in pre-1837 era when the long list was officially used. Spain, unmentioned in titulary for more than three centuries, was symbolized by the long list that started "...of Castile, Leon, Aragon,..." - The following long titulary in the feudal style was the last used officially in 1836 by Isabella II of Spain (see the account of titulary in her article) before she became constitutional queen: Juan Carlos I is titled or styled: Juan Carlos I, King of Spain, King of Castile, King of León, King of Aragon, King of the Two Sicilies, King of Jerusalem, King of Navarre, King of Granada, King of Toledo, King of Valencia, King of Galicia, King of Sardinia, King of Cordoba, King of Corsica, King of Murcia, King of Jaen, King of Algarve, King of Algeciras, King of Gibraltar, King of the Canary Islands, King of the Spanish East and West Indies and of the Islands and Mainland of the Ocean Sea, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, Duke of Brabant, Duke of Milan, Duke of Athens and Neopatria, Count of Habsburg, Count of Flanders, Count of Tyrol, Count of Roussillon, Count of Barcelona, Lord of Biscay, Lord of Molina, Captain General of the Royal Armed Forces and its Supreme Commander, Sovereign Grand Master of the Celebrated Order of the Golden Fleece (Spain), Grand Master of the Royal & Distinguished Order of Charles III (Spain), Grand Master of the Royal Order of Isabelle, the Catholic (Spain), Grand Master of the Royal & Military Order of St. Hermenegildo (Spain), Grand Master of the Royal & Military Order of St. Fernando (Spain), Grand Master of the Order of Montesa (Spain), Grand Master of the Order of Alcántara (Spain), Grand Master of the Order of Calatrava (Spain), Grand Master of the Order of Santiago (Spain), Grand Master of the Order of Maria Luisa (Spain), Grand Master of other Military Orders
The first king to officially use the name Spain as the realm in the titulary was Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte, brother of Emperor Napoleon, who used King of the Spains and the Indias; the present Spanish monarch is not his heir. The Bourbons returned to the feudal format (...of Castile, Leon, Aragon,...) until 1837, when the short version "queen of the Spains" was taken into use. The singular Spain was first used by Amadeo - he was "by divine grace and will of nation, king of Spain"; the present Spanish monarch is not his heir, either. Alfonso XII, when restored, started to use "constitutional king of Spain, by divine and constitutional grace". Juan Carlos uses simply "king of Spain", without any divine, national or constitutional reference. He also claims to have the title of King of Gibraltar, but for diplomatic reasons is not used, despite his other titles' flagrant disrespect for multiple sovereignties. Juan Carlos also may have a legitimate claim to de jure Emperor of the Romans (basileus, kaisar autokrator ton Rhomaion) as he is descended from and is the successor of Ferdinand II of Aragon. Ferdinand received these rights as de jure Roman Emperor by the last will and testament of the ultimate Palaiologos claimant of the Byzantine Empire, Andreas Palaiologus (d. 1503), a nephew of the Emperor Constantine XI, who was the last to actually reign in Constantinople and was killed in 1453. Others potentially entitled to the same rights are (1) Alice, Duchess of Calabria as the heir-general of king Ferdinand II, (2) Louis-Alphonse, Duke of Anjou, as the heir-male of Maria Theresa of Spain, great-great-great-great-granddaughter of king Ferdinand II, who brought the Aragonese succession to the Bourbons; and (3) Otto von Habsburg, Archduke of Austria, Semi-Salic heir-male of Ferdinand II (Ferdinand left only daughters; the male line of his eldest surviving daughter Joanna went extinct in 1741 with Emperor Charles VI and the next line started from Maria Theresa of Austria, surviving today). This, of course, presumes that Andreas had any rights of which to dispose: there exist heirs to other Byzantine imperial lines as well. Other honoursHe has been the recipient of numerous honorary degrees, including from University of Santo Tomas, Philippines, Southern Methodist University (where, in 2001, he formally opened the Meadows Museum, housing the largest collection of Spanish art outside Spain), and St. Mary's University, Texas. Juan Carlos also has received honorary Doctor of Laws degrees from New York University, and University of Utrecht, the Netherlands (25 October 2001) [2]. In 1997, NYU opened the King Juan Carlos I of Spain Center (to promote research and teaching on Spain and the Spanish-speaking world) in the historic Judson Hall and adjacent buildings on Washington Square in New York City. He is also a member of the Sons of the American Revolution organization. [3] Ancestors
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