King Juan Carlos & Queen Sofia of Spain

[darius]

The King has made it clear that he won´t abdicate however the NOOS scandal may yet implicate him further and perhaps to save the Monarchy it may be a necessary evil that he remove himself from the scene.  Will it be possible to convert the Juan Carlistas to Felipistas?  A difficult job I think.  The Monarchy isn´t seen to be in touch with the people at any level.  They are not loved or held in high esteem by the people as is the case in the UK.  It would be a shame that Juan Carlos´legacy will be NOOS and elephant hunting when the contribution he made to democracy and political stability in Spain, particularly on 20-N, 23-F and 11-M are outstanding.
As the King and Queen should be celebrating their Golden Wedding Anninversary there is no public celebration in Spain (nor a private one according to the press).  The Queen it appears apart from her estrangement from the King is also in a difficult stage in her relationship with her children. 
A sad end for this last great dynastic marriage.  The shadow of Victoria Eugenie, another princess who gave up her religion to marry a Borbon King and suffered a loveless and painful marriage must loom heavily over Sofia at times.

[Robert_Hall]

Very well put Darius. I remember well the hope and future he embodied after Franco.
 It is indeed sad, if this is the ending of another great dynasty. I am obviously not Spanish but I thought Felipe was popular, Am I incorrect in this ?
 Unless I pick up El Mundo, I see very little of the Spanish royal family.

[darius]

Felipe is neither popular nor unpopular.  As I mentioned before this family is neither loved nor loathed.  Having lived in Spain for a decade the impression I get is of a people with a strong republican mindset who stuck with Juan Carlos as he was seen as a guarantee of continued democratic progress and prosperity.  I have never sensed a great sense of loyalty to the Crown.  Today, almost 40 years after Franco´s death and with a robust parliamentary democracy I think Spain would lose the Borbones without shedding a tear. 

[darius]

To expand a little on my previous post, the Spanish have no real historic collective memory of Monarchy.  Comparing them to their Windsor cousins, there is no collective public memory of George V leading his nation to the Great War, to the drama of the abdication, Queen Elizabeth looking the east end in the face or of a Princess climbing a tree in Africa and descending a Queen whic while anecdotal do bind the British public despite their grouching to the Monarchy.  Juan Carlos´reign is often described as a monarchy established by a dictator.  Without the history they have none of the magic of the Windsors (Windsors be warned!).  I truly believe that Spain will when the time comes (Juan Carlos´demise or abdication) when the future of the monarchy will be put to referendum - especially should this occur during a Socialist government.  The people will undoubtedly decide to leave the Borbons behind.

[Robert_Hall]

Very thoughtful, Darius. I tend to agree with you.

[trentk80]

To expand a little on my previous post, the Spanish have no real historic collective memory of Monarchy.

I think many Spaniards (not all, of course) are fond of the history of their Monarchy. The history of Spanish monarchs since the Middle Ages up to the 20th century has been the focus of much research in Spain, both academic and amateur. Personally I know many persons in Spain who are fascinated by it. However, the present royal family is not popular, but they are not seen as "history" or part of that "history of the Monarchy". They belong to the present, which is not so "romantic" (especially with the difficult economic situation Spain is facing). For instance, Queen Marie Antoinette of France was very unpopular during her reign, and two centuries later a lot of people are fascinated with her. Perhaps people will be fascinated with Juan Carlos two centuries from now.

[Vecchiolarry]

Hi,

What of The Queen?
I quite understand the lack of popularity & respect for Juan Carlos and even for the Asturios's and his two sister Infantas,
but Sofia does seem to have some esteem, doesn't she.
I can't see her as ever putting a foot wrong......

Larry

[darius]

Queen Sofia has never put a foot wrong and is seen (and was once described by the King) as a great professional.  Yet she is not loved by the people - she is perhaps considered rather Prussian.  There isn´t the degree of contact here in Spain that exists in the UK between the family and the people.  Spain doesn´t have the wide range of charities with members acting as patrons or visits to schools, colleges, universities, sink estates, premieres where we so often see the House of Windsor meeting the public.  The Monarchy here is rather institutional, something akin to another govt. Ministry.  On a TV talk show last night when discussing the matter there wasn´t an obvious sympathy for the Queen´s predicament.  It was asked why the Queen put up with this and didn´t just divorce.  They don´t seem to understand the sense of duty which is innate in this daughter and granddaughter  of Kings and Emperors.

[Brassov]

Well, I am sooooo dissillusioned with the Spanish Royal Family right now ! Turns out after all the drama and years of struggle to get the Bourbons back on the Spanish throne, the man is an idiot, irresponsible, cruel to animals, screwing around. Amazing.  I have always thought that the survival of Royalty is to first and foremost, earn the respect of the people, if not, everything goes down the tubes pretty quickly! One thing is very apparent ; King J. C.  has learnt nothing from recent history. I would have thought that, when your country is in crisis, you need to set an example, and be there for your family and your subjects.
I hope poor Queen Ena is not spinning in her grave right now !

     

[Kalafrana]

Sounds like a lack of judgement on the basics - and I don't mean the king's personal life!

The Spanish monarchy was restored after a 40-year gap, and needed to re-establish itself on firm foundations both in general terms and in separating itself from the association with Franco. Why then did the king and queen not get busy with the public service role personified by the British royal family?

If I read Darius's latest message correctly, there are not  as many charities in Spain as in Britain, but royalty could still involve themselves with, say, education or promoting the arts.

Perhaps Juan Carlos should have studied the example of Haakon VII, who re-established the Norwegian monarchy after a gap of centuries, and, along with his family, quickly gained the affection and respect of his people.

Ann

[Vecchiolarry]

Hi,

Yes Ann, I agree with you entirely...
These people could have created their own charitable and educatioal institutions and gotten off their asses and gone out and, at least, be seen to be effective.

Really, when I think of it, here in Canada we only ever saw pictures of the Spanish royals on vacation in Majorca or sailing on the Mediterranean...
They should have been photographed doing something charitable - handing out candies to kids, even!!!!

Larry

[Robert_Hall]

The only thing I can think of that the  king and CP  got involved with was  sports, especially sailing. I cannot blame the Queen for staying away from this mess,  although she certainly has grounds, divorce is impossible, IMO. bot Catholic & Orthodox would heavily frown on that. Did she not receive the Golden Rose from the Pope ?

[trentk80]

If I read Darius's latest message correctly, there are not  as many charities in Spain as in Britain, but royalty could still involve themselves with, say, education or promoting the arts.

Throughout the years the Spanish royal family has been involved with education and promotion of the arts. For instance, since 1981 Prince Felipe presides the annual ceremony of the Príncipe de Asturias Awards, which are granted to individuals with outstanding achievements in the Arts, Literature, etc. He's also the President of the Foundation. Throughout their reign, the King and Queen have presided countless events about education, human rights, scholarships, etc. For instance, since 1976 Juan Carlos presides the annual ceremony of the Miguel de Cervantes Awards, which are granted to outstanding achievements in Spanish literature. Since 1977 Queen Sofia is the president of the Fundación Reina Sofía, which promotes education, cultural activities, etc.

Of course, these kind of news are not sensational so most people don't pay attention to that, unlike the private lives of royalty.

So I disagree that the Spanish royal family only appears in pictures while on holiday. There are countless photos and videos of the Spanish royals doing their official activities.

[historyfan]

Here's a good source of photos of the Spanish royals at work.

http://www.gettyimages.ca/EditorialImages/Royalty?Language=en-US

[darius]

While all very altruistic it really doesn´t say or mean a great deal to a nation with 6 million unemployed, a third of which are by now ineligible for state subsidies.