Juan Carlos I de Bourbon - King of Spain, who became an era. His reign lasted about forty years, during which the country turned from an extreme dictatorial patrimony into a modern democratic state. Not everything went smoothly and stably, all the difficulties that overwhelmed the political and social sphere of the Kingdom of Spain were thrown onto the shoulders of the young King Democrat .
Dynasty history
Juan Carlos I is a representative of the ruling Bourbon dynasty. This genus has its roots in France, and its first representative in Spain was King Philip V, whose reign came back in 1700. The Habsburg dynasty, which was the strongest at that time, on the European continent was afraid that the primacy would pass into the hands of the Bourbons, from then on controlling two large kingdoms: France and Spain. After this, the war for the Spanish inheritance began, during which the king of Spain was forbidden to claim the French crown, he was declared the legitimate ruler of Spain exclusively.
After 100 years, the dynasty was overthrown by Napoleon, but in 1814 their power was returned. In 1871-1873, the Savoy dynasty led the throne, but from 1874 until 1931 the Bourbons were again at the helm. After the election, power passed to the left Republicans, and as a result of several days of ongoing demonstrations, Alfons XIII left the country and went to emigrate to Italy. The Bourbon dynasty was decided to revive in 1975, when the empty throne of Spain was occupied by the new king Juan Carlos 1.
Childhood and youth
The future monarch was born into the family of the direct heir to the Spanish throne, don Juan Carlos, Count of Barcelona on January 5, 1938, when his family was in exile. Interestingly, he was baptized by E. Pacelli, who became a pope a year later with the name of Pius XII.
In 1947, a referendum took place in Spain, during which 95% of voters voted for the resumption of the monarchical system, but at the same time, General Franco remained a life regent. A bill was drafted in which, as expected, the name of the future king was not indicated. The thing is that the direct heir to Alfonso XIII was his son Juan de Bourbon, who was an ardent opponent of the dictator Franco and even participated in an unsuccessful conspiracy against him. Therefore, his 9-year-old son Juan Carlos (the first male child in the family) was elected to this role.
Getting an education
The following year, the future heir to the throne was invited to Spain, where he began to study at the military academy of Zaragoza. Until 1958, he studied maritime in the city of Marina, after which he continued to serve in the Spanish Air Force. He completed his education at the prestigious Complutense University, which he graduated only in 1961. The subjects of interest are political science, economics, and international law. After that, he began direct political activity and began to take part in official events of the state.
Family creation
In the 24th year of his life, Juan Carlos I decided to tie himself in family ties. The Princess of Greece in exile Sofia, who was the eldest daughter of King Paul I, became his chosen one. The wedding of the crowned persons took place on May 14, 1962 in Athens, the capital of Greece. This was followed by a honeymoon, after which the couple settled in the Zarzuela palace in Madrid, but it remains their residence in our days. A year later, they had a daughter, Elena, two years later, their daughter Christina, and in 1968, Sofia gave birth to her son Filipe, the future heir to the throne. Currently, the former king of Spain, Juan Carlos and Sofia, has 5 grandchildren.
Heir to the Spanish throne
General Franco declared Juan his heir only in 1969, which caused great indignation of his father - Count of Barcelona. The dictator could not leave the crown to "anyone", so he approached this choice carefully and saw in Juan the successor of his work, all the more so since the chosen one showed by his actions that he was ready to follow the Francoist path. He played well the role of an “obedient boy” and a student, even took an oath to the “National Movement” and repeatedly supported the Franco regime.
In the summer of 1974, Franco appointed Juan as acting head of state. In November of the following year, after the death of General Franco, the parliament announced the restoration of royal power, while the monarch Juan Carlos I de Bourbon was declared. The photo of the coronation of the new king after more than thirty years of the empty Spanish throne for most of the people is a memory of the long-awaited events that followed the era of the dictator Franco.
The first democratic transformation
As it turned out, the new monarch did not want to follow the course of Franco and immediately began to radically reform the entire state apparatus. He appointed Adolfo Suárez, an experienced politician, to the post of prime minister. His main task was a smooth and, most important, legal transition to democracy. By the autumn of 1976, the “Act on Political Reform” had been developed, and it was he who was destined to become a legislative document transforming the old state power.
In 1977, all bans on the activities of opposition political parties were lifted. In the summer of the same year, the first alternative parliamentary elections were held, and autumn was marked by a change in the country's territorial structure from unitary to federal: autonomy of Basquiat and Catalonia were created. 1978 was marked by the adoption of a new democratic constitution, and in the spring of 1979, early parliamentary elections were held in accordance with the constitution.
The democratic transformations carried out by Juan Carlos I, pushed his father to reconcile with his activities and recognize his son as the legitimate leader of the state. And in 1978 the Count of Barcelona rested. Most of the European ruling dynasties, before which did not recognize Juan Carlos as king, recognized his legitimate authority on the Spanish throne, but within the country there were still forces that wanted to return to the path of dictator Franco, they were nationalists and military.
"God save the king!"
In the 6th year of the country's rule, in 1981, the country attempted a bloodless coup. Radical officers broke into parliament, captured government members and deputies with a demand to appoint "their" general to the post of prime minister. However, the king did not say anything, as was expected of him, he answered with a sharp opposition. The rebels were not ready for this, and by morning they were forced to surrender to the authorities.
At the same time, Juan’s authority has greatly increased even among left-wing Republicans and other opposition figures. It was after the events of 1981 that the leader of the Communists S. Carrillo, who had previously talked about the king only with a mocking smile on his face, exclaimed in a fit of emotion before the television cameras: “God save the king!”
Juan Carlos 1 considered that the mission for the democratization of Spain has been completed. After which he decided to move away from active political interference in the affairs of the state, especially since the majority of votes in the 1982 parliamentary elections were in support of the Social Democrats. Since then, he performed the nominal function of the head of state, was responsible for the moral honor and authority of the patron of the state and people, and also served as the Supreme Commander.
Recent scandals
In 2012, a series of scandals related to the royal family began. At this time, Spain experienced a protracted economic crisis. However, this did not interfere with entertainment. Juan Carlos I went to Botswana to hunt elephants. According to the estimates of statistical companies, about 44 thousand euros were spent on this. This information caused a sharp irritation of the population, some activists took to the streets of Madrid criticizing extreme squandering in the difficult economic period.
In the same year, investigations into the theft of state property and corruption activities began. They were accused of this neither more nor less, and the infante Christina herself and her husband I. Urdangarin. Official charges were brought against them only in 2014. After this scandal, the king was forced to publish a declaration of cash receipts. According to her, in 2011 the monarch's annual income was about 293 thousand euros, 40% of which were paid to the state budget in the form of tax.
Abdication
The last years of his reign, the already elderly Juan Carlos 1 (the Bourbon dynasty at which was revived and acquired a democratic connotation) complained about his health. The consequence of this was his voluntary renunciation. June 18, 2014 was the last day when the king of the Spanish monarchy was H. Carlos. At the same time, the authorities wanted to assign him the title of Count of Barcelona, but the Bourbon representative decided that after he resigned, he did not want to have any titles and would simply be Juan Carlos, without the prefix “Majesty” or “Highness”. The next day, June 19, 2014 in Spain, the new king, the son of Juan Carlos, Felipe, entered into his legal rights.
As eyewitnesses and cameras testify, during the abdication, the king's face shone with happiness. Juan Carlos I perfectly understood that he had done a lot for his native country: he was reforming the system of government from a military dictatorship to democracy, economically turning Spain from an agrarian to a high-tech developed European civilization. He walked the road of good and democracy, but was not afraid to be tough when it became necessary in 1981. He managed to reconcile ardent enemies - the Communists and the Francoists. And after 39 years of service for the good of his homeland, he went on a well-deserved vacation without debts to his homeland.