Mon 2 Jun 2014
Photo: Spanish royal family (L-R): Princess Letizia, Crown Prince Felipe, Queen Sofia, King Juan Carlos and granddaughters Infanta Sofia and Infanta Leonor, in April this year. (Reuters: Enrique Calvo)
Spain's King Juan Carlos is abdicating after almost 40 years on the throne and his son, Prince Felipe, will succeed him, prime minister Mariano Rajoy has said in a surprise announcement.
"His majesty, King Juan Carlos, has just communicated to me his will to give up the throne," Mr Rajoy said on Monday.
"I'm convinced this is the best moment for change."
The once-popular Juan Carlos, 76, who helped smooth Spain's transition to democracy in the 1970s after the Francisco Franco dictatorship, has lost public support in recent years due to corruption scandals and gaffes.
Recent monarchs who abdicated
Source: AFP
- Belgium: King Albert II of Belgium, 79, stepped down on July 21, 2013 after a 20-year reign, becoming the first Belgian king to voluntarily abdicate. He passed the throne to his oldest son Philippe.
- Qatar: The emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, 61, abdicated on June 25, 2013 in favour of his 33-year-old son Sheikh Tamim, the first such recent transfer of power in an Arab country.
- Netherlands: Dutch Queen Beatrix, 75, abdicated on April 30, 2013 in favour of her son Willem-Alexander, after a 33-year reign. The Netherlands has a history of abdications.
- Cambodia: Norodom Sihanouk, 81, abdicated on October 7, 2004 after being treated in Beijing for cancer.
- Leichtenstein: Prince Hans-Adam II handed over management of the principality's affairs to his eldest son, Hereditary Prince Alois, 36, on August 15, 2004.
- Luxembourg: Grand Duke Jean abdicated on October 7, 2000 after a 36-year-reign, and his elder son, Prince Henri, took his place.
His daughter, Princess Cristina, and her husband, Inaki Urdangarin, are under investigation in a corruption case.
He himself faced accusations of being out of touch when caught on a lavish privately-funded elephant-hunting trip while Spaniards at home were suffering deep and sustained economic recession and high unemployment.
The king, whose health is failing and who has had a number of hip operations in recent years, is stepping down for personal reasons, Mr Rajoy said.
The reign of King Juan Carlos I is best known for a television broadcast he made in the early hours of February 24, 1981 condemning a revolt by right-wing military officers aggrieved by democratic reforms.
Television footage of the leader of the rebels firing his revolver in parliament to cow deputies had been shown across the world.
"The crown, symbol of the permanence and unity of the motherland, cannot tolerate any actions or attitudes by persons who intend to interrupt the democratic process by force," King Juan said to a nation on tenterhooks the night of the coup attempt.
Despite suspicions among some on the left that he had originally encouraged the attempted coup, King Juan went on to earn the respect of notable, long-standing republicans.
"If the king had not been there on February 23 the military coup would have triumphed - of that I have no doubt," veteran Communist Party leader Santiago Carrillo, who spent about 40 years in exile during Franco's reign, told Reuters in 2001.
Groomed by dictator but paved way for democracy
Photo: A photo taken on June 10, 1971 shows then Prince Juan Carlos of Bourbon (L) and Spanish head of state General Francisco Franco (R) attending the Victory Parade in Madrid. (AFP)
Some critics had initially seen the king as a puppet chosen by Franco, who had ruled Spain for decades after winning a long civil war in 1939.
Franco had declared himself head of state but was also de facto regent since the royal family was in exile.
Juan Carlos was crowned two days after Franco's death, on November 22, 1975.
Franco officially designated Juan Carlos as his successor in 1969, but had groomed him since 1948, when the future king first set foot in Spain at the age of 10.
Right-wing diehards had expected the king to continue with Franco's authoritarian style and felt betrayed when he paved the way for Spain to adopt a democratic constitution in 1978.
As a monarch, King Juan and his wife, Queen Sophia, came across as warm and approachable, in contrast to more distant British royals.
The king is a passionate sailor and also enjoyed bear hunting, skiing and motor biking.
But Spanish media traditionally treated the royal family with a deference that would be the envy of British counterparts, eschewing more controversial aspects of his life.
Reuters
