Waiting and watching for the King and Queen of Spain

Yesterday on the last day of their State Visit to the UK the King and Queen of Spain visited Oxford.

Having found out roughly the times of their arrival I got to the area by the steps to the Sheldonian theatre in good time. I was joined early on by several other "royal-watchers"and a Spanish family whose bespectacled teenage son had arrived complete with his own red and yellow flag to wave. The crowd built up  and the great and the good as well as officials and schoolchildren arrived, and in their case were provided with Spanish flags to wave by people from the Embassy. Some Spanish women near me hailed those distributing them across the road for flags which were duly provided.

Escorted by motorcyle outriders the car from the Royal mews glided to a halt just opposite me - and was a sight in itselfas it gleamed in the sun. The King and Queen alighted and immediately made for the welcoming group of children before visiting the Weston Library.

The King and Queen of Spain with schoolchildren outside the Weston Library

Image: ox.ac.uk

At that point I had to go and give a guided tour to some customers, but realised from the crowd still hanging around the entrance to Exeter College on the Broad that the visitors had not yet arrived there. At this point I ran into a friend and told him what was happening and we took station in the middle of the Broad by the motorcycles and their riders and the series of people-carriers, emblazoned appropriately with the Union or Spanish flag, for the suites in attendance.

The King and Queen walked from the lunch in the Divinity School along to Exeter College - the centre in many ways of Spanish studies in Oxford - for a reception with Hispanic academics and students and stopped to talk to well-wishers at the gate. Here I spotted the Spanish teenager with his flag whom I had seen earlier. His patience - and evident loyalty - was rewarded by a conversation with the King. We waited, talking at one point to one of the Police motorcyclists as he topped up the polish on his machine, until the Royal party re-emerged in their car to travel followed by the accompanying households to fly back to Spain from RAF Brize Norton. I joined in with the shouts of " Viva El Rey!"

The Oxford University website has an account of Their Majesties visit and also puts it in the wider historical and cultural context and can be viewed at  King and Queen of Spain visit Oxford 

Search ResultKing and Queen of Spain visit Oxford 

ITV News has film of the visit to the Weston Library and of the King and Queen at Exeter College accessible at King and Queen of Spain delight school children during visit to Oxford ...

I did have a real sense of witnessing history in the persons of the Spanish monarchs and not just of another page turning in the history of Oxford. Here were a very professional King and Queen, obviously relaxed and very approachable, but with immense dignity and firmness of purpose - and, yes, they do look just like their photographs...

Mind you, all that standing and waiting did not do much good for my rheumatic joints - but it was well worth it!

The King and Queen of Spain visit the Pope

Following on from the point I made at the beginning of my post  Spanish Monarchy - theories, symbols and ceremonies that the Royal family have been continuing and concious supporters of the Catholic Church I now see in various newspapers reports of the visit paid by King Felipe and Queen Letizia to the Pope at the Vatican on Monday. This was their first visit abroad since the King's accession and it must have significance that it was to the Holy See, before visting the neighbouring countries of France, Portugal and Morocco in coming months.

The King and Queen of Spain with the Pope

Image:Daily Mail

The Daily Mail report is, as usual for the paper, well illustrated and can be viewed at Pope Francis hints he will visit Spain soon after meeting King Felipe,and there are are pictures of the visit in King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain visit the Pope in first overseas engagement from the magazine Hello.

This may have been a formality as a visit, but that does not detract from what it expresses about the relationship of Spain and its monarchy to the Church, and of the Church to Spain and the crown.

New Reign in Spain

Today has seen the formal enthronement ceremonies of King Felipe VI of Spain following the coming into force of his father's abdication at midnight.

King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia , the Infanta Lleonor, Princess of Asturias and the Infanta Sofia with the Crown and sceptre in the foreground at the Accession ceremony

Image:dw.de

BBC News has an article with links to profiles of the King and of his father and a good selection of photographs of today's events in King Felipe calls for 'new Spain' 

There is another online biography of the King, with appropriate links, here.

There is what seems to be a well balanced article from the Guardian about the accession which can be read at Crown Prince Felipe on brink of becoming King Felipe VI and the same paper has a good account of the formal occasion at Spain's Felipe VI promises a 'renewed monarchy' as he is sworn in as king and also a good selection of photographs at Spain's King Felipe VI begins a new reign.

Such essentially positive coverage by the Guardian,is, dare one suggest it, rather interesting in itself, and perhaps an happy augury.

The Spanish Royal Arms

Image: Wikipedia 

Viva El Rey Felipe!

 

A positive reaction to the Spanish abdication

The Daily Telegraph has an article about an opinion poll which points to a fairly significant upsurge in popular support for the Spanish monarchy in the days following the King's announcement of his intention of abdicating in favour of the Prince of Asturias. The article , which has some other relevant links, including one with comments from the King that he did not wish his son to grow too old waiting to succeed to the throne, can be seen at Was King Juan Carlos right to abdicate?

The suggestion may well be that in terms of serving the long term interests of the monarchy and the nation it has been the right, or appropriate, decision by King Juan Carlos. The King has shown himself a shrewd operator of the royal office since 1975, and this decision doubtless need to be understood in that light.

That said, it is unfair to all that he has achieved as King that recent difficulties should be seen to lead to abdication. It is also unwise that monarchs become, or are perceived to be, dependent upon popular support as reflected in such ephemeral things as public opinion polls. I am sure there are far deeper levels of support for the institution as well as the personalities of the Spanish monarchy, and that those will stand the future King Felipe VI in good stead.

Spanish abdication

The announcement by King Juan Carlos that he will abdicate as King of Spain appears to have come as something of a surprise, although there has been talk of the possibility of such a move on and off for the last couple of years. 

Given his remarkable and enduring achievements since 1975, as all serious commentators have agreed, it is unfortunate that in recent years that has been clouded by public criticism over what should be seen as minor problems. The economic and social crisis affecting Spain has clearly not helped, and must have told upon the King as well as his age - he certainly looks older and more tired, and he has had several operations in recent years.

I recall my own sense of excitement, indeed exhilaration, at the 1975 restoration, and the King's success,  and so ably supported by Queen Sofia, is both of historic significance for Spain, and an example other countries should follow.

Given that background I would think that he and the Spanish royal family would be anxious to avoid anything that might tend towards a repeat of the 1931 disaster when the economic crisis combined with the political fall-out from the end of the Primo de Rivera military government of the 1920s and the decline in popularity of King Alfonso XIII effectively turned the local elections of that year into a referendum on the monarchy and led to the establishment of the appalling second republic.

The King says that he decided to abdicate at this birthday in January, when he turned 76, but presumably has waited until after European elections to make his announcement, but before the Catalan independence referendum planned for the autumn.

A point I have seen made in recent years is that whilst many in Spain have and do admire the King as a person and for what he has done for the realm, the support for the monarchy is for the person rather than for the institution in itself. It may well be that in abdicating now the King sees the opportunity to follow in the patterns of events last year with the abdications in the Netherlands, Belgium and the Papacy, as well as the relatively recent case of Luxembourg, and to give the Prince of Asturias the opportunity to reforge and reinforce the bonds that the monarchy is there to provide and has provided not only in recent decades but through the history of Spain and its constituent realms.

This is then a way to manage the situation in the best interests of the nation and of its central institution, and potentially outflanking possible future problems. It seems clear that the Prince and Princess of Asturias have high public approval ratings and that the Prince has worked conscientiously as heir in a manner very similar to his cousins across Europe. He always appears serious minded man with genuine dedication to his future role.

It is also worth pointing out that abdications are not that unusual in Spain - indeed almost commonplace. King Charles I(i.e. Emperor Charles V)abdicated in 1556, and in 1724 King Felipe V (one used to think of him in English as Philip, but maybe we shall get used to thinking of the various Spanish Kings of that name as Felipe) abdicated - possibly thinking he might succeed the temporarily sickly King Louis XV in France, only to find that the French King recovered, but that his own son and successor, King Luis I, died the same year and he was recalled to the throne. King Charles IV abdicated in favour of his sone King Ferdinand VII, and his daughter Queen Isabella II, following the 1868 revolution abdicated in favour of her son King Alfonso XII, who was resored toi the throne in 1875. Indeed she outlived him by nineteen years, only dying in France in 1904.  I believe I am right in saying that King Alfonso XIII, realising his condition was terminal, abdicated afew days before his death in 1941 in Rome, presumably to ensure the formal transfer of authority to his de jure successor, his son King Juan III. He in turn renounced his rights in 1977, two years after his son King Juan Carlos was proclaimedas monarch. So having a former monarch around is not that unusual. There has been no conventional succession of an adult son or daughter to a deceased monarch really since 1788 when King Charles III and was succeeded by King Charles IV.

This evening a BBC report covered a military review at El Escorial attended by the King and the Prince of the Asturias, and as it pointed out the setting in front of the great palace monastery necropolis did stress continuity, which has been very much a theme of the reign of King Juan Carlos. Thus in burying his father as King Juan III and reinterring his grandparents King Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenie at the Escorial the King symbolically indicated the continuity of his position with his ancestors, and that the monarchy was not a new creation of the Franco era.

The BBC website has various linked articles about the abdication and reaction to it which can be accessed at Spain sets out abdication plan.

As in this country in 1936 the monarch's abdication requires special legislation in the Cortes, so King Felipe VI will presumably take the oath and be acclaimed in June 18th.

The Mad Monarchist blog has a very good piece which I would endorse and concur with at The Abdication of King Juan Carlos.

 Viva El Rey!