Then, Fish-Beard even praised the “sacrifice” of the Count of Barcelona for having renounced the throne
MADRID, 29 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The King Emeritus will be the great absentee from the swearing-in ceremony of the Constitution of Princess Leonor on October 31 in the Congress of Deputies, in contrast to what happened with his father, Don Juan, who occupied a prominent place when the then Prince of Asturias did the same in 1986.
Don Juan Carlos, like Doña Sofía, have not been invited to the solemn session of the Cortes in which, coinciding with her 18th birthday, the heir to the throne will swear in the Constitution, nor will they attend the subsequent ceremony that will take place in the Palace Royal, in which the Collar of the Order of Carlos III will be imposed on the Princess of Asturias.
In line with the distance that Felipe VI has wanted to mark with his father in recent years, especially as a result of his departure to the United Arab Emirates in August 2020 amidst the judicial investigations against him that have ultimately not prospered, the Emeritus has only been invited to the family celebration that will commemorate the Princess’s 18th birthday and the swearing in of the Constitution.
This family and private celebration, to which both Don Felipe’s family and Doña Letizia’s family have been invited, will take place at the El Pardo Palace and not at the Zarzuela, the official residence of the Royal Family and which was also the residence of Don Juan Carlos for more than four decades, which certifies that differentiation.
It remains to be seen if the emeritus finally travels to Spain for this celebration, which would also be the first occasion in which he could meet his granddaughter and future queen again, since in his trips to Spain since he settled in Abu Dhabi both have not coincided. . Princess Leonor was studying in Wales when her grandfather’s only visit to Zarzuela occurred, in May 2022, and she was unable to attend the family lunch.
The absence of the former king until 2014 contrasts with the presence in a prominent place of his father, Don Juan, when on January 30, 1986 his grandson and then Prince of Asturias swore the Constitution. The Count of Barcelona was seated on stage with Infanta Elena and Infanta Sofía.
On that occasion even the then president of Congress, Gregorio Peces-Barba, expressly mentioned him in the speech he gave before Prince Felipe swore in the Constitution, in accordance with article 61 of the same, a gesture that his eldest daughter will now repeat.
The Crown, Peces-Barba defended, “is a central institution that symbolizes the unity and permanence of the State.” “Its strength is for everyone (…) of great importance, and today we celebrate an act that expresses its continuity, its extension over time,” defended the one who would later become rector of the Carlos III University.
“The monarchy does not base its prestige only on the affection and respect that His Majesty the King inspires in all Spaniards, and in his attitude of permanent service to Spain, to the interests of our people and its representative parliamentary system,” He assured, in reference to Juan Carlos I.
“It is also based on the effort and sacrifice of the Count of Barcelona, ??and on his exemplary conduct in defense of the values ??of respect for the rule of law and individual freedom for many years, and is based, finally, on his continuity, expressed in this act,” highlighted the then president of Congress.
In his book ‘Democracy in Spain. Experiences and reflections’, Peces-Barba explains that by mentioning him to the father of the then King he wanted to “point out the significance of the presence of Don Juan de Borbón in the preeminent place that belonged to him.” “It was also the first time that the role of the Count of Barcelona was recognized in such a relevant and public way,” he highlights.
It should be remembered that the Count of Barcelona was not present at the coronation of his son as Juan Carlos I on November 27, 1975, a week after the death of Franco, with whom he agreed in 1948 that his son would be educated in Spain, and after having been proclaimed King on November 22.
Don Juan always maintained the hope of being able to reign one day as heir to Alfonso distance between both. In fact, the Count of Barcelona did not formally renounce his dynastic rights until May 1977 with a family ceremony in the Zarzuela.
