Between infidelity and corruption: the major controversies that caused the resignation of King Juan Carlos I

“Kings die, they do not abdicate.” With this sentence, Then he king Spanish Juan Carlos I He assured that only death would separate him from the throne , a destiny which, by his own hand, ultimately did not come true. It was on June 2, 2014 that he decided to cede his sovereignty to his son, the current monarch Felipe VI.

Although we tried to make a transition in the name of youth and renewal Spanish royal house — King Juan Carlos then declared that “a younger generation, with new energies, deserves to be on the front line”; the reality is that A series of significant controversies had alienated him from the people of his country and led him to take such a drastic decision.

His popularity was plummeting since he had an accident during a secret trip to Botswana with a woman who was not the queen, while the Spanish were experiencing one of their greatest economic crises.

It was former King Juan Carlos I’s “bad decisions” that led to his abdication.

Although ten years have passed since the resignation of Juan Carlos I, Spaniards still remember exactly the day he signed the document with which he renounced his throne and handed it over to his son Felipe VI, husband of the current Queen Letizia.

And two years ago, An accident marks the link he maintains with the Spanish population. In April 2012, King Juan Carlos I secretly visited Botswana, Africa, accompanied by his then lover, Corinna Larsen. There, they hunted elephants.

But soon, the whole country learned of the king’s flight and a collective annoyance arose, because then Spain was going through a strong economic crisis which required its authority to be present, at least symbolically.

Juan Carlos I tripped in his bedroom in Africa and broke his hip. His health condition worsened and he had to return immediately to his country. However, he did it under a false name given the emergency and because his security team would not have been prepared and had to “improvise”.

But the scandal intensified and the crown They had no choice but to disclose in detail what had happened. Between each explanation, it became clear that the king was having an extramarital affair.

Leaving the hospital, the then king addressed his people and told them that he was sorry: “I was wrong and it won’t happen again.”

But just two months later, It was revealed that the man had ‘gifted’ his lover, Corinna Larsen, a total of €65 million from a fortune he had hidden in Switzerland. The money, according to various media outlets, came from illicit activities and the king was forced to transfer the money because the bank was going to close his account.

The reputation of the monarch began to tarnish more and more.

In parallel, Nóos’ popular case in Spain, involving his daughter Cristina and her ex-husband, Iñaki Urdangarin, also sparked discussion. . Authorities accused the king’s former son-in-law of, among other things, embezzlement and fraud, and he was ultimately sentenced to 5 years and 10 months in prison.

With all this behind us, on January 6, 2014, The then king was supposed to give a speech during the military Easter, but he did not have to finish it because he was deeply tired. after a trip he made to London where he celebrated his birthday with his lover.

However, when he decided to renounce his office as king, the population did not take it so badly, because between the press and public opinion The idea that he is one of the least loved kings in Spanish history crossed his mind.

But the final blow to his reputation came years after his abdication. : In 2018, a former commissioner brought to light some of the recordings of the king’s former lover, in which he reported that the monarch had put Corinna Larsen’s name on various properties inside and outside the Spain to “hide” them and that he also had a secret bank. accounts in Switzerland.

Eventually, In 2019, Juan Carlos I decided to retire from public life and moved to Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates. Sometimes he makes small, quiet visits to Spain.