World: The Chosen Prince

FRANCO’s choice for the future King ‘ of Spain seems a storybook prince. Wavy-haired, tall (6 ft. 3 in.) and athletically built at 200 lbs., he is married to a beautiful princess who has borne him three handsome children. Through his veins courses the bluest of Europe’s noble blood. He is the grandson of Alfonso XIII, Spain’s last ruling king, the great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria, and a direct descendant of Louis XVI, France’s last Bourbon monarch.

Yet last week, when Prince Juan Carlos Victor Maria de Borbón y Borbón was chosen to ascend the long-vacant Spanish throne—some day—there was no dancing in the streets of Madrid or other outbursts of public joy. The reasons for such restraint are largely beyond Juan Carlos’ control and relate to Spain’s strained domestic political scene, but it is nonetheless true that the Prince so far has failed to either excite a feeling of loyalty among his future subjects or emerge as a convincing, sympathetic human being. Asked by reporters what qualities he most admired in the Prince, a member of the Cortes replied: “I admire his simplicity and his exquisite prudence.”

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His uninspiring image is especially ironic because the Prince has been groomed since childhood for the throne. Born in Roman exile during the Spanish Civil War, Juan Carlos first went to Spain in 1948 because of an agreement made between his father, Don Juan, and Franco that called for the young Prince to be educated in Spain. Under Franco’s personal supervision, Juan Carlos underwent intensive schooling in military and political arts. He holds the ranks of captain in the army and air force and the equivalent grade of full lieutenant in the navy. He is a jet-fighter and helicopter pilot, an Olympic yachtsman, an accomplished horseman and a black-belt karate expert. He is fluent in five languages (Spanish, French, English, Italian and Portuguese) and conversant in Greek and German.

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Even today, the Prince’s life is built around his preparations for kingship. The government pays his living expenses, estimated at $43,000 a year, and provides him the elegant 20-room Zarzuela Palace. There he lives with his wife, Princess Sophia of Greece, whom he married in 1962, and-their children, Elena, 5, Cristina, 4, and Felipe, 1½.

Each weekday morning after breakfast, the Prince spends two hours in briefing sessions with ranking government experts. Economics is the subject on Monday, church matters and foreign policy on Tuesday, labor and industry on Wednesday, cultural affairs on Thursday, and military and scientific topics on Friday. In the afternoon, he drives his black Mercedes 220 sedan into Madrid for working visits to various ministries. In addition, Juan Carlos spends four or five days a month on trips to factories and construction sites throughout Spain.

Many in Madrid disparage the Prince’s intelligence, suggesting that he lacks any original ideas. That may be an overly harsh judgment; the Prince has had little choice but to adapt to Franco’s concepts if he wants to remain in the Caudillo’s favor. Still, after 20 years of continuous tutelage, Juan Carlos does sometimes give the appearance of being a sort of programmed apprentice monarch. A recent visitor asked the Prince if he read foreign publications to keep up with international affairs. “Why, no,” replied the Prince, with a note of surprise. “That’s what my advisers are for—to keep me informed about what is going on.”