Et was his third lonely birthday on the edge of the desert. Juan Carlos I turns 85 this Thursday. But the king emeritus, who helped pave Spain’s path from dictatorship to democracy, is celebrating one more time away from home. His daughters Elena and Cristina are with him, as in previous years, according to the Spanish news agency Europa Press. His wife Sofía was at the funeral of Benedict XVI. in Rome.
The monarch has lived in Abu Dhabi since August 2020, and Juan Carlos took up permanent residence there last spring. Guarded by Spanish police officers, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, Muhammad Bin Zayid Al Nahyan, accommodates him there in a luxury resort where he lacks nothing – except for friends and family. Another sad birthday in his “golden desert cage” was mentioned in the Spanish press.
It has become quiet around the old king
However, it is important to his son Felipe to keep as far away as possible from the allegations of corruption against his father. He wants to prevent a further loss of reputation for the monarchy, which had suffered greatly from Juan Carlos’ financial and amorous affairs. At the same time, the memory of his merits is fading in Spain, and the younger generation in particular often only remember his scandals.
It has become even quieter around the old king in recent months; it was not even known how he spent the Christmas days. In May 2022 he returned to his old home for the first time for a long weekend. At first he was drawn back to his boat and his sailing friends in Sanxenxo on the Galician coast. He made only one detour to the Zarzuela Palace in Madrid before the return flight. But the sensation he caused at the time and the lack of self-criticism provoked “discomfort” in the royal family and in the government. He was allegedly suggested to stay away from Spain for the time being. Originally he wanted to return to Galicia for a regatta in June.
Strained relationship: The Spanish King Felipe VI. (left) and his father, former King Juan Carlos in Madrid, 2015
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Image: dpa
A case is still pending in London
King Felipe and Pedro Sánchez’s left-wing government continue to keep the monarch, who reigned for 39 years, at a distance, even though his legal situation has eased. In Spain, all investigations against Juan Carlos, who – with the help of friends – has paid off his tax debts of more than five million euros, have now been dropped.
Only in London is there still a case against him, in which he won a stage in December. A London Court of Appeal recognized his criminal immunity until his abdication in June 2014. His former lover Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn demands compensation from him. She accuses him of arranging for her and her family to be monitored; she was also threatened. Juan Carlos once gave the German businesswoman 65 million euros, which he himself had received from the Saudi royal family. Parallel to the process in the British capital, she began a podcast series called “Corinna and the King” with numerous new details about alleged black money accounts, pockets full of money and other affairs.
In September, however, there was an unplanned family reunion in London. During the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, Juan Carlos met his son Felipe, Letizia and Sofía in London, although the royal couple did not actually want it: British court protocol had placed the Spanish royal family next to each other in Westminster Abbey. Should Juan Carlos not travel to Spain before then, father and son could meet again in London on May 6th. Then there Charles III. crowned.
