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Alfonso XIII

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Alfonso XIII of Spain
King of Spain
ReignMay 17, 1886 - April 14, 1931
PredecessorAlfonso XII
IssueAlfonso, Jamie, Beatriz, Fernando, Maria Christina, Juan, Gonzalo
HouseHouse of Bourbon
FatherAlfonso XII of Spain
MotherMaria Christina of Austria

Alfonso XIII (May 17, 1886February 28, 1941), King of Spain, posthumous son of Alfonso XII of Spain, was proclaimed King at his birth. He reigned from 1886-1931. His mother, Queen Maria Christina, was appointed regent during his minority. In 1902, on attaining his 16th year, the King assumed control of the state.

He was a promoter of tourism in Spain. The problems with the lodging of his wedding guests prompted the construction of the luxury Hotel Palace in Madrid. He also supported the creation of a network of state-run lodges (Parador) in historic buildings of Spain. His fondness for the sport of football led to the patronage of several "royal" football clubs like Real Sociedad, Real Madrid, Real Betis and Real Unión.

Reign

Alfonso XIII sculpted by Jose Navas-Parejo

During his reign Spain lost its last colonies in the Americas (Cuba and Puerto Rico) as well as the Philippines; lost several wars in North Africa; witnessed the start of the Spanish Generation of 1927, and endured the dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera, which ultimately cost him the throne. During the First World War, despite his family connections with both sides and the division of popular opinion, Spain remained neutral.

The king ran an office for captives from the Palacio de Oriente, that leveraged the Spanish diplomatic and military network abroad to intercede for thousands of prisoners of war, receiving and answering letters from all Europe. It is amusing to note that in approximately 1926, the King commissioned three unique movies whose English titles are The Minister, The Confessor, and The Women's doctor. These movies can be seen at the Barcelona Museum of the Erotic. When the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed on April 14 1931, he abandoned the country with no formal abdication. Once the Spanish Civil War broke out, Alfonso made it clear he favoured the military uprising against the Popular Front government, but General Francisco Franco in September 1936 declared that the Nationalists would never accept Alfonso as king (the supporters of the rival Carlist pretender made an important part of the Franco army). First he went into exile in France. However, he sent his son Juan de Borbon, Count of Barcelona to enter Spain in 1936 and participate in the uprising. However, near the French border, General Mola had him arrested and expelled from the country. Later, he moved to the Kingdom of Italy, and died in Rome in 1941. He abdicated on 15 January 1941, in favour of his fourth, but second surviving, son Juan de Borbon, Count of Barcelona, the father of the later King Juan Carlos. The Count of Barcelona renounced his rights to the throne in 1977, in favor of his son, Juan Carlos.

Styles of
Alfonso XIII of Spain
Reference styleHis Majesty
Spoken styleYour Majesty
Alternative styleSire

Marriage and children

On May 31, 1906 he married Scottish-born Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg (1887-1969), a niece of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. A Serene Highness by birth, Ena, as she was known, was raised to Royal Highness status a month before her wedding to prevent the union from being viewed as unequal. As Alfonso XIII and Queen Ena were returning from the wedding they narrowly escaped the assassination attempted by the anarchist Mateu Morral; instead, the bomb explosion killed or injured many bystanders and members of the royal procession.

The royal couple had seven children:

The king also had three illegitimate children:

  • By French aristocrat Mélanie de Gaufridy de Dortan:
    • Roger Leveque de Vilmorin (1905-1980)
  • By Spanish actress Carmen Ruíz Moragas:
    • Ana María Teresa Ruíz Moragas (born in 1926, died 19??). Married and had issue.
    • Leandro Alfonso Ruíz Moragas (born in 1929), officially recognized by Spanish courts on May 21 2003 as Leandro Alfonso de Borbón Ruíz, son of the King, Infante of Spain. Has married twice and has issue.

Ancestors

Alfonso XIII's ancestors in three generations
Alfonso XIII of Spain Father:
Alfonso XII of Spain
Paternal Grandfather:
Francis of Spain
Paternal Great-grandfather:
Francisco de Paula, Duke of Cadiz
Paternal Great-grandmother:
Princess Luisa Carlotta of the Two Sicilies
Paternal Grandmother:
Isabella II of Spain
Paternal Great-grandfather:
Ferdinand VII of Spain
Paternal Great-grandmother:
Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies
Mother:
Maria Christina of Austria
Maternal Grandfather:
Karl Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria
Maternal Great-grandfather:
Karl Ludwig, Archduke of Austria
Maternal Great-grandmother:
Henriette, Princess of Nassau-Weilburg
Maternal Grandmother:
Archduchess Elisabeth Franziska of Austria
Maternal Great-grandfather:
Archduke Joseph, Palatine of Hungary
Maternal Great-grandmother:
Maria Dorothea von Württemberg


Further reading

  • Sir Winston Churchill: Great Contemporaries (London, 1937). (Contains the most famous single account of Alfonso in the English language. The author, writing shortly after the Spanish Civil War began, retained considerable fondness for the ex-sovereign.)
  • Sir Charles Petrie: King Alfonso XIII and His Age (London, 1963). (Written as it was during Queen Ena's lifetime, this book necessarily omits the King's extramarital affairs; but it remains a useful biography, not least because the author knew Alfonso quite well, interviewed him at considerable length, and relates him to the Spanish culture of his time.)
  • Gerard E. Noel: Ena: Spain's English Queen (London, 1985). (Considerably more candid than Petrie about Alfonso the private man, and about the miseries the royal family experienced because of their hemophiliac children.)
  • Gabriel Jackson : The Spanish Republic and the Civil War 1931-39. New Jersey Princeton, 1967
Alfonso XIII
Cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty
Born: May 17 1886 Died: February 28 1941
Spanish royalty
Regnal titles
Preceded by King of Spain
May 17, 1886April 14, 1931
with Maria Christina of Austria (May 17, 18861902)
Monarchy deposed
Vacant
Title next held by
Juan Carlos I
Political offices
Preceded by Head of State of Spain
as King of Spain

May 17, 1886April 14, 1931
Succeeded by
Titles in pretence
Vacant
Title last held by
Alfonso XII
— TITULAR —
King of Spain
April 14, 1931February 29, 1941
Succeeded by
French royalty
Preceded by — TITULAR —
King of France and Navarre
September 29, 1936February 29, 1941
Reason for succession failure:
Bourbon monarchy deposed in 1830
Succeeded by

Template:Legitimist Pretenders since 1792