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| Princess Letizia of Spain: the Spanish monarchy is depending on her |
"It is a common proverb, beauteous princess,” quoth Spain’s national bard, Cervantes, “that diligence is the mother of good fortune.” Princess Letizia Ortiz, the country’s 41-year-old queen-to-be, is certainly beauteous and has worked diligently to be accepted, but, phew!, does her husband need some good fortune.
Later this month, Felipe de Borbón, a hulking, ex-Olympic sailor, will take over the shambolic remnants of what used to be Europe’s most admired royal family. Tens of thousands of disenchanted Spaniards have already taken to the streets to demand the end of the monarchy, and the country’s equally unpopular government is under pressure to hold a national referendum on becoming a republic.
The abdication last week of Felipe’s 76-year-old father, King Juan Carlos, merely threw into stark relief the crisis that has been raging around the Zarzuela Palace for years. Spain’s economic woes have made all the country’s institutions look culpable, and as the old taboos against criticism of the royal family crumbled, Juan Carlos came increasingly to resemble a cardboard king, saying the right things for public consumption while covertly protecting his own interests.
Outraged by tales of scandal, profligacy and the king’s alleged womanising, the public demanded a change. While Felipe, 46, will assume the formal burden, it is, to a great extent, Letizia upon whom the monarchy’s survival now depends. A former television journalist from relatively humble roots, she is broadly popular – but not with everybody. Sections of the Spanish media, driven either by jealousy or the desire for a good story, have portrayed her as cold and manipulative and cast doubts on her fairytale story. » | William Langley | Saturday, June 07, 2014
Letizia d'Espagne : cette reine que les monarchistes détestent »
