The former Spanish King Juan Carlos, 84, was seen in attendance at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II today at Westminster Abbey in London. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchéz had reportedly asked King Juan not to attend.
Due to this Spain had two Kings in attendance at the Queen’s funeral, the former King Juan Carlos and his son King Felipe VI, who was accompanied by his wife Queen Letizia. The ex-monarch, who abdicated in 2014, is enmeshed in ongoing legal proceedings in the UK relating to a harassment case brought by a former partner.
Former King Juan Carlos fled Spain in 2020 under suspicion of fraud and now lives in Abu Dhabi in self-imposed exile, the Spectator reports . He was a distant cousin to the Queen, and was privately invited to attend by the royal family, the Evening Standard reports .
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King Juan Carlos is not believed to have attended a royal event since abdicating eight years ago. He was investigated by Spanish and Swiss authorities for suspected money laundering, tax evasion, and fraudulent activity, but has since been cleared of these allegations.
In contrast to prime minister Pedro Sanchéz’s warning to the former King, the Spanish foreign Minister José Manuel Albares reportedly said in an interview: "Currently the head of state is Felipe VI and that, like his father, he also represents the existing family ties between the two royal houses.”
This is the first time that King Felipe VI has been seen publicly with his father for over two years, The Local reports . King Felipe VI is thought to have been avoiding public appearances with his father following the scandals that ended his 40-year reign, the Spanish media reports.
The Spanish leftist Unidas Podemos political party spoke out against the former King attending the funeral in a news conference last week, The Times reports . The spokesperson said: "Inviting an on-the-run criminal to a state funeral shows you just what the monarchy is in the United Kingdom and in Spain.”
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