10 years on the throne: Is Spain’s King Felipe threatened with the same fate as his father and ex-king Juan Carlos?

A savior of the monarchy or a state in decline?

Exactly ten years ago Felipe ascended the Spanish throne. After the scandals and misdeeds of his father, Juan Carlos, many Spaniards cheered for their new king and looked optimistically at the royal future.

But hope was followed by disappointment. A recent study by a Spanish journal “vanitatis” Performance: Only 46.4% of Spaniards are satisfied with their king. downward trend. Champagne corks do not appear behind palace walls.

A royal family in crisis: Will history repeat itself on the throne’s big anniversary?

“Monarchy Renewed for a New Era.” Felipe VI would have a more appropriate motto. Ten years ago (June 19, 2014) he was unable to vote to ascend the throne.

Before him lay a monarchy in ruins – destroyed by his own father, King Juan Carlos I. His achievements for Spain were extraordinary, but so were his scandals and escapades.

Economic crisis, corruption scandals, nepotism: Spaniards may have forgiven him for his many affairs, but not for the financial scandal surrounding his daughter Cristina and luxury safaris that included elephant poaching.

Spain was in the throes of a financial crisis at the time. But the king threw down his blinders and indulged in his lavish and often dubious pastimes as he pleased. Needless to say, this did not go well.

Last but not least, the king wanted to divorce his wife Sophia in order to marry his girlfriend, Corinna Ju Sine-Wittgenstein-Sine. Here the family pulled an emergency brake: Juan Carlos’ three children forced their father to abdicate. Maybe too late?

The reputation of the monarchy suffered. The Spanish had no faith in the royal family. Felipe wanted to do many things differently than his father and took drastic measures. From then on, dignity, openness and closeness with the people counted in the palace. Hence Felipe was also known as the “Citizen King”.

Critics, on the other hand, have found Felipe bland, boring — and, more recently, pretentious.

Felipe’s biggest PR weapon: his daughters. He poses as a doting father for annual shoots. His incorruptible daughters Leonore and Sofia are always in his hands, as is his wife Letizia – this is the crux of the matter.

For months now, rumors of breakups, affairs, new partners and difficult marriage deals have been swirling – just like what happened to her father a few years ago. Is this all just smoke and mirrors or is there really a crisis brewing?

What do royal couples do? The royal family does not comment on private matters, so the silence prevails.

But maybe that’s a good thing. Because even here, Felipe takes a different path than his father, who liked to appear jovial and tell jokes. Felipe stays calm, does his job, and hopes that maybe the storm will pass. She is one of the hardest-working European royals, which often goes unnoticed.

Anyway, no big folk festival is planned for June 19. The anniversary of the throne is modest – like the change of throne in 2014. The royal family attends various events in Madrid. No frills, no frills.

After all, Crown Princess Leonor is moving to Madrid to support her parents. To do this, he skipped his graduation ceremony at the Military Academy in Zaragoza. Unlike his parents, Leonor is very popular among the people. Perhaps their luster rubs off on Father Felipe – making him shine as brightly as he did ten years ago.