Queen Sofia and King Juan Carlos, and Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia have unveiled their Christmas cards.
This year the Royal Household did not distribute cards for Infanta Elena, Infanta Cristina, according to new protocol.
The King and Queen’s cards include a reproduction of Maarten van Heemskerck’s “The Adoration of the Shepherds,” part of the Royal Collection in El Escorial palace and monastery.
Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia put a picture of their daughters, Infanta Leonor and Infanta Sofia, on their own Christmas cards.
El País, citing a Royal Household source, said the Spanish people had largely forgiven King Juan Carlos for his controversial trip to Botswana.
But the corruption probe surrounding Infanta Cristina’s husband Iñaki Urdangarin, Duke of Palma de Mallorca, remains a problem for the Royal Family.
The Royal Household has never asked Infanta Cristina to renounce her role within the Royal Family or to divorce her husband Iñaki Urdangarin, the Duke of Palma de Mallorca.
El País royal watcher Mábel Galaz reported that a Household spokesman had denied rumors and reports that the King’s people had made the requests to the Infanta amid her husband’s ongoing legal troubles.
Infanta Cristina’s personal standard.
Galaz reported that Infanta Cristaina recently returned from a trip to Africa. However, the Royal Household is keeping her at a distance and off the official agenda.
Iñaki Urdangarin, the Duke of Palma and Infanta Cristina’s husband, visited King Juan Carlos today along with other members of the Spanish Royal Family at Quirón San José Hospital in Madrid.
His Majesty was recovering from a previously scheduled hip surgery.
It was the first time, media reports indicated, since the King had met with his son-in-law since he became embroiled in a high profile corruption scandal. Infanta Cristina is said to have orchestrated the visit.
The visit also came just days after prosecutors asked a judge to approve roughly 4 million euro in bond for the Duke. They accuse him of stealing public funds along with his partner while heading the non-profit Noós Institute.
King Juan Carlos’ sisters, Infantas Pilar and Margarita, also visited him at the hospital.
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King Juan Carlos’ son-in-law, the Duke of Palma, Iñaki Urdangarín, has resigned from an advisory and leadership post at Telefónica Brasil, numerous media outlets are reporting.
Infranta Cristina’s husband is embroiled in a corruption probe, with prosecutors accusing him of using a non-profit he helped lead for private gain.
Earlier this year, Urdangarín announced he was taking a leave from his post at Spanish multinational Telefónica. As a result, the couple moved back to Spain full-time and left their Washington, D.C. area home.
The Duke and Duchess, which have not been participating in official events, are also not expected to be at the upcoming Hispanic Day activities.
The New York Times and its International Herald Tribune analyzed King Juan Carlos’ place in modern Spain and recent controversies relating to the Monarchy.
The feature contrasted pro-republican feelings, discomfort about the Royal Family’s unknown wealth, the controversial hunting trip to Botswana and the country’s economic troubles with the King’s role as Spain’s top booster.
The Monarch, for example, helped secure a multi-billion dollar high speed rail contract in Saudi Arabia.
The king is widely valued in business circles for acting as a sometime deal maker and economic ambassador for his nation, but how he has amassed his substantial personal wealth remains secret. The Spanish royal family’s wealth has been estimated at up to $2.3 billion, a sum that supporters contend was inflated by the inclusion of government properties.
The King, who was recently in New York, stressed the need to promote Spanish trade as a means to improve the Spanish economy. He also spoke about his own role in the country’s future.
“The monarchy will continue as long as the people want a monarchy,” the king said on a swing through New York last week, part of a palace strategy to meet with top opinion makers to help promote confidence in Spain.
Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia in the Canary Islands.
But while the newspaper described the King as a non-ruling Monarch, it’s important to remember his role in public life, which in many ways goes beyond that of other European royals.
If they’re paying for a Monarchy, people in Spain want its members to do something other than ribbon cutting at events.
While Queen Elizabeth refrains from expressing an opinion about anything, King Juan Carlos, for example, penned a public letter recently expressing his views, albeit indirectly, about Catalonian calls for independence.
The Royal Palace has said such communications will become increasingly common.
Balearic Island anti-corruption prosecutors will present their findings next month related to corruption allegations against Infanta Cristina’s husband Iñaki Urdangarin, the Duke of Palma, according toEl País.
Officials allege that the Duke and his business partner embezzled public funds through their Nóos Institute, a non-profit group.
Last month local media reported that Urdangarin had signed a new work contract with Spanish multinational Telefónica. He will receive almost 3 million euro in compensation.
Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia will visit the U.S. next week to reinforce bilateral relations.
The Prince and Princess of Asturias will visit New York and Boston, including Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. They will meet Spanish business leaders and hold discussions about American relations with the Iberoamerican world.
Prince and Princess of Asturias
Princess Letizia also plans to visit an elementary school to promote the Spanish language.
A trip to Washington, however, does not appear on the calendar.
King Juan Carlos, Queen Sofia
Also next week, King Juan Carlos will visit Civil Guard installations in Algeciras near Gibraltar. The visit has broader political implications with Spain calling for talks with the United Kingdom on Gibraltar’s political status and a dispute over fishing rights in the area.
Later this summer members of the Royal Family will rest at Marivent Palace in Palma de Mallorca. However, the Duke and Duchess of Palma won’t be there, according to media reports. The Duke Iñaki Urdangarin remains under investigation for corruption allegations.
El País is reporting that Duke of Palma Iñaki Urdangarín sometimes uses another one of his last names, Liebaert, when traveling, especially in South America, to stay under the public radar.
The tidbit of information is part of the constant stream of leaks about Infanta Cristina’s husband and the ongoing corruption investigation against him.
Infanta Cristina, Duchess of Plama, arrived in Spain this weekend with her children on time for her father-in-law’s funeral in the Basque County.
Juan María Urdangarín, father of Iñaki Urdangarín, the Duke of Palma, died Thursday. The former businessman was once president of Caja Vital savings bank. The ceremony was at the Basílica of San Prudencio de Armentia near Vitoria.
Media reports indicate that Doña Cristina visited her father, the King, at Zarzuela Palace near Madrid before making her way north. It is the first time the Urdangarín children have been in Spain for months, according to the reports.
Queen Sofia and Infanta Elena visited the family on Friday to pay their respects.
Nationalist leaders of the small Catalonian town of Berga, near the Franch border, have declared King Juan Carlos unwelcome in their community, the Associated Press is reporting. Council members passed a resolution to that effect in recent days.
Global outlets are linking the news to the King’s recent troubles. However, it is not uncommon for separatists or anti-monarchist groups to do such things. Last year, for example, Basque nationalists removed Don Juan Carlos’ portrait from the San Sebastian council chambers.
While the King is largely responsible for helping communities like Catalonia and the Basque Country regain their autonomy, many people there are still bitter about repression during Franco’s regime.
Meanwhile, leaks and rumors continue in the corruption scandal of Iñaki Urdangarín, the Duke of Palma de Mallorca. El Pais is reporting that ex-partner Diego Torres is gearing up to air the King’s connections to the Duke’s business dealings, which are under the microscope.
Torres’ attorney is denying that his client is asking for money in exchange for silence. The Royal Household appears confident that, however the Duke comes out of the investigation, nobody else in the family will be tied to the situation.
El Pais also profiled Queen Sofia’s sister, Irene of Greece and Denmark, in advance of her upcoming 70th birthday. Princess Irene is often known for her eccentric and down-to-earth attitude.
LOS BORBONES 