Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona (Juan Carlos Teresa Silverio Alfonso de Borbón y Battenberg; 20 June 1913 – 1 April 1993), also known as Don Juan, was a claimant to the

Spanish throne , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...

as Juan III. He was the third son and designated heir of

King Alfonso XIII of Spain Alfonso XIII (17 May 1886 – 28 February 1941), also known as El Africano or the African, was King of Spain from 17 May 1886 to 14 April 1931, when the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed. He was a monarch from birth as his father, Alfo ...

and

Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena of Battenberg (24 October 1887 – 15 April 1969) was Queen of Spain as the wife of King Alfonso XIII from their marriage on 31 May 1906 until 14 April 1931, when the Spanish Second Republic was proclaimed. A Hessi ...

. His father was replaced by the

Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of King Alfonso XIII, and was dissolved on 1 ...

in 1931. Juan's son Juan Carlos I became king when Spain's

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

was restored in 1975.

Early life

Juan was born at the Palace of San Ildefonso. His father was forced into exile when the

was proclaimed on 14 April 1931. Owing to the renunciations of his brothers Alfonso, Prince of Asturias, and

Infante Jaime, Duke of Segovia Infante Jaime of Spain, Duke of Segovia, Duke of Anjou (''Jaime Leopoldo Isabelino Enrique Alejandro Alberto Alfonso Víctor Acacio Pedro Pablo María de Borbón y Battenberg'') (23 June 1908 – 20 March 1975), was the second son of King Alfon ...

, Infante Juan was thus next in line to the defunct Spanish throne. He thus received the title

Prince of Asturias Prince or Princess of Asturias ( es, link=no, Príncipe/Princesa de Asturias; ast, Príncipe d'Asturies) is the main substantive title used by the heir apparent or heir presumptive to the throne of Spain. According to the Spanish Constitution ...

when he was serving with the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

. In March 1935, he passed his naval exams in gunnery and

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...

, which would have entitled him to a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

’s commission in the

if he gave up his Spanish nationality. This, however, he refused to do.

Marriage

He met his future wife at a party hosted by

Victor Emmanuel III of Italy Victor Emmanuel III (Vittorio Emanuele Ferdinando Maria Gennaro di Savoia; 11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947) was King of Italy from 29 July 1900 until his abdication on 9 May 1946. He also reigned as Emperor of Ethiopia (1936–1941) and ...

on the day before his sister (Infanta Beatriz) was to be married. He married

Princess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies Princess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Countess of Barcelona (María de las Mercedes Cristina Genara Isabel Luisa Carolina Victoria y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Orléans ; 23 December 1910 – 2 January 2000) was a Spanis ...

(1910–2000), known in Spain as Doña María de las Mercedes de Borbón Dos-Sicilias y Orleans, in Rome on 12 October 1935. Just before the birth of the Infante Juan Carlos, the Count of Barcelona decided to go hunting, with the doctor telling him and his wife that the future king would not be born for weeks. When he was told of the birth, he drove to the hospital so quickly that he broke an axle spring.

Children

They had four children: *

Infanta Pilar, Duchess of Badajoz Infanta Pilar of Spain, Duchess of Badajoz and Viscountess of La Torre ( Spanish: ''María del Pilar Alfonsa Juana Victoria Luisa Ignacia y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón''; 30 July 1936 – 8 January 2020), sometimes known more simply as ...

(30 July 1936 – 8 January 2020), who married Luis Gomez-Acebo y de Estrada, Viscount de la Torre, on 6 May 1967, and had five children *

Juan Carlos I of Spain Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

(born 5 January 1938), who married Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark on 14 May 1962, and had three children *

Infanta Margarita, Duchess of Soria Infanta Margarita of Spain, Duchess of Soria, 2nd Duchess of Hernani, Grandee of Spain (Margarita María de la Victoria Esperanza Jacoba Felicidad Perpetua de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón; born 6 March 1939), is the younger sister of K ...

and Duchess of Hernani (born 6 March 1939), who married Don Carlos Zurita y Delgado on 12 October 1972, and had two children *

Infante Alfonso of Spain Infante Alfonso of Spain (''Don Alfonso Cristino Teresa Ángelo Francisco de Asís y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón Dos-Sicilias''; 3 October 1941 – 29 March 1956) was the younger brother of King Juan Carlos of Spain. He was also th ...

(3 October 1941 – 29 March 1956) They lived in

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...

and Rome, and, with the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, they moved to

Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...

to live with his mother, Queen Victoria Eugenie. Afterwards, they resided at

Estoril Estoril () is a town in the Municipality of Cascais, Portugal, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a tourist destination, with luxury hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numerous royal families and celebrities, and has h ...

, on the

Portuguese Riviera The Portuguese Riviera (Portuguese: '' Riviera Portuguesa'') is a term used in the tourist industry for the affluent coastal region to the west of Lisbon, Portugal, centered on the coastal municipalities of Cascais (including Estoril), Oeiras ...

Claim to the Spanish throne

In 1931 Juan was subject to dynastic negotiations between the Alfonsists and the Carlists, concluded in so-called Pact of Territet; it has never been implemented. Juan became

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

to the defunct Spanish throne after the renunciations of his two older brothers,

Alfonso Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...

and

Jaime Jaime is a common Spanish and Portuguese male given name for Jacob (name), James (name), Jamie, or Jacques. In Occitania Jacobus became ''Jacome'' and later ''Jacme''. In east Spain, ''Jacme'' became ''Jaime'', in Aragon it became ''Chaime'', and i ...

, in 1933. To assert his claim to the throne, following his father's death he used the title of Count of Barcelona, a sovereign title associated with the Spanish crown. In 1936, his father sent him to participate in the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, link ...

but he was arrested near the French border, and sent back by General

Emilio Mola Emilio Mola y Vidal, 1st Duke of Mola, Grandee of Spain (9 July 1887 – 3 June 1937) was one of the three leaders of the Nationalist coup of July 1936, which started the Spanish Civil War. After the death of Sanjurjo on 20 July 1936, Mo ...

. On 19 March 1945 he announced a manifesto in Lausanne, demanding he replace Franco: When General Francisco Franco declared Spain a monarchy in 1947, he characterized it as a "restoration". However, Franco was afraid that Juan would roll back the Spanish State because he favoured

, which would restore

parliamentary democracy A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...

. As a result, in 1969, Franco passed over Juan in favour of Juan's son, Juan Carlos, who Franco believed would be more likely to continue the

dictatorship A dictatorship is a form of government which is characterized by a leader, or a group of leaders, which holds governmental powers with few to no limitations on them. The leader of a dictatorship is called a dictator. Politics in a dictatorship a ...

after his death. Juan Carlos later surprised many by his support of democratising Spain. Franco and Juan did not have a good relationship, with the latter constantly pressing Franco to restore the monarchy. Relations soured further when Juan called Franco an "illegitimate usurper". Juan formally renounced his rights to the Spanish throne eight years after being displaced as recognised heir to the throne by Franco, and two years after his son, Juan Carlos, had become king. In return, his son officially granted him the title of Count of Barcelona, which he had claimed for so long. After his death in 1993, he was buried with honours due a king, under the name ''Juan III'' (his title if he had become king) in the Royal Crypt of the monastery of San Lorenzo del Escorial, near

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

. His wife survived him by seven years. He was fond of the sea, and joined the Naval School at San Fernando, Cádiz, and had

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing ...

s of a marine theme from his time in the British

Honours and arms

Honours

Arms

File:Coat of Arms of Infante Juan of Spain (1927-1931 1933).svg, Arms as Infante of Spain
(1927–1931/''1933'') File:Greater Royal Coat of Arms of Spain (1931)-Escutcheon of France and Golden Fleece Variant.svg, Royal Coat of Arms of Spain
Version of 1924/''1931''
Used as Pretender and Head of the Royal House.
(1941–1977)García-Mechano y Osset, Eduardo (2010). ''Introducción a la heráldica y manual de heráldica militar española''. Madrid: Ministerio de Defensa. . pp. 105–107 File:Coat of Arms of Spain (c.1883-1931) Golden Fleece Variant.svg, Lesser Royal Coat of Arms of Spain
Also used by Don Juan as Pretender.
(1941–1977) File:Coat of Arms of Juan, Count of Barcelona, after the renounce of his claim to the Throne.svg, Arms after the renunciation of the Throne
(1977–1993)

Ancestors

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Juan of Barcelona, Infante 1913 births 1993 deaths People from the Province of Segovia Francoist Spain House of Bourbon (Spain) Spanish infantes Heirs apparent who never acceded Captain generals of the Navy Burials in the Pantheon of Kings at El Escorial Spanish monarchists Navarrese titular monarchs Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Grand Crosses of Naval Merit Grand Crosses of Military Merit Crosses of Aeronautical Merit Grand Crosses of the Order of Saints George and Constantine Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Recipients of the Order of the Crown (Italy) Grand Crosses of the Order of Christ (Portugal) Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa Bailiffs Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta Sons of kings