Word: franco
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...account the qualities to be found in the person of Prince Juan Carlos of Borbón, who has been perfectly trained to take up the high mission to which he might be called, I have decided to propose him to the nation as my successor." Thus Generalissimo Francisco Franco, who has ruled Spain for the past 32 years, presented his chosen successor to the Cortes, Spain's tame Parliament. In a roll-call vote, the Cortes overwhelmingly and obediently endorsed Franco's choice...
...next morning a delegation from the Cortes drove to the Prince's palace outside Madrid to inform him officially that he would succeed Franco as Chief of State when the Caudillo, now 76, steps down or dies. Later the same day, Juan Carlos, whose new official title is Prince of Spain, drove to the Cortes for the investiture. Kneeling at Franco's left, the Prince swore his loyalty "to his Excellency the Chief of State and fidelity to the principles of the National Movement, and the fundamental laws of the Kingdom...
...Spain's rebellious youth, the Prince declared that "the cult of the past must not be a brake on the evolution of a society that is changing with dizzying rapidity." Despite the obvious allusion to a need for reform and accommodation in Spain's archaic social structure, Franco smiled at the Prince throughout the speech...
...Franco insists that selection of Juan Carlos, whose ancestors ruled Spain for 231 years before his grandfather fled the throne in 1931, does not represent a restoration of the old dynasty. On the contrary, he argues, Juan Carlos represents the start of a new dynasty that owes nothing to the past. From a legal standpoint, Franco's ploy blocks the claims of Juan Carlos' father Don Juan, (who now lives in Portugal) and those of other pretenders to the throne, since Franco has not restored the old line but started a new one, whose first-born sons will...
Canceled Cruise. Don Juan's followers would heartily agree with that. Word of the impending Franco announcement reached the Pretender just as he was about to leave on a Mediterranean vacation cruise. It was canceled immediately. "This operation is being carried out without taking me into account, or the free will of the Spanish people," Don Juan said in a statement. "I am therefore a spectator to the decisions which will be taken on this matter, and I hold no responsibility in this restoration." There was no mention of abdication. Said one of his court officials: "Don Juan will...