This category contains the heads of state of Spain (in its various forms) that appear as characters in the works of Harry Turtledove. They may or may not hold the office of head of state in a given Turtledove work.
Throughout most of its history, Spain has been a monarchy. The foundation for the unification of the modern state of Spain began in the late 15th Century by the marriage of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, and the subsequent reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula from the Moors, with the final victory being achieved in 1492. The final unification came with the ascension of Charles I in 1516, who ruled over what came to be seen as Spain's Golden Age. The Hapsburg line ended with Charles II in 1700, and the Bourbon dynasty began shortly after. That line continues to rule Spain as of this writing, although it has been interrupted on several occasions.
The first interruption came in 1808, when Napoleon I of France placed his brother, Joseph, on the Spanish throne. Joseph ruled until 1813, when he was removed, and the Bourbons were restored. During the Spanish Revolution of 1868, Isabella II was deposed, and Amadeo I of the House of Savoy ascended in 1870. Three years later, Amadeo was deposed and the a republic was declared. The head of state became the president. However, that republic (which was retroactively called the First Spanish Republic) only lasted 23 months. The Bourbons and the monarchy were restored in 1874. In 1930, the monarch, Alfonso XIII was forced to abdicate, and the Second Spanish Republic was created in 1931, with the head of state again being the president. However, this republic fell at the close of the Spanish Civil War, and the Spanish Nationalist faction under Francisco Franco took power.
Franco officially restored the monarchy, but did not allow the available pretender, Infante Juan of Spain, Count of Barcelona (who would have been Juan III) to take the throne. Instead, Franco remained the repressive and dictatorial head of the Spanish state, referring to himself, among other things, as Caudillo. In 1969, he officially announced that Juan Carlos, the Count of Barcelona's son, would succeed Franco upon his death, believing that Juan Carlos would be less likely to undo the Falangist state than Infante Juan. Franco was wrong: when Franco died in 1975, Juan Carlos immediately took the throne and oversaw democratic reforms. The Spanish constitution was amended in 1978, and Spain became a constitutional monarchy.
The powers of the head of state have varied depending on the type of government and point in history. At present the Spanish monarchy is largely a ceremonial office, like most European heads of state.
This category should serve as a catch-all for miscellaneous Spanish heads of state. Monarchs should be listed in their own categories.
All items (4)
