Alfonso XIII
Alfonso XIII[a] (Spanish: Alfonso León Fernando María Jaime Isidro Pascual Antonio de Borbón y Habsburgo-Lorena; French: Alphonse Léon Ferdinand Marie Jacques Isidore Pascal Antoine de Bourbon; 17 May 1886 – 28 February 1941), also known as El Africano or the African due to his Africanist views, was King of Spain from his birth until 14 April 1931, when the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed. He became a monarch at birth as his father, Alfonso XII, had died the previous year. Alfonso's mother, Maria Christina of Austria, served as regent until he assumed full powers on his sixteenth birthday in 1902.
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Borbón and the second or maternal family name is Habsburgo-Lorena.Alfonso XIII
17 May 1886 – 14 April 1931
17 May 1902
Maria Christina (1886–1902)
17 May 1886
Royal Palace of Madrid, Madrid, Kingdom of Spain
28 February 1941 (aged 54)
Rome, Kingdom of Italy
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Alfonso XIII's upbringing and public image were closely linked to the military estate; he often presented himself as a soldier-king.[1] His effective reign started four years after the so-called 1898 Disaster, when various social factions projected their expectations of national regeneration upon him.[2] Like other European monarchs of his time he played a political role, entailing a controversial use of his constitutional executive powers.[3] His wedding to Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg in 1906 was marred by an attempt at regicide; he was unharmed.
With public opinion divided over World War I, and moreover a split between pro-German and pro-Entente sympathizers, Alfonso XIII used his relations with other European royal families to help preserve a stance of neutrality, as espoused by his government.[4][5]
However, several factors weakened the monarch's constitutional legitimacy: the rupture of the turno system, the deepening of the Restoration system crisis in the 1910s, a trio of crises in 1917, the spiral of violence in Morocco[6] and, especially, the lead-up to the 1923 installment of the dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera, an event that succeeded by means of both military coup d'état and the king's acquiescence.[7] Over the course of his reign, the monarch ended up favouring an authoritarian solution rather than constitutional liberalism.[8]
Upon the political failure of the dictatorship, Alfonso XIII removed support from Primo de Rivera (who was thereby forced to resign in 1930) and favoured (during the so-called dictablanda) an attempted return to the pre-1923 state of affairs. Nevertheless, he had lost most of his political capital along the way. He left Spain voluntarily after the municipal elections of April 1931 – which was understood as a plebiscite on maintaining the monarchy or declaring a republic – the result of which led to the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic on 14 April 1931.
His efforts with the European War Office during World War I[9] earned him a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1917, which was ultimately won by the Red Cross.[10] To date, he remains the only monarch known to have been nominated for a Nobel Prize.[11][12]
Legacy[edit]
Alfonso was a promoter of tourism in Spain. The need for the lodging of his wedding guests prompted the construction of the luxurious Hotel Palace in Madrid. He also supported the creation of a network of state-run lodges, Paradores, in historic buildings of Spain. His fondness for the sport of football led to the patronage of several "royal" ("real" in Spanish) football clubs, the first being Real Club Deportivo de La Coruña in 1907.[51] Selected others include Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, Real Betis, Real Unión, Espanyol, Real Zaragoza and Real Racing Club.
An avenue in the northern Madrid neighbourhood of Chamartín, Avenida de Alfonso XIII, is named after him. A plaza or town centre in Iloilo City, Philippines (now Plaza Libertad) was named in his honour called Plaza Alfonso XIII.[52] A street in Merthyr Tydfil, in Wales, was built especially to house Spanish immigrants in the mining industry and named Alphonso Street after Alfonso XIII.[53]
Ratoncito Pérez first appeared as the Spanish equivalent to the Tooth Fairy in a 1894 tale written by Luis Coloma for King Alfonso XIII, who had just lost a milk tooth at the age of eight, with the King appearing in the tale as "King Buby".[54] The tale has been adapted into further literary works and movies since then, with the character of King Buby appearing in some. The tradition of Ratoncito Pérez replacing the lost milk teeth with a small payment or gift while the child sleeps is almost universally followed today in Spain and Hispanic America. Alfonso XIII is also mentioned on the plaque that the City Council of Madrid dedicated in 2003 to Ratoncito Pérez on the second floor of number eight of Calle del Arenal, where the mouse was said to have lived.[55]
![Coat of arms of Alfonso XIII (1886–1924/1931)[69][70]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Royal_Greater_Coat_of_Arms_of_Spain_%281761-1868_and_1874-1931%29_Version_with_Golden_Fleece_and_Order_of_Charles_III_Collars.svg/256px-Royal_Greater_Coat_of_Arms_of_Spain_%281761-1868_and_1874-1931%29_Version_with_Golden_Fleece_and_Order_of_Charles_III_Collars.svg.png)
![Coat of arms of Alfonso XIII (1924/1931)[70][71]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Greater_Royal_Coat_of_Arms_of_Spain_%281931%29_Version_with_Golden_Fleece_and_Charles_III_Orders.svg/256px-Greater_Royal_Coat_of_Arms_of_Spain_%281931%29_Version_with_Golden_Fleece_and_Charles_III_Orders.svg.png)