1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,720 Speaker 1: A quick note before our episode begins. This one includes 2 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:06,920 Speaker 1: the death of a child, and so please feel free 3 00:00:06,960 --> 00:00:08,960 Speaker 1: to sit this one out if that's a subject you 4 00:00:09,000 --> 00:00:14,600 Speaker 1: are particularly sensitive to. Welcome to Noble Blood, a production 5 00:00:14,720 --> 00:00:18,680 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild from Aaron Manky. Listener 6 00:00:18,720 --> 00:00:26,880 Speaker 1: discretion advised. The date was March twenty sixth, nineteen fifty six. 7 00:00:27,480 --> 00:00:31,640 Speaker 1: It was Holy Thursday, the day before Good Friday. A 8 00:00:31,680 --> 00:00:37,920 Speaker 1: pair of teenage brothers one fourteen one eighteen attended evening 9 00:00:38,040 --> 00:00:41,400 Speaker 1: Mass with their family. Once they were back home, the 10 00:00:41,440 --> 00:00:45,239 Speaker 1: brothers went off on their own. Not long after, a 11 00:00:45,320 --> 00:00:49,360 Speaker 1: shot was heard throughout the family home. Their father ran 12 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:54,240 Speaker 1: to investigate and discovered the younger brother bleeding from a 13 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:58,680 Speaker 1: gunshot wound to the head. He died in his father's arms. 14 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:03,680 Speaker 1: This tragedy was compounded by the fact that the family 15 00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:07,360 Speaker 1: at the time was living in exile since their father 16 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:11,640 Speaker 1: was the rightful heir to the Spanish throne. The brother 17 00:01:11,760 --> 00:01:15,000 Speaker 1: who lived would eventually go on to be known as 18 00:01:15,280 --> 00:01:19,959 Speaker 1: Juan Carlos the First. He was the future King of Spain. 19 00:01:20,760 --> 00:01:25,399 Speaker 1: So what happened between those teenage brothers that night in 20 00:01:25,560 --> 00:01:29,760 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty six, and what effect did it have on 21 00:01:29,880 --> 00:01:33,680 Speaker 1: the almost forty year reign of one of the most 22 00:01:33,840 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 1: powerful men in the Western world. I'm Danas Schwartz and 23 00:01:38,760 --> 00:01:45,680 Speaker 1: this is noble blood. At one point. Juan Carlos the First, 24 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:48,960 Speaker 1: who began his reign as king in nineteen seventy five, 25 00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:54,560 Speaker 1: was one of Spain's most popular monarchs, especially beloved for 26 00:01:54,640 --> 00:02:00,920 Speaker 1: safeguarding his country's often perilous relationship to democracy. As recently 27 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:04,560 Speaker 1: as two thousand and eight, he was considered the best 28 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:08,840 Speaker 1: regarded leader in the Spanish speaking world, But less than 29 00:02:08,880 --> 00:02:13,400 Speaker 1: a decade later he would abdicate in a cloud of controversy. 30 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:19,760 Speaker 1: What went wrong and did what happened decades earlier on 31 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:24,440 Speaker 1: that holy day back in nineteen fifty six play a part. 32 00:02:25,400 --> 00:02:29,359 Speaker 1: Juan Carlos the First was born into the Spanish Bourbon 33 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:34,040 Speaker 1: dynasty that descended from the French Bourbont line and had 34 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:39,639 Speaker 1: ruled Spain since the eighteenth century. His birth in January 35 00:02:39,720 --> 00:02:44,320 Speaker 1: of nineteen thirty eight came during a tumultuous time in 36 00:02:44,400 --> 00:02:51,480 Speaker 1: Spain's history. One Carlos's grandfather, King Alfonso the Thirteenth, had 37 00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: been forced into exile in nineteen thirty one, with the 38 00:02:55,520 --> 00:03:01,519 Speaker 1: second Spanish republic. This was Spain's attempt at a democratic government, 39 00:03:01,880 --> 00:03:05,640 Speaker 1: with a majority of citizens voting to reject the monarchy 40 00:03:06,080 --> 00:03:11,480 Speaker 1: and embrace more progressive policies. The country then descended into 41 00:03:11,600 --> 00:03:17,000 Speaker 1: political chaos, with a rotating group of factions vying for control. 42 00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:22,560 Speaker 1: By the time Juan Carlos was born, the Spanish Civil 43 00:03:22,639 --> 00:03:27,919 Speaker 1: War was in full swing. Francisco Franco's military coup had 44 00:03:27,960 --> 00:03:33,880 Speaker 1: been raging for two years, pitting monarchists, fascists, and the 45 00:03:33,960 --> 00:03:39,960 Speaker 1: Catholic Church against loyalists who supported a democratically elected republic. 46 00:03:40,840 --> 00:03:44,360 Speaker 1: A year later, the country turned into a full out 47 00:03:44,600 --> 00:03:50,240 Speaker 1: fascist dictatorship. In nineteen thirty nine, Franco, backed by Hitler 48 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:54,560 Speaker 1: and Mussolini, won control of the country to the tune 49 00:03:54,760 --> 00:03:58,960 Speaker 1: of half a million lives. This was not a great 50 00:03:59,000 --> 00:04:01,800 Speaker 1: time to be a member of the nobility in Spain. 51 00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:06,960 Speaker 1: As direct descendants of the Spanish royal family, Juan Carlos 52 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:11,080 Speaker 1: and his siblings spent much of their childhoods in exile, 53 00:04:11,480 --> 00:04:16,520 Speaker 1: first in Italy and later in Portugal. Their father was 54 00:04:16,680 --> 00:04:22,560 Speaker 1: Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona, Infante being the title given 55 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:27,599 Speaker 1: at birth to the descendants of current and past Spanish monarchs, 56 00:04:28,240 --> 00:04:32,640 Speaker 1: taking the place of the anglophone prince or princess. But 57 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:36,680 Speaker 1: though Infante Juan was next in line for the monarchy, 58 00:04:37,160 --> 00:04:41,359 Speaker 1: the son of Spain's last king would never rise above 59 00:04:41,440 --> 00:04:45,200 Speaker 1: the rank of count thanks to the political turmoil in 60 00:04:45,279 --> 00:04:50,119 Speaker 1: his home country. The Infante's wife was Maria, his third 61 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:54,600 Speaker 1: cousin and a princess in her own right. One Carlos 62 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:58,760 Speaker 1: was the oldest of four children, with two younger sisters 63 00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:03,520 Speaker 1: and finally a young youngest boy, his brother Alfonso. The 64 00:05:03,560 --> 00:05:08,760 Speaker 1: family bounced around, first to Italy, then Switzerland, and eventually 65 00:05:08,920 --> 00:05:14,120 Speaker 1: settling in Portugal by nineteen fifty six. The family's home 66 00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:18,720 Speaker 1: base was there via Hialdo, their sprawling estate on the 67 00:05:18,760 --> 00:05:24,560 Speaker 1: Portuguese Riviera. It was there that tragedy would strike and 68 00:05:24,720 --> 00:05:31,560 Speaker 1: forever alter the course of the future king's life. One 69 00:05:31,640 --> 00:05:35,719 Speaker 1: Carlos's younger brother, Alfonso, was born in Rome in nineteen 70 00:05:35,839 --> 00:05:39,559 Speaker 1: forty one, as Europe was being torn apart by World 71 00:05:39,640 --> 00:05:43,719 Speaker 1: War II. By all accounts, he was a spirited, popular 72 00:05:43,800 --> 00:05:47,160 Speaker 1: boy who brought lightness to what could have been a 73 00:05:47,320 --> 00:05:52,520 Speaker 1: dreary existence in exile. The two brothers were each other's lifelines. 74 00:05:53,080 --> 00:05:58,120 Speaker 1: For Juan Carlos, who was naturally more introspective, Alfonso brought 75 00:05:58,240 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 1: energy and joy to their displaced existence. The future king 76 00:06:02,800 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 1: often struggled with loneliness, and Alfonso's presence was one of 77 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:11,279 Speaker 1: the few constants that made their nomadic childhood bearable. When 78 00:06:11,279 --> 00:06:14,159 Speaker 1: they were old enough, both brothers were sent to study 79 00:06:14,240 --> 00:06:19,039 Speaker 1: in Spain with the express permission of General Franco. The 80 00:06:19,120 --> 00:06:23,600 Speaker 1: boys attended a few different private schools, with One Carlos 81 00:06:23,720 --> 00:06:28,760 Speaker 1: ending up at the prestigious Zaragoza Military Academy. He was, 82 00:06:28,839 --> 00:06:31,880 Speaker 1: by all accounts, a good student with a keen sense 83 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:35,960 Speaker 1: of justice, who refused special treatment and was happy to 84 00:06:36,080 --> 00:06:40,279 Speaker 1: leverage his royal cachet to help his buddies meet girls. 85 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:45,200 Speaker 1: While at home, Alfonso was the clear favorite at school, 86 00:06:45,320 --> 00:06:49,160 Speaker 1: One Carlos found his own ways to shine. In nineteen 87 00:06:49,240 --> 00:06:52,680 Speaker 1: fifty six, fourteen year old Alfonso and eighteen year old 88 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:57,640 Speaker 1: One Carlos were both home at Villa Haralda visiting family 89 00:06:57,760 --> 00:07:03,440 Speaker 1: for the Easter holidays. Thursday had started well for Alfonso. 90 00:07:03,560 --> 00:07:08,320 Speaker 1: The whole family attended morning Mass and took communion. Then 91 00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:12,080 Speaker 1: he participated in the semi finals of a local junior 92 00:07:12,120 --> 00:07:17,120 Speaker 1: golf tournament. Alfonso won and was excited to compete in 93 00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:21,840 Speaker 1: the finals that Saturday. The evening concluded with evening mass, 94 00:07:22,160 --> 00:07:25,080 Speaker 1: then the family retired home for the evening, where the 95 00:07:25,120 --> 00:07:30,440 Speaker 1: brothers headed for the house's playroom. That's when tragedy struck. 96 00:07:31,800 --> 00:07:36,240 Speaker 1: The details of what happened next have been debated for decades. 97 00:07:36,880 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 1: Let's start with the official statement issued the next day 98 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:44,120 Speaker 1: by the Spanish embassy in Portugal by the order of 99 00:07:44,200 --> 00:07:49,840 Speaker 1: General Franco Quote. While His Highness the Infante Alfonso was 100 00:07:49,960 --> 00:07:54,040 Speaker 1: cleaning a revolver last evening with his brother, a shot 101 00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:57,600 Speaker 1: was fired, hitting his forehead and killing him in a 102 00:07:57,600 --> 00:08:02,520 Speaker 1: few minutes. The accident took place at twenty thirty hours 103 00:08:02,840 --> 00:08:08,040 Speaker 1: after the Infante's return from the Monday Thursday religious service, 104 00:08:08,520 --> 00:08:13,160 Speaker 1: during which he had received Holy Communion. This version quickly 105 00:08:13,280 --> 00:08:18,280 Speaker 1: came under scrutiny. The brothers had both received enough military 106 00:08:18,360 --> 00:08:22,160 Speaker 1: training to know how to properly clean a gun. It 107 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:26,160 Speaker 1: seemed odd that either young man would be foolish enough 108 00:08:26,400 --> 00:08:30,040 Speaker 1: to clean a weapon without first checking to make sure 109 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:35,880 Speaker 1: it wasn't loaded. Was that really what occurred? Alternate accounts 110 00:08:35,920 --> 00:08:40,880 Speaker 1: began to emerge almost immediately. The Italian press reported that 111 00:08:41,200 --> 00:08:45,920 Speaker 1: Juan Carlos, not Alfonso, had been holding the weapon when 112 00:08:45,920 --> 00:08:49,679 Speaker 1: it fired. It should be noted that at no point 113 00:08:49,800 --> 00:08:53,920 Speaker 1: has anyone in the royal family disputed that version of 114 00:08:53,960 --> 00:08:57,840 Speaker 1: the story, the one in which Juan Carlos was holding 115 00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:03,680 Speaker 1: the gun. Tina Carollo, the family's dressmaker, claimed that the 116 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:07,880 Speaker 1: Countess later told her the true version of what happened 117 00:09:07,960 --> 00:09:11,720 Speaker 1: that night. Although the boy's mother never made an official 118 00:09:11,800 --> 00:09:16,080 Speaker 1: statement on the tragic events, she allegedly confided in her 119 00:09:16,160 --> 00:09:21,120 Speaker 1: dressmaker that Juan Carlos was joking around and pointed the 120 00:09:21,160 --> 00:09:24,920 Speaker 1: gun at his little brother. Thinking the gun was empty, 121 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:30,439 Speaker 1: he pulled the trigger. Bernardo Arnosso, a Portuguese friend of 122 00:09:30,520 --> 00:09:36,319 Speaker 1: Juan Carlos, reportedly heard a similar confession from Guan Carlos himself, 123 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:40,760 Speaker 1: although in this version the bullet ricocheted off a wall 124 00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:46,040 Speaker 1: before striking Alfonso. An entirely different account came from the 125 00:09:46,120 --> 00:09:51,200 Speaker 1: boy's sister, Pillar, who told Greek author Helena Mattheopolis a 126 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:56,679 Speaker 1: version that paints the shooting as even more accidental. According 127 00:09:56,720 --> 00:10:01,160 Speaker 1: to Pillar, Alfonso had left the playroom briefly to get 128 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:05,520 Speaker 1: them both some snacks. When he returned, with his hands full, 129 00:10:05,960 --> 00:10:09,520 Speaker 1: he pushed the door open with his shoulder. The door 130 00:10:09,720 --> 00:10:13,959 Speaker 1: struck Juan Carlos's arm just as he was handling the gun, 131 00:10:14,440 --> 00:10:18,920 Speaker 1: causing an involuntary trigger pull at the moment Alfonso's head 132 00:10:19,480 --> 00:10:25,080 Speaker 1: appeared in the doorway. More recently, another witness has come 133 00:10:25,160 --> 00:10:30,160 Speaker 1: forward with his own account. Prince Victor Emanuel of Savoy, 134 00:10:30,600 --> 00:10:34,200 Speaker 1: the son of Italy's last king and a childhood friend 135 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:37,960 Speaker 1: of Juan Carlos, shared his version of events in a 136 00:10:38,040 --> 00:10:42,480 Speaker 1: twenty twenty three documentary about his own scandal involving the 137 00:10:42,520 --> 00:10:45,840 Speaker 1: death of a German teen in nineteen seventy eight. In 138 00:10:45,920 --> 00:10:49,960 Speaker 1: the documentary, Victor reveals that he was there with the 139 00:10:50,000 --> 00:10:54,800 Speaker 1: brothers in the playroom when Alfonso died. He insisted the 140 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:59,760 Speaker 1: shooting was accidental, but suggested it happened through a closet 141 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:04,520 Speaker 1: rather than in an open room. Given the fact that 142 00:11:04,760 --> 00:11:08,760 Speaker 1: Victor wasn't mentioned in any other account and his own 143 00:11:08,800 --> 00:11:13,560 Speaker 1: life was riddled with controversies and illegal activities, will take 144 00:11:13,679 --> 00:11:16,800 Speaker 1: his addition to the topic with a grain of salt. 145 00:11:17,720 --> 00:11:21,880 Speaker 1: What all these accounts share is their agreement on one 146 00:11:22,120 --> 00:11:28,079 Speaker 1: crucial point, this was a tragic accident, not an intentional act. 147 00:11:28,840 --> 00:11:33,240 Speaker 1: They also agree on what happened immediately afterward. The boy's 148 00:11:33,440 --> 00:11:37,400 Speaker 1: father rushed in to find Alfonso bleeding out on the 149 00:11:37,440 --> 00:11:42,800 Speaker 1: playroom floor. Despite the Count's best efforts to revive his son, 150 00:11:43,360 --> 00:11:47,040 Speaker 1: the boy died in his arms within minutes. In his 151 00:11:47,240 --> 00:11:52,680 Speaker 1: grief and rage, the Count reportedly grabbed Juan Carlos and 152 00:11:53,000 --> 00:11:55,880 Speaker 1: shouted at him, swear to me that you didn't do 153 00:11:55,960 --> 00:12:01,920 Speaker 1: it on purpose. The aftermath was swift and dis There 154 00:12:01,920 --> 00:12:06,920 Speaker 1: would be no investigation by Portuguese authorities, no autopsy, and 155 00:12:07,200 --> 00:12:13,480 Speaker 1: no formal inquiry into these circumstances. Despite, or perhaps because 156 00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:17,960 Speaker 1: of the royal status of those involved, this was very 157 00:12:18,040 --> 00:12:23,600 Speaker 1: much a closed door family tragedy. Alfonso was buried quietly 158 00:12:23,760 --> 00:12:27,880 Speaker 1: in a nearby cemetery, and shortly after the funeral, the 159 00:12:28,000 --> 00:12:30,960 Speaker 1: Count picked up the weapon that had killed his son 160 00:12:31,400 --> 00:12:35,440 Speaker 1: and hurled it into the ocean. Juan Carlos was ordered 161 00:12:35,480 --> 00:12:39,080 Speaker 1: to return to Spain at once, less than forty eight 162 00:12:39,120 --> 00:12:42,520 Speaker 1: hours after his little brother's death, he was already on 163 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:46,880 Speaker 1: his way back to military school. We can't know exactly 164 00:12:46,960 --> 00:12:49,560 Speaker 1: what he was thinking as he made his way back 165 00:12:49,600 --> 00:12:54,120 Speaker 1: to Zaragoza, but it's clear that the silence that surrounded 166 00:12:54,120 --> 00:12:58,880 Speaker 1: this tragedy shaped the man he would become back at 167 00:12:58,960 --> 00:13:03,880 Speaker 1: school withdrawn and tormented, but he wouldn't be able to 168 00:13:03,960 --> 00:13:11,400 Speaker 1: stay that way forever. Eventually, General Franco came calling for him. 169 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:14,960 Speaker 1: The reign of One Carlos the First was full of 170 00:13:15,080 --> 00:13:19,400 Speaker 1: highs and lows. For many years, he was a beloved king, 171 00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:25,080 Speaker 1: responsible for bringing Spain back from the dark ages of fascism, 172 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:29,760 Speaker 1: but by the time he abdicated, he was awash in controversy, 173 00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:34,440 Speaker 1: with many calling for his removal. In nineteen forty seven, 174 00:13:34,720 --> 00:13:39,480 Speaker 1: legislation was passed that both cemented Spain's status as a 175 00:13:39,600 --> 00:13:44,000 Speaker 1: monarchy and allowed General Franco to choose his own successor. 176 00:13:44,720 --> 00:13:49,679 Speaker 1: In a surprising move, the dictator passed over Juan Carlos's 177 00:13:49,720 --> 00:13:54,040 Speaker 1: father in favor of the younger prince. The count was 178 00:13:54,080 --> 00:13:58,520 Speaker 1: seen as too liberal, and perhaps Franco assumed a younger 179 00:13:58,600 --> 00:14:03,559 Speaker 1: monarch would be easier to control, but One Carlos surprised 180 00:14:03,720 --> 00:14:08,360 Speaker 1: them all. Rather than becoming a puppet ruler, he emerged 181 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:13,080 Speaker 1: as a champion of Spain's democracy. After Franco's death in 182 00:14:13,160 --> 00:14:17,560 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy five, the young king began reforms to move 183 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:23,880 Speaker 1: the country away from authoritarianism and back towards a constitutional monarchy. 184 00:14:24,520 --> 00:14:29,160 Speaker 1: For three decades, he was praised as a transformational figure 185 00:14:29,520 --> 00:14:35,200 Speaker 1: who brought Spain back into the European mainstream. But as 186 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:39,320 Speaker 1: time went on, another side of one Carlos began to 187 00:14:39,400 --> 00:14:45,880 Speaker 1: emerge and controversy followed. There were whispers about extramarital affairs, 188 00:14:46,360 --> 00:14:51,440 Speaker 1: as well as an indulgent lifestyle that seemed increasingly disconnected 189 00:14:51,840 --> 00:14:57,160 Speaker 1: from the struggles of ordinary Spaniards. These might have remained 190 00:14:57,360 --> 00:15:01,760 Speaker 1: palace gossip except for an incident that just happened to 191 00:15:01,800 --> 00:15:07,800 Speaker 1: take place during a spectacular lapse in judgment. In April 192 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:14,480 Speaker 1: twenty twelve, as Spain struggled with disastrously high unemployment rates 193 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:19,640 Speaker 1: nearly fifty percent for young workers, photos emerged of Juan 194 00:15:19,720 --> 00:15:24,720 Speaker 1: Carla's on a luxury safari in Botswana. In them, he 195 00:15:24,880 --> 00:15:28,359 Speaker 1: stood holding a rifle in front of a dead elephant. 196 00:15:29,120 --> 00:15:33,000 Speaker 1: His companion on the trip a woman who was most 197 00:15:33,040 --> 00:15:38,480 Speaker 1: certainly not Queen Sophia his wife. The trip might have 198 00:15:38,680 --> 00:15:43,440 Speaker 1: remained secret except that the king fell and broke his hip, 199 00:15:43,960 --> 00:15:48,760 Speaker 1: requiring a special aircraft to bring him home for medical treatment. 200 00:15:49,880 --> 00:15:56,080 Speaker 1: The optics were devastating. The hunting expedition was outrageously expensive, 201 00:15:56,520 --> 00:16:00,440 Speaker 1: making it incredibly tone deaf of the king. The Kodos 202 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:06,640 Speaker 1: were striking imagery, highlighting the irresponsibility of royal privilege in 203 00:16:06,720 --> 00:16:11,840 Speaker 1: the face of such nationwide hardship, His approval ratings, once 204 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:19,240 Speaker 1: impressively high, began their terminal decline. This scandal opened the 205 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:23,239 Speaker 1: floodgates that had been held back by decades of respectful 206 00:16:23,440 --> 00:16:29,320 Speaker 1: media coverage. Suddenly, Spanish journalists were investigating other aspects of 207 00:16:29,400 --> 00:16:34,520 Speaker 1: the king's private life. They uncovered an embezzlement scandal involving 208 00:16:34,560 --> 00:16:38,400 Speaker 1: his daughter and son in law. More damaging still were 209 00:16:38,480 --> 00:16:44,160 Speaker 1: revelations about his relationship with a German businesswoman, as well 210 00:16:44,200 --> 00:16:49,440 Speaker 1: as allegations that he'd received massive kickbacks from Saudi Arabia's 211 00:16:49,800 --> 00:16:54,920 Speaker 1: high speed rail contracts during the late two thousands. By 212 00:16:55,040 --> 00:16:58,440 Speaker 1: twenty fourteen, Juan Carlos could read the writing on the 213 00:16:58,480 --> 00:17:02,560 Speaker 1: wall and chose to abdicate in favor of his son Filippe. 214 00:17:03,360 --> 00:17:08,359 Speaker 1: His life post monarchy has remained plagued with controversies, but 215 00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:13,159 Speaker 1: one early event was never far from his mind. According 216 00:17:13,200 --> 00:17:18,960 Speaker 1: to his former mistress, Corina Larson, Alfonso's death continued to 217 00:17:19,080 --> 00:17:24,399 Speaker 1: haunt Juan Carlos well into his old age. Larson explained 218 00:17:24,480 --> 00:17:29,280 Speaker 1: on a podcast that despite his immense power and wealth, 219 00:17:29,800 --> 00:17:33,919 Speaker 1: the former king never got over that Holy Thursday in 220 00:17:34,040 --> 00:17:38,600 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty six, she said, I think, deep down in 221 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:41,640 Speaker 1: his soul and in his head, he feels a lot 222 00:17:41,680 --> 00:17:45,399 Speaker 1: of guilt. He has nightmares about it. He told me 223 00:17:45,560 --> 00:17:49,000 Speaker 1: that his younger brother was the really bright one, the 224 00:17:49,080 --> 00:17:52,879 Speaker 1: handsome one, the best golfer, the parent's favorite son. He 225 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:56,000 Speaker 1: felt that his younger brother was really the light that 226 00:17:56,160 --> 00:17:59,959 Speaker 1: shone in the family. It didn't matter that one Carlo 227 00:18:00,280 --> 00:18:05,000 Speaker 1: had commanded a nation for almost four decades, amassing wealth 228 00:18:05,040 --> 00:18:08,679 Speaker 1: and respect that most people could never even dream of. 229 00:18:09,400 --> 00:18:13,360 Speaker 1: Part of him apparently always felt like and also ran 230 00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:17,600 Speaker 1: the older brother who should have been his family's golden child, 231 00:18:18,080 --> 00:18:22,520 Speaker 1: but instead found himself forever chasing the glory of a 232 00:18:22,560 --> 00:18:27,560 Speaker 1: dead fourteen year old. Right after the accident, when their 233 00:18:27,600 --> 00:18:31,440 Speaker 1: father made Juan Carlos swear he didn't do it on purpose, 234 00:18:32,080 --> 00:18:35,600 Speaker 1: what kind of effect might a question like that have 235 00:18:35,760 --> 00:18:39,399 Speaker 1: had on a young man during the worst moment of 236 00:18:39,440 --> 00:18:45,480 Speaker 1: his life. Perhaps tellingly, it took Juan Carlos thirty six 237 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:50,840 Speaker 1: years to bring his brother's remains back to Spain. Alfonso 238 00:18:51,080 --> 00:18:54,640 Speaker 1: was hastily buried at the time back in Portugal, less 239 00:18:54,640 --> 00:18:57,439 Speaker 1: than two days after his death, but He wouldn't be 240 00:18:57,480 --> 00:19:01,919 Speaker 1: brought back to his home country until Bill nineteen ninety two, 241 00:19:02,080 --> 00:19:05,280 Speaker 1: when he was reinterred in the Royal mausoleum at the 242 00:19:05,320 --> 00:19:11,640 Speaker 1: Monastery El Escorial outside Madrid. Many speculated that the delay 243 00:19:12,200 --> 00:19:17,399 Speaker 1: reflected the king's ongoing sensitivity about the circumstances of his 244 00:19:17,520 --> 00:19:22,840 Speaker 1: brother's death. The irony is inescapable. A man who spent 245 00:19:23,080 --> 00:19:29,560 Speaker 1: decades successfully avoiding legal consequences could never escape the psychological 246 00:19:29,640 --> 00:19:35,280 Speaker 1: consequences of a teenage tragedy. Critics have called him quote 247 00:19:35,440 --> 00:19:39,800 Speaker 1: the luckiest man alive for his ability to dodge accountability, 248 00:19:40,280 --> 00:19:45,200 Speaker 1: comparing his knack for escapism to none other than Donald Trump's. 249 00:19:45,880 --> 00:19:49,760 Speaker 1: But if Juan Carlos's story has taught us anything it's 250 00:19:49,840 --> 00:19:53,800 Speaker 1: that luck will only get you so far, and eventually 251 00:19:54,040 --> 00:20:00,600 Speaker 1: tragedy catches up with you, one way or another. That's 252 00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:04,439 Speaker 1: the story of the tragedy of Juan Carlos and his 253 00:20:04,520 --> 00:20:08,919 Speaker 1: brother Alfonso. But keep listening after a brief sponsor break 254 00:20:09,280 --> 00:20:13,160 Speaker 1: to hear a little bit more about the metaphorical resonance 255 00:20:13,280 --> 00:20:24,959 Speaker 1: of that event. When you think about it, the story 256 00:20:25,000 --> 00:20:27,800 Speaker 1: of one Carlos the first can be seen as a 257 00:20:27,920 --> 00:20:32,440 Speaker 1: meditation on the different ways types of weapons can destroy 258 00:20:32,600 --> 00:20:36,600 Speaker 1: a life. There was the hunting rifle in the Safari 259 00:20:36,640 --> 00:20:40,280 Speaker 1: photographs that marked the beginning of the end of his 260 00:20:40,400 --> 00:20:46,080 Speaker 1: popular support. There was the metaphorical smoking gun evidence of 261 00:20:46,240 --> 00:20:50,479 Speaker 1: financial corruption that drove him into exile. And of course 262 00:20:50,600 --> 00:20:54,760 Speaker 1: there's the weapon that cast the longest shadow over his life, 263 00:20:55,280 --> 00:20:58,880 Speaker 1: the one that killed Alfonso on that chilly March day 264 00:20:59,280 --> 00:21:03,919 Speaker 1: in nineteen fifty six. That gun may have disappeared beneath 265 00:21:03,960 --> 00:21:08,560 Speaker 1: the ocean waves, but its impact rippled through the decades, 266 00:21:09,080 --> 00:21:13,520 Speaker 1: shaping the character of a king for better or for worse. 267 00:21:21,119 --> 00:21:24,919 Speaker 1: Noble Blood is a production of iHeart Radio and Grim 268 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:28,520 Speaker 1: and Mild from Aaron Mankey. Noble Blood is hosted by 269 00:21:28,560 --> 00:21:34,120 Speaker 1: me Dana Schwartz, with additional writing and research by Hannah Johnston, Hannaswick, 270 00:21:34,280 --> 00:21:38,399 Speaker 1: Courtney Sender, Amy Hit and Julia Milaney. The show is 271 00:21:38,560 --> 00:21:43,880 Speaker 1: edited and produced by Jesse Funk, with supervising producerrima Ill 272 00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:49,080 Speaker 1: Kali and executive producers Aaron Mankey, Trevor Young, and Matt Frederick. 273 00:21:49,560 --> 00:21:55,200 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 274 00:21:55,440 --> 00:22:01,280 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.