In 1931, a little less than 90 years ago, when writer Ramón María del Valle-Inclán learned of the departure of Spain's king Alfonso XIII on his flight into exile, taking with him wealth that today would be equivalent to about 75 million euros, he wrote: "The Spaniards have expelled the last of the Bourbons, Alfonso XIII, not as a king, but as a thief."
We are in 2020, it is an August 3rd, the beginning of the summer holidays deeply marked by the coronavirus, and now the Bourbon grandson Juan Carlos I has just made the scandal centred on Alfonso XIII look small. Like his grandfather, he has just embarked on the path of exile, with a more than considerable fortune - The New York Times estimated it, in 2014, at about $2.3 billion. El Campechano, the affable one, as the king emeritus has been nicknamed, flees Spain just as we are starting to see the opening up of corruption cases - affecting him in particular, but also with ramifications of various kinds for the whole royal family.
It is, of course, a blow to the Spanish monarchy that is unprecedented in the period since the leader of the royal family was restored to the position of head of state - which, in a few months, will be 45 years ago.
Is the institution fatally wounded? Probably yes, since even if the machinations of the deep state with respect to Juan Carlos I have long been intended, above all, to protect Felipe VI, it is clear that the scale of the successive corruption scandals, the current king's knowledge of them and even his alleged involvement in the distribution of money mean that that he is no longer out of reach as an objective for those who support an end to the monarchy.
The fragility of Felipe VI is made explicit by the brief statement from his house which reveals that his father has sent him a letter which says nothing of his resignation from the title of king emeritus to which the son responds with an expression of respect and gratitude for his decision to go into exile.
Juan Carlos I emphasizes that "I have been king of Spain for almost forty years and, during all of them, I have always wanted the best for Spain and for the crown", in response to which his son notes the historical importance of the reign of his father "as a legacy and a political and institutional work of service to Spain and democracy." No comment on the real reason for his flight.
This is a veritable tradition in the modern era of the relationship between Spain and the Bourbons. In 1854, María Cristina de Bourbon, queen consort of Ferdinand VII, was expelled as a thief; in 1868, her daughter Isabel II went into exile, not only because of the lack of political stability and her complicated love life but also due to the theft of some crown jewels. Before that, Carlos IV and the aforementioned Ferdinand VII left. And, more recently, Alfonso XIII, the last Bourbon to reign until Juan Carlos I arrived.
Although the fall of the king emeritus has been precipitated over recent months, one day it will be necessary to analyze in depth to what extent Felipe VI's affront to Catalonia in supporting police violence in the events of October 2017 was the final nail in the coffin for an institution which is awarded fail grades by public opinion and is becoming ever more questioned.