Former King Juan Carlos of Spain Makes a Dig at DaughterinLaw Queen Letizia in New Book Meredith KileOctober 31, 2025 at 2:13 AM 0 Carlos Alvarez/Getty; Carlos Alvarez/Getty King Juan Carlos, the former monarch of Spain, revealed a "disagreement" with his daughterinlaw, Queen Letizia, in his upcoming memoir The former King writes that the wife of his son and successor, King Felipe, "did not help to strengthen our family ties" Juan Carlos' tellall memoir, Reconciliation, is set to be published on Nov.
- - Former King Juan Carlos of Spain Makes a Dig at Daughter-in-Law Queen Letizia in New Book
Meredith KileOctober 31, 2025 at 2:13 AM
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Carlos Alvarez/Getty; Carlos Alvarez/Getty
King Juan Carlos, the former monarch of Spain, revealed a "disagreement" with his daughter-in-law, Queen Letizia, in his upcoming memoir
The former King writes that the wife of his son and successor, King Felipe, "did not help to strengthen our family ties"
Juan Carlos' tell-all memoir, Reconciliation, is set to be published on Nov. 5 in France
King Juan Carlos, the former monarch of Spain, is telling all in his new memoir, Reconciliation.
Juan Carlos, 87, who has lived in self-imposed exile in the United Arab Emirates for the last five years after abdicating the throne in 2014, opens up his reign and his relationships in the forthcoming book, set to be published in France on Nov. 5.
In an excerpt shared by Spanish publication El Confidencial on Wednesday, Oct. 29, the former King has some harsh words for his daughter-in-law, the current Queen Letizia. Translated into English, Juan Carlos admits there is "personal disagreement" between him and the wife of his son and successor, King Felipe.
"She did not help to strengthen our family ties," he adds of Queen Letizia.
The statement marks the first time the former King has confirmed long-standing rumors of a rift within the Spanish royal family.
Carlos Alvarez/Getty
Queen Letizia, King Felipe, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia on January 10, 2019
King Felipe and Queen Letizia married on May 22, 2004. They share two daughters, Princess Leonor, 19, and Princess Sofia, 18.
While the Queen was something of a controversial choice for the bride of a future king, as she had been married before and grew up working class, the royal rift likely stems from a more complicated history with the family.
Juan Carlos acceded to the Spanish throne in 1975 as the chosen successor of dictator Francisco Franco. While he was expected to continue Franco's regime, he almost immediately began working to install democracy in the country.
While initially very popular among his people, by 2013, multiple scandals — including romantic affairs, financial misappropriation and an infamous elephant hunting trip to Africa — led the King to abdicate and pass the throne to his youngest child and only son, King Felipe.
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King Juan Carlos and King Felipe of Spain on June 24, 2015
Then, in 2018, Juan Carlos' alleged spurned mistress, Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn, went to the police to accuse him of corrupt business deals with Saudi Arabia. While the case was later dropped, the former King lost his public stipend from the State's General Budget as punishment from the crown, and King Felipe agreed to give up all inheritance from his father.
He was also accused of harassment by zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn, though he later won an appeal in that case.
In 2020, Juan Carlos decided to move to the UAE so as not to let public attention on him, or his ongoing financial scandals, overshadow his son's reign. His wife, Queen Sofía, remained in Spain and often attends royal events with King Felipe and his family.
"To help my son, I looked for a place where journalists from my country couldn't easily find me," Juan Carlos told French newspaper Le Figaro in an interview published this week.
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Juan Carlos' forthcoming book also addresses his connection to another royal family and the rumors that he seduced Princess Diana.
Rumors about the two started swirling in the late 1980s when Diana and then-Prince Charles, along with their sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, vacationed at the Marivent Palace, the Spanish royal family's summer home in Palma de Mallorca, for three consecutive summers.
Despite his reputation as a womanizer, the former King denies the affair in his memoir. In fact, he unfavorably describes Diana as "cold, taciturn, distant, except in the presence of the paparazzi."
on People
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Source: Entertainment
Published: October 31, 2025 at 12:37AM on Source: COSMOPOLITE
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