King Felipe may change his name 'so as not to annoy Catalunya'
Friday, June 13, 2014 @ 5:21 PM
THE Prince of Asturias may change his name when he is crowned king this month to avoid upsetting Catalunya, sources from the Palace of Zarzuela say.
It has already been assumed the Prince will become King Felipe VI, but in fact he may decide to add his middle name, Juan, to his title.
This is because the first King Felipe – known as Felipe El Hermoso, or 'the beautiful', was the monarch of the Kingdom of Castilla – the centre and western half of Spain before the Catholic rulers Isabel and Fernando married and united them.
So, although the Prince will be the sixth King Felipe for Castilla, he will only be the fifth for the eastern side of Spain, once the Kingdom of Aragón which also encompassed Catalunya and the upper half of what is now the Comunidad Valenciana.
Royal household sources fear that, as Catalunya is vying for independence from Spain, certain nationalist politicians may be incensed by the King being given the title of Felipe VI – as if to suggest that only the ancient Kingdom of Castilla is 'really Spain', shutting out Catalunya still further and giving it more drive to seek secession.
Dean of Madrid's Complutense University's Faculty of Documentation, Dr José María de Francisco Olmos, says: “With the political situation the way it is at the moment, the Zarzuela Palace might think it is not a good idea to start off a new reign by making certain citizens believe they are sticking their fingers in their eyes.”
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