Editing Politics of Spain (section)

==The Crown==
{{Main|Monarch of Spain}}

===The King and his functions===
[[File:Felipe VI in 2023.jpg|thumb|King [[Felipe VI of Spain]]]]
The [[Monarchy of Spain|Spanish monarch]], currently, [[Felipe VI of Spain|Felipe VI]], is the [[head of State|head of the Spanish State]], symbol of its unity and permanence, who arbitrates and moderates the regular function of government institutions, and assumes the highest representation of Spain in [[international relations]], especially with those who are part of its historical community.{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 56}} His title is ''King of Spain'', although he can use [[Subsidiary title|all other titles]] of the Crown. The Crown, as a symbol of the nation's unity, has a two-fold function. First, it represents the unity of the State in the organic [[separation of powers]]; hence he appoints the prime ministers and summons and dissolves the Parliament, among other responsibilities. Secondly, it represents the Spanish State as a whole in relation to the autonomous communities, whose rights he is constitutionally bound to respect.<ref name=sinopsis56>{{cite web|url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/sinopsis/sinopsis.jsp?art=56&tipo=2|title=Sinópsis artículo 56 de la Constitución Española (2003, updated 2011) |last=Abellán Matesanz|first=Isabel María|publisher=[[Cortes Generales]]|access-date=18 February 2012}}</ref>

The King is proclaimed by the {{Lang|es|Cortes Generales}} – the Parliament – and must take an oath to carry out his duties faithfully, to obey the constitution and all laws and to ensure they are obeyed, and to respect the rights of the citizens, as well as the rights of the autonomous communities.{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 61}}

According to the Constitution of Spain, it is incumbent upon the King:{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 62,63}} to sanction and promulgate laws; to summon and dissolve the {{Lang|es|Cortes Generales}} (the Parliament) and to call elections; to call a referendum under the circumstances provided in the constitution; to propose a candidate for prime minister, and to appoint or remove him from office, as well as other ministers; to issue the decrees agreed upon by the [[Council of Ministers of Spain|Council of Ministers]]; to confer civil and military positions, and to award honors and distinctions; to be informed of the affairs of the State, presiding over the meetings of the Council of Ministers whenever opportune; to exercise supreme command of the [[Spanish Armed Forces]], to exercise the right to grant pardons, in accordance to the law; and to exercise the High Patronage of the Royal Academies. All ambassadors and other diplomatic representatives are accredited by him, and foreign representatives in Spain are accredited to him. He also expresses the State's assent to entering into international commitments through treaties; and he declares war or makes peace, following the authorization of the {{Lang|es|Cortes Generales}}.

In practical terms, his duties are mostly ceremonial, and constitutional provisions are worded in such a way as to make clear the strict neutral and apolitical nature of his role.<ref name=countrystudies>{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/spain/76.htm|title=King, Prime Minister, and Council of Ministers|work=Spain, a country Study|publisher=Washington GPO for the Library of Congress|year=1998|last1=Solsten|first1=Eric|last2=Meditz|first2=Sandra W.|access-date=18 February 2012}}</ref>{{sfn|Encyclopædia Britannica}} In fact, the [[Fathers of the Constitution]] made careful use of the expressions "it is incumbent upon of the King", deliberately omitting other expressions such as "powers", "faculties" or "competences", thus eliminating any notion of monarchical prerogatives within the parliamentary monarchy.<ref name=sinopsis62>{{cite web|url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/sinopsis/sinopsis.jsp?art=62&tipo=2|title=Sinópsis artículo 62 de la Constitución Española|last=Merino Merchán|first=José Fernando|date=December 2003|publisher=[[Cortes Generales]]|access-date=18 February 2012}}</ref> In the same way, the King does not have supreme liberty in the exercise of the aforementioned functions; all of these are framed, limited or exercised "according to the constitution and laws", or following requests of the executive or authorizations of the legislature.<ref name=sinopsis62/>

The king is the [[commander-in-chief]] of the [[Spanish Armed Forces]], but has only symbolic, rather than actual, authority over the Spanish military.{{sfn|Encyclopædia Britannica}} Nonetheless, the king's function as the commander-in-chief and symbol of national unity have been exercised, most notably in the [[23-F|military coup of 23 February 1981]], where King Juan Carlos I addressed the country on national television in military uniform, denouncing the coup and urging the maintenance of the law and the continuance of the democratically elected government, thus defusing the uprising.{{sfn|Encyclopædia Britannica}}

===Succession line===
The Spanish Constitution, promulgated in 1978, established explicitly that Juan Carlos I is the legitimate heir of the historical dynasty.{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 57}} This statement served two purposes. First, it established that the position of the King emanates from the constitution, the source from which its existence is legitimized democratically. Secondly, it reaffirmed the dynastic legitimacy of the person of Juan Carlos I, not so much to end old historical dynastic struggles – namely those historically embraced by the [[Carlism|Carlist]] movement – but as a consequence of the renunciation to all rights of succession that his father, [[Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona|Juan de Borbón y Battenberg]], made in 1977.<ref name=sinopsis57>{{cite web|url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/sinopsis/sinopsis.jsp?art=57&tipo=2|title=Sinópsis arículo 57 de la Constitución Española (2003, updated 2011) |last=Abellán Matesanz|first=Isabel María|publisher=[[Cortes Generales]]|access-date=18 February 2012}}</ref> Juan Carlos I was constitutional king of Spain from 1978 to 2014. He abdicated in favor of his son Felipe VI.

The constitution also establishes that the monarchy is hereditary following a "regular order of primogeniture and representation: earlier line shall precede older; within the same line, closer degree shall precede more distant; within the same degree, male shall precede female; and within the same sex, older shall precede the younger".{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 57}} What this means in practice, is that the Crown is passed to the firstborn, who would have preference over his siblings and cousins; women can only accede to the throne provided they do not have any older or younger brothers; and finally "regular order of representation" means that grandchildren have preference over the deceased King's parents, uncles or siblings.<ref name=sinopsis57/> Finally, if all possible rightful orders of primogeniture and representation have been exhausted, then the General Courts will select a successor in the way that best suits the interest of Spain. The [[heir presumptive]] or [[heir apparent]] holds the title of [[Prince of Asturias|Prince or Princess of Asturias]]. The current heir presumptive is princess [[Leonor, Princess of Asturias|Leonor de Borbón]].