The delicate state of health of European kingdoms: three kings operated on in three days, and now what? | the people

It’s not an easy few months for European monarchies. To the controversies some members of royal houses have frequently engaged in – such as the controversial documentary about Prince Henry of England and Meghan Markle – we must add the delicate health conditions of many of their monarchs. Runs up to three, either on schedule or urgently, in just three days. The first to enter the operating room was Carlos Gustavo from Sweden (76 years old), who underwent heart surgery on Monday, February 20; Next, unexpectedly, was the 85-year-old Princess – former Queen – Beatrix of the Netherlands, who fractured her wrist while skiing; The last to enter the operating room was Margareta from Denmark (82 years old), in a scheduled intervention to alleviate her back problems. It is now when the debate about the forced change of generations opens within the royal families, which will witness changes expected in the coming years. The first occurred last September with the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-lived monarch in the history of European royalties. But what now?

Royal houses have undergone forced changes in recent decades, in many cases, in parallel with the transformation of society. Institutions that, despite being one of the oldest in the world, have tried by all means to adapt to the changing times and to get closer to their people. However, the Age of Kings precluded its complete renovation. UNED Professor of Contemporary History Ángeles Lario explains why: “It seems that the information society and social networks, for the immediate proliferation of privacy, require that they be at this level of modernization in order not to be outdated. But in the case of monarchy, the familial and hereditary character is combined with the institutional character , which makes it difficult to turn away from the pink world, from the random publication and penchant for personal issues.”

In 1969, the BBC attempted to humanize the British royal family in the documentary Royal family, which would end up being withdrawn by Buckingham’s decision. 54 years have passed since then and little has changed in the institution. Kings, who in many cases remain on the throne until their death, leave as heirs their children who had been preparing all their lives for that moment and who became kings at an advanced age; One has only to look at Charles of England, who ascended the throne at the age of 74. Harald of Norway, at 86 years old, is the oldest of all European kingdoms, having 32 years on the throne of the Nordic countries. In 2020, King underwent a cardiac intervention to replace a valve that had been placed in 2005 in open-heart surgery; And in 2022, he is hospitalized again due to infection. In the periods when he could not do his job, he was replaced by his son and heir to the throne, Haakon of Norway, aged 49 – after the resignation of Marta Louisa of Norway to be queen – who has a more complete formal agenda, closer to a throne holder than to an heir.

Harald closely follows Margaret of Denmark who, at the age of 82, completed her fiftieth reign. The last few months have not been easy for her after the decision, at the end of September, to withdraw the title of princes from four of her grandchildren – the children of Prince Joaquin. These were days when the king tried to be as transparent as possible, publicly apologizing for what happened. In various statements, Margareta of Denmark claimed that she had pondered this decision for some time with the intent that the royal family would adjust to the changing times and thus secure its future. “Monarchies have gone through very difficult times and continue. Perhaps in today’s democracy they need adjustments related to representation, symbolism, their presence and their transparency in front of society, ”Lario highlights. To the controversies must be added his delicate state of health. On Wednesday, the Queen had to undergo surgery due to back problems she had suffered for a long time. After the operation, which was successful, she will have to spend several weeks in rehabilitation, during which time her son and heir to the throne, Prince Frederick, will take her place. We must not forget that the eldest son of the Queen did not want to take over as king and admitted more than once that he had gone through a deep crisis when he discovered his role. “Perhaps it would be better for the kings to remain on the throne until their death, though the heir could take his place in the delicate acting activities, or whatever other activities he required, which would give them good practice for the future,” Lario details.

Carlos Gustavo de Socia was also on the throne for half a century. Soaked up in the celebration of his golden jubilee, the King had to postpone his schedule to undergo an urgent catheterization. Not without controversy. At the beginning of the year, he made some harsh statements about the succession to the Swedish throne: after the abolition of the Salic law, in 1979, his daughter Victoria became the heir instead of his son, Prince Carlos Philip. She will be the one in charge of the King’s official agenda while he recovers from the intervention.

The new generation of heirs to the throne is already preparing for the functions that, in a few years, they will have to formally perform when they become kings. The generational change seems more than evident in these new representatives, who are increasingly moving away from what is traditionally stipulated in the establishment: it is now normal to achieve higher education, to marry a divorced person, to live as ordinary a life as possible, and even to rub shoulders with each other is a tradition that has become More widespread, as Cristina Barrero, Professor of History at CEU-San Pablo University, explains: “The heirs receive training in foreign schools from a young age and study at the university. Globalization makes their social circle of friendship widen far beyond what is royal, where they are all cousins ​​and relatives. They want to resemble people and this, in my opinion, is inconvenient for a monarchy because it loses the aura of something unattainable by humans.” He adds: “In monarchies, things have a historical basis that should not be abandoned.”

Among those who recently passed the operating room is Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, who is 85 years old. Last Friday, while skiing, the former Queen had an accident, breaking her wrist. This is not the first time that a similar accident has occurred to him while practicing mountain sports, nor is it the first time that he has had to undergo surgery for the same reason. She left her duties a decade ago, delegating them to her son. The citizens, who in many cases did not know another king, prepare for a possible change of monarchy, as already happened with the kings Guillermo and Máxima in the Netherlands, opening up and approaching the people with the intention of modernizing the traditional institution. A generation of kings begins to bid farewell to their duties.