Empire Rising: Spain

Chapter 27: Chapter 26: Coronation Ceremony

As November 1869 approached, the time for the Spanish Government to prepare the coronation ceremony for King Carlos I had also arrived.

Prim attached great importance to this coronation ceremony, inviting the European powers including England, France, Prussia, Russia, Italy, and Austria, as well as longstanding European monarchies such as Portugal, Netherlands, and Belgium.

However, each country held different attitudes towards the coronation of the Spanish King, and the identities of the envoys sent were distinctly varied.

The most attentive were Italy and Portugal.

Italy is easy to understand; Carlo was born into the Italian royal family, being the son of King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy, so he naturally garnered attention.

As for Portugal, firstly, Carlo’s sister, Princess Maria Pia, was married to King Louis I of Portugal, making the two countries in-laws to some extent.

Secondly, as the only two countries on the Iberian Peninsula, Spain poses a great threat to Portugal.

The Portuguese Government hoped to gauge the new Spanish King Carlo’s attitude towards Portugal at this ceremony to prepare accordingly.

Although most European countries were invited to this coronation ceremony, its overall scale was not large, as the Spanish Government did not have much funding to invest into this event.

It wasn’t that Prim did not value Carlo’s coronation ceremony, but the current Spanish Government was simultaneously supporting colonial rebellion wars and carrying out various reforms, making it genuinely difficult to allocate major funds for a coronation ceremony.

Carlo himself did not mind the scale of his coronation ceremony. Gaining the recognition of the Spaniards was the most important thing, and a larger scale might not be better.

Through agricultural tax reductions and free literacy education, Carlo accumulated a certain amount of prestige among the Spaniards.

At least the Spaniards supported this coronation ceremony, and many Spaniards participated in its live event, making it lively and bustling.

Under the expectant gaze of the crowd, a well-trained royal guard protected several carriages emblazoned with the Spanish Savoy Dynasty’s coat of arms, slowly proceeding toward the Parliament.

Inside the carriage, Carlo, dressed in luxurious apparel, sat with a solemn expression, accompanied by his palace steward Loren, who was reminding Carlo of the coronation ceremony procedures.

“Your Majesty, please remember to smile.” Just a second before Carlo stepped out of the carriage, Loren continued to remind him.

Carlo nodded, and the instant he stepped out of the carriage, the Spanish crowd on the periphery erupted in warm cheers.

Certainly, the leaders were those prearranged by the government. At such a significant moment, it is impossible not to arrange a few individuals to incite the crowd’s emotions.

Carlo, with a gentle smile, waved to the cheering crowd without any kingly airs.

Only then did the Spaniards see their King clearly: a young and handsome youth, with a demeanor entirely different from Queen Isabella.

“This is how our King should be.” Many Spaniards couldn’t help but harbor this thought in their hearts.

For those Spaniards still supporting the monarchy, their greatest hope was for a wise and brave monarch to emerge who would ideally care about the plight of the lower-class Spaniards.

Based on Carlo’s current actions, although he was still far from being a wise and brave monarch, he had indeed shown a different attitude from Queen Isabella regarding the concerns for the lower-class citizens.

Actually, it has to be admitted that being attractive is useful in any era.

Carlo had not only a striking appearance, but a height already reaching over 1.8 meters, and he was quite robust.

Coupled with the kingly identity and abundant charisma and wealth, he quickly attracted much admiration from Spanish girls.

If there was a media organization able to select the most popular man in Spain, Carlo would definitely be on the list, and ranking first would not be a difficult feat.

Maintaining his gentle smile, Carlo waved to the crowd while slowly entering the parliamentary building.

Part of the guard stayed near the carriages, while another part stood at posts around the parliamentary building.

At the entrance of the Parliament, the Spanish Prime Minister Prim had long awaited. After giving Carlo a standard Spanish noble salute, Prim guided Carlo into the interior of the parliamentary building.

In the hall on the ground floor of the Parliament, the Spanish nobles, parliament members, a few foreign guests, and some religious figures had already been waiting for some time.

The coronation for Carlo was performed by the Chief Archbishop of Spain, Archbishop Pedro of Toledo.

A bishop performing the coronation for a king is an age-old tradition in Europe, almost universally accepted before Napoleon’s time.

The rank of the bishop conducting the monarch’s coronation seemed to somehow determine the legitimacy of the crowned monarch.

Thus, whether for his legitimacy in the eyes of the populace or to reassure the complex religious forces in Spain, a sufficiently high-status archbishop was needed for Carlo’s coronation.

The best choice would have been Pope Pius IX. But the Pope had just been driven out of Rome by the Italian Government, his territory reduced from the vast Pope State to the small Vatican, making it impossible to crown Carlo from the same Savoy Family.

Though military means could be used to threaten Pope Pius IX to come to Madrid to crown him, it might backfire, causing dissatisfaction among Catholic Spaniards.

It’s better to have the Chief Archbishop of Spain perform the coronation, as Archbishop Toledo’s status in Spain is already sufficient.

“King Carlo. Are you willing to dedicate your life to Spain?” Archbishop Pedro solemnly inquired, holding the Spanish royal crown.

“I am willing.”

Archbishop Pedro nodded, solemnly saying: “I represent God, bestow upon you the crown of Spain. May you treat your citizens with kindness and your country with loyalty.”

After a lengthy and intricate coronation process, Archbishop Pedro of Toledo finally placed the crown representing the Spanish throne on Carlo’s head in front of everyone.

Carlo, adorned with the Spanish crown and holding the scepter symbolizing royal authority, swept his gaze over the Spanish nobles and parliament members, his heart filled with majestic ambition and youthful vigor.

“Bow to His Majesty the King.”

Prim, seeing the atmosphere was ripe, led the nobles in a salute to Carlo.

“His Majesty the King!”

In unison, Spain’s parliament members and nobles, including Archbishop Pedro of Toledo, bowed their heads to Spain’s new king.