Article 1.3. of the Spanish Constitution of 1.978 lays down that "the political form of the Spanish State is that of a Parliamentary Monarchy".

Title II of Constitution deals with The Crown in its articles 56 to 65:

Art. 56

  1. The King is the Head of State, the symbol of its unity and permanence. He arbitrates and moderates the regular working of the institutions, assumes the highest representation of the Spanish State in international relation, especially with those nations belonging to the same historic community, and performs the functions expressly conferred on him by the Constitution and the law.
  2. His title is King of Spain, and hemay use the other titles appertaining to the Crown.
  3. The person of the King is inviolable and shall not be held accountable. His acts shall always be countersigned in the manner established in Article 64. Without such countersignature they shall not be valid, except as provided under Article 65,2.

Art. 57

  1. The Crown of Spain shall inherited by the successors of H.M. Juan Carlos I de Borbon, the legitimate heir of the historic dynasty. Succession to the throne shall follow the regular order of primogeniture and representation, in the following order of precedence: the earlier shall precede the more distant; within the same degree, the male shall precede the female; and for the same sex, the older shall precede the younger.
  2. The Crown Prince, from the time of his birth or the event conferring this position upon him, shall hold the title of Prince of Asturias and the other titles traditionally held by the heir to the Crown of Spain.
  3. Should all the lines designated by law become extinct, the Cortes Generales shall provide for the succession to the Crown in the manner most suited to the interests of Spain.
  4. Those persons with a right of succession to the Throne who marry against the express prohibition of the King and the Cortes Generales, shall be excluded from succession to the Crown, as shall their descendants.
  5. Abdications and renunciations and any doubt concerning a fact or the law that may arise in connection with the succession to the Crown shall be resolved by an organic law.

Art. 58

  1. The Queen Consort, or the Queen's Consort, may not assume any constitutional functions, except in accordance with the provisions for the Regency.

Art. 59

  1. In the event of the King being under age, the father or mother of the King or, in default thereof, the relative of legal age who is nearest in succession to the Crown, according to the order established in the Constitution, shall immediately assume the office of Regent, which he shall exercise during the King's minority.
  2. If the King becomes incapacitated for the exercise of his authority, and this incapacity is recognized by the Cortes Generales, the Crown Prince shall immediately assume the powers of the Regency, if he is of age. If he is not, the procedure outlined in the foregoing clause shall be followed until the coming of age of the Crown Prince.
  3. If there is no person entitled to assume the Regency, the latter shall consist of one, three or five persons.
  4. In order to exercise the Regency, it is necessary to be Spanish and legally of age.
  5. The Regency shall be exercised by constitutional mandate, and always on behalf of the King.

Art. 60

  1. The guardian of the King during his minority shall be the person designated in the will of the late King, provided that he is of age and Spanish by birth. If a guardian has not been designated, the father or mother shall be guardian, as long as he or she remains a widower or widow, as the case may be. In default thereof, the guardian shall be appointed by the Cortes Generales, but the offices of Regent and Guardian may not be held by the same person, except by the father, mother or direct ascendants of the King.
  2. Exercise of the guardianship is also incompatible with the holding of any political or representative office.

Art. 61

  1. The King, on being proclaimed before the Cortes Generales, shall take oath to discharge his duties faithfully, to abide by the Constitution and the law and ensure that they are abided by, and to respect the rights of citizens and the Autonomous Communities.
  2. The Crown Prince, on coming of age, and the Regent or Regents, on assuming office, shall take the same oath, as well as that of loyalty to the King.

Art. 62

It is incumbent upon the King:

  1. to sanction and promulgate the laws;
  2. to summon and dissolve the Cortes Generales and to call elections under the terms provided in the Constitution;
  3. to call a referendum in the circumstances provided for in the Constitution;
  4. to propose a candidate for President of the Government and, as the case may be, appoint him or remove him from office, as provided in the Constitution;
  5. to appoint and dismiss members of the Government on the proposal of its President;
  6. to issue the decrees agreed upon by the Council of Ministers, to confer civil and military employments and award honours and distinctions in conformity with the law;
  7. to keep himself informed regarding affairs of State and, for this purpose, to preside over the meetings of the Council of Ministers whenever he deems opportune, at the request of the President of the Government;
  8. to exercise supreme command of the Armed Forces;
  9. to exercise the right to grant pardons in accordance with the law, which may not authorize general pardons;
  10. to exercise the High Patronage of the Royal Academies.

Art. 63

  1. The King accredits ambassadors and other diplomatic representatives. Foreign representatives in Spain are accredited to him.
  2. It is incumbent on the King to express the State's assent to the entering into of international commitments through treaties, in conformity with the Constitution and the law.
  3. It is incumbent on the King, following authorization by the Cortes Generales, to declare war and to make peace.

Art. 64

  1. The King's acts shall be countersigned by the President of the Government and, where appropriate, by the competent ministers. The nomination and appointment of the President of the Government and the dissolution provided under Article 99, shall be countersigned by the President of Congress.
  2. Those countersigning the King's acts shall be liable for them.

Art. 65

  1. The King receives an over-all amount from the State Budget for the upkeep of his Family and Household and distributes it unrestrictedly.
  2. The King freely appoints and dismisses the civil and military members of his Household.

Royal Decree 1368/1987, dated 6 th November, regulating titles, forms of address and honours pertaining to the Royal Family and to the Regents

Chapter One: Of the Royal Family

Article 1

  1. The holder of the Crown shall be termed The King or The Queen of Spain and He or She may use the other titles pertaining to the Crown, as well as the other peerages belonging to the Royal Family. He or She shall be addressed as His or Her Majesty.
  2. The King of Spain's wife, whilst She remains His spouse or stays a widow, shall be termed The Queen and be addressed as Her Majesty, being entitled to the honours pertaining to Her Dignity, pursuant to the law of the Realm.
  3. The husband of The Queen of Spain, whilst he remains so or stays a widower, shall be entitled to the Dignity of Prince. He shall be addressed as Your Royal Highness and be entitled to the honours pertaining to his Dignity, pursuant to the law of the Realm.

Article 2

The heir to the Crown shall, as from his or her birth or as from the moment the fact giving rise to such entitlement arises, possess the Dignity of The Prince or The Princess of the Asturias, as well as the remaining titles traditionally attached to the Successor to the Crown and be entitled to the honours pertaining to him or her by virtue thereof. He or she shall be addressed as Your Royal Highness. The same Dignity and form of address shall correspond to his or her spouse, with the honours deriving therefrom, pursuant to the laws of the Realm.

Article 3

  1. The King's sons and daughters not possessing the Dignity of Prince or Princess of the Asturias, as well as the children of the latter Prince or Princess, shall be Infantes or Infantas of Spain, respectively, and shall be addressed as Your Royal Highness. Their spouses, whilst they continue being so or stay a widower or widow, shall be entitled to the form of address and honours The King, as a gracious decision, may grant them, pursuant to the powers vested upon Him by paragraph f) of Article 62 of the Constitution.
  2. Likewise, The King may grant the dignity of Infante or Infanta and the form of address of Your Royal Highness to those persons he shall deem fit of such a grace given the exceptional circumstances that concur.
  3. Except as provided in the present Article and the preceding one hereof, and save as provided in Article 5 hereof for members of the Regency, no person whatsoever may:
    1. Use the title of Prince or Princess of the Asturias or employ any other title whatsoever traditionally attached to the Successor to the Crown of Spain;
    2. Titularse Infante de España.
    3. Receive the forms of address and honours pertaining to the Dignities mentioned in paragraphs a) and b) above.

Article 4

The children of an Infante or Infanta of Spain shall have the consideration of Spanish Grandees, but shall not be entitled by virtue thereof to a special form of address other than that of Your Excellency.

Chapter Two: Of the Regency

Article 5

The persons exercising the Regency shall be addressed as Your Highness with the same honours as those laid down for The Prince of the Asturias, unless entitled to honours of a higher rank.

Chapter Three: Of the peerages pertaining to the Royal Family

Article 6

The use of peerages, pertaining to the Royal Family, may only be authorised by the Holder of the Crown to members of His or Her Family. The conferment of use of the title shall be considered a grace of a personal nature and for life.

Transitory Provisions

First

  1. Juan of Bourbon and Battemberg, father of His Majesty The King, Juan Carlos I of Bourbon, shall continue using for life the title of Count of Barcelona, shall be addressed as Your Royal Highness and be entitled to honours analogous to those pertaining to The Prince of the Asturias.
  2. The same title and form of address shall correspond to María de las Mercedes of Bourbon and Orleans, the mother His Majesty The King, Juan Carlos I of Bourbon.

Second

The sisters of His Majesty The King, Juan Carlos I of Bourbon, shall be Infantas of Spain and shall preserve the right to the form of address of Your Royal Highness for life, but neither their husbands nor their children shall be so entitled.

Third

Those members of the family of His Majesty The King, Juan Carlos I of Bourbon, who currently have been recognised the use of a peerage pertaining to the Royal Family and to the form of address of Your Royal Highness may conserve them for life, but neither their spouses nor their children shall be so entitled.

Repeal provision

All legal provisions whatsoever of equal or lesser rank, contrary to the provisions contained in the present Royal Decree, are hereby repealed.

Royal Decree 2917/1981, of 27 November, on the Civil Registry of the Royal Family

The restoration and regulation of the registry of the civil status of the Spanish Royal Family requires the harmonization of the former special provisions and Constitutional precepts regarding the Crown, as well as the current terminology and procedures of legislation in force concerning the general civil registry, pursuant to the authorization contained in Article 2 of Decree-Law 17/1975, of 20 November.

By virtue thereof, in accordance with the Council of State, upon proposal by the Minister of Justice and following deliberation by the Cabinet at its meeting of 27 November 1981, I hereby decree:

Article 1

All births, marriages and deaths shall be recorded in the Civil Registry of the Royal Family, as well as any other recordable fact or event, pursuant to legislation on civil registries, affecting The King of Spain, his august consort, his first-degree ancestors, his descendants, and the Crown Prince.

Article 2

This Registry shall be the responsibility of the Minister of Justice, assisted by the Director-General for Registries and Notaries acting as secretary.

The functions attributed by general legislation to the civil registry authorities shall be entrusted, as regards that of the Royal Family, exclusively to the Minister of Justice.

Article 3

The Registry shall take the form of a single special book, produced for that purpose and with all its pages blank.

Each entry shall be recorded successively, with no distinction of sections. The book shall be indexed by order of entries.

Article 4

Certifications may only be issued upon request of The King or Regent, of the members of the Royal Family with a legitimate interest, of the President of the Government, or of the Speaker of the Congress of Deputies. They shall be issued ex officio and on special paper.

Article 5

The circumstances of the entries, the documentary evidence required in order to effect the latter and, in general, any other matter not envisaged in the above Articles, shall be governed by the general legislation on civil registries.

ADDITIONAL PROVISION ONE

The Minister of Justice shall immediately open the Civil Registry Book of the Royal Family, which shall begin with the record of the birth of His Majesty The King.

This entry shall be recorded by virtue of a transfer, through literal certification issued ex officio, of the currently existing record in the central civil registry. When the person responsible for the latter is notified by the Ministry of Justice that the transfer has been effected, he/she shall cancel the record existing in said registry, pursuant to the formal rules set forth in Article 164 of the Civil Registry Regulations.

This same system shall be used for entries recorded in the Civil Registry of the Royal Family and which have previously been entered in any Spanish civil registry.

ADDITIONAL PROVISION TWO

Royal Decrees dated 22 January 1873, 19 August 1880, 28 January 1901, and 29 May 1922 are hereby repealed.

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