All About Royal Families

Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María was born on 5 January 1938 to Infante Juan, Count of  Barcelona, and Princess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies in their family home in Rome, where his grandfather King Alfonso XIII of Spain and other members of the Spanish royal family lived in exile following the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic in 1931.  Baptism He was baptized as Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias by Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli, the future Pope Pius XII. Family He has two sisters: Infanta Pilar, Duchess of Badajoz (1936–2020); and Infanta Margarita, Duchess of Soria (born 1939). He also had a younger brother, Alfonso. Childhood His early life was dictated largely by the political concerns of his father and General Franco. He moved to Spain in 1948 to be educated there after his father persuaded Franco to allow it. The tragic death of his younger brother On the evening of Holy Thursday, 29 March 1956, Juan Carlos's younger br...

One of the most special churches I've ever seen is without no doubt the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It really is a very big building in a quirky but beautiful style created by Antoni Gaudí. The Sagrada Familia also is listed at the UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its Neo Gothic Modernist style and its beautiful history. Sagrada Familia in Barcelona 2016 Some history Originally the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia was the inspiration of a bookseller, called Josep Maria Bocabella. He was the founder of the Assoición Espiritual de Devotos de San José. In 1872, Bocabella visited the Vatican. When returning from Italy, he had the intention of building a church inspired by the Basilica at Loreto. On 19 March 1882, the building work started by architect Francisco de Paula del Villar. He had the plan for a Gothic Revival church of a standard form. On 18 March 1883, Francisco de Paula del Villar resigned and Antoni Gaudi assumed responsibil...

The Palau Nacional (the Catalan word for National) really is surprising and very beautiful. Palau Nacional - Barcelona - Spain It has a ground surface of 32,000 square meter and the building has a rectangular floor plan flanked by two sides and one rear square section with a dome in the middle. Some building history On 18 July 1924, the engineer Marià Rubió i Bellver, launched a competition of projects. The participation was open to all Spanish architects who could present an individual project or one together with the proposal of a construction company. In January 1925, there were nine successful projects. Finally the winning proposal was that of Eugenio Cendoya and Enric Catà. The Palau Nacional has an amazing Spanish Renaissance architecture with an air of academic classicism. Palau Nacional - own picture The building has two floors, the dome looks like that of the St. Paul's in London or that of the St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Some...