Spanish Monarchy The Spanish Empire was governed by a monarchy headed by a king.

The Spanish monarchy differed from other European monarchies in two important respects. First, the notion of the "Spanish monarchy" and the territories composing the empire shifted depending on the ruler on the throne. Philip V was the first Bourbon king to rule Spain, and his reign marked the beginning of a new age in Spanish history. Ties with France were of course strengthened, and the court acquired a distinctly European air, characterized by the ideas of the Enlightenment. French influence, however, would only last about a hundred years, and in 1789 Spain closed the border, fearing that the ideals of the French Revolution could spread and seal the fate of her own Bourbon monarchy. Ten years later Napoleon overthrew the last republican government in France in order to establish his own rule, where the map of Europe changed again. In 1808 Napoleon invaded Spain, forcing both King Charles IV and his son Ferdinand VII to give up in favor of Napoleon's brother, Joseph Bonaparte. Refusing to accept Bonaparte by the Spanish resistance led to the Peninsular War. As war was being waged, a national assembly was held in Cadiz to declare a constitution in 1812 that would mark the end of absolute rule and the establishment of a parliamentary government for the very first time in Spanish history. When the war came to an end and Napoleon was finally defeated in 1814, Ferdinand VII was restored to the throne, yet his first decision was to abolish the liberal constitution. As a result of his reactionary proposals, Spain would be interact again in a highly conflicting period with civil wars. Ferdinand had set aside the Salicylic law that excluded females from dynastic succession, in favor of his daughter Isabella. Upon Ferdinand's death, his wife Mara Cristina

became Queen regent on behalf of Isabella, who would be crowned Queen of Spain in 1833. Isabella II was welcomed by the liberals, while Ferdinand's brother Don Carlos received the support of the conservatives. The ensuing Carlist Wars, which involved other European forces such as British, French and Portuguese troops, would span almost fifty years, extending beyond Isabella's deposition in 1868. Isabella's son Alfonso XII was proclaimed king in 1874 and two years later the wars would be declared officially over, despite brief periods of renewed insurgency in the early 20th century. After an interval of forty-three years, in 1975 the Bourbon monarchy was restored in Spain in the figure of King Juan Carlos I and his heir, Prince Philip. Two days after the death of General Francisco Franco, Juan Carlos was designated king according to the law of succession promulgated by Franco. The Spanish throne had been vacant for 38 years in 1969 when Franco named Juan Carlos as the next head of state. The Spanish Constitution of 1978, voted in referendum, acknowledges him expressly as King of Spain. Polls from 2000 show that he is widely approved of by Spaniards. According to the Spanish Constitution, the monarch is also instrumental in promoting Spain relations, the "nations of its historical community".In this capacity, the King of Spain serves as the president of the Spain States Organization, representing over 700,000,000 people in 24 member nations worldwide. In 2008 he was considered the most popular leader in all Spain.