In 1975, the death of General Francisco Franco was announced in Spain, bringing to an end 36 years of dictatorship.

Franco had already chosen his successor: Prince Juan Carlos, grandson of the last monarch, Alphonso XIII. This was the man who - Franco thought - would continue his authoritarian, anti-democratic and deeply conservative regime.

But Juan Carlos defied expectations. In the years that followed, he would lead Spain from a dictatorship to a democracy until, in 1977, the country held its first free elections for 41 years.

Jane Wilkinson tells the story using excerpts from the 1981 BBC and TVE documentary, Juan Carlos: King of Spain. This episode was made in collaboration with BBC Archives.

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(Photo: King Juan Carlos on his proclamation day as king. Credit: Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma via Getty Images)

The Spanish king reclaims his throne

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