One of the most fascinating yet largely forgotten queens of the 20th century has been given the TV movie treatment. Queen Victoria Eugenia of Spain, great grandmother of King Felipe, will have her story brought to life in a drama series. However, it’s taken two years for Spain’s national broadcaster, RTVE, to put on the show which it commissioned and that’s led to controversy.
The serialisation of Queen Victoria Eugenia’s story is called Ena, after the nickname that was used by her family and friends throughout her life. It focuses on her dramatic time as queen as well as her turbulent private life and there’s plenty to cover.
The tumultuous life of a tragic queen
Ena was the youngest granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Her mother was Princess Beatrice, Victoria and Albert’s youngest daughter, who became constant companion to the queen. Ena was brought up in a very sheltered environment, keeping her grandmother company. She lost her father at an early age and had little chance to know the outside world. And that would prove to be instrumental in her story.
In 1906, she married King Alfonso XIII of Spain after a whirlwind romance. He had been born after his father’s death and was king from the moment he arrived. This meant Alfonso was kept cosseted from the world. When he and Ena met, they fell instantly in love. But both were also naive and desperate for excitement and the romance of their relationship pushed them into a sudden marriage. Ena’s uncle was by then King Edward VII and he had to deal with the political repercussions as his niece became a Catholic when that faith was barred from ascending the throne.
The end for a queen and exile begins
Ena’s wedding day, in May 1906, saw her and her new husband attacked by an anarchist who threw a bomb at their carriage, killing several people. They survived but the new Queen of Spain had to walk into her own wedding reception in a dress spattered with blood.
The union quickly unravelled with Alfonso blaming Ena for two of their sons being born with haemophilia. The Spanish king also had affairs and Ena was sometimes isolated in her new home. They were forced into exile in 1931. In 1968, while living in Switzerland, Ena agreed to return to Spain to be godmother to her great grandson who now reigns as King Felipe VI.
It’s easy to see why such a powerful royal story has become a TV series but the creator, Javier Olivares, isn’t happy with the way his show has been treated. The series was completed two years ago but RTVE has only just announced it will be shown imminently in Spain.
In the meantime, it’s been aired recently in Portugal and in Finland. Javier Olivares said ”It is going to premiere in Ganymede before in Spain,”
The show stars Kimberley Tell as Queen Ena and Joan Amargos as King Alfonso and is partly based on a novel about the queen by Pilar Eyre.
