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Spain's Crown Princess Letizia gave birth Monday to her first child, a
girl who becomes second in line to the throne after her father Crown
Prince Felipe.
With Felipe by his wife's side, Leonor was
delivered through a Caesarean
section
at Madrid's Ruber International Clinic, three weeks
before the scheduled due date. Both mother and child were doing fine, said
a visibly moved and happy Felipe.
"This is the most beautiful thing that can happen in someone's life,"
Felipe told reporters. "Both Princess Letizia and myself are absolutely
happy and radiant with the birth of our daughter."
The little princess weighed 7 3/4 pounds, Dr. Luis Ignacio Recasens
said.
King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia expressed "great happiness" at the
birth of their seventh grandchild.
Princess Leonor is second in line to the throne after Prince Felipe,
who is the third child and only son of King Juan Carlos. But her place in
the royal succession could drop if Felipe and Letizia have a son.
The Spanish constitution now allows a female heir to the throne only if
she has no brothers. Felipe's older sisters, Princesses Elena and
Cristina, are below him in the line of succession.
However, the Socialist government is looking into changing the
constitution to give female royals the same right as males to accede to
the throne, in which case Leonor could become queen one day.
Felipe said Leonor will be educated for that possibility.
Letizia Ortiz, 33, and Felipe, 37, were married in May 2004. She is one
of the country's best-known television personalities, a divorcee without
royal or aristocratic links.
Spain is a
constitutional monarchy in which the royals have only ceremonial
functions.
(Agencies) |
西班牙王妃萊蒂齊亞本周一順利產下一名女嬰，這是她的第一個孩子。這位小公主是王位的第二繼承人，排在她的父親費利佩王儲之后。
王妃萊蒂齊亞在馬德里北部的魯伯爾國際醫院經過剖腹產生下了小公主萊昂諾爾，她的丈夫費利佩王儲一直陪在她身邊。雖然比預產期提前了三個星期，母女倆的身體狀況都很好，費利佩王儲說。他顯然既興奮又高興。
“這是人一生中最美好的事情，萊蒂齊亞和我都非常高興得看到女兒降臨人間。”費利佩王儲對記者們說。
小公主重7.75磅，路易斯·伊格納蕭·雷卡森斯說。
西班牙卡洛斯國王和索菲婭皇后對孫輩中排行第七的小公主的出生表示非常高興。
小公主萊昂諾爾排父親費利佩王儲之后，是王位的第二繼承人。費利佩王儲是卡洛斯國王的第三個孩子，也是唯一的兒子。但是如果萊蒂齊亞和費利佩王儲再生一個兒子的話，萊昂諾爾的王位繼承權就會排在他之后。
依照西班牙憲法，西班牙的女性王室后裔也可以繼承王位，但前提是她沒有兄弟。費利佩王儲的姐姐埃倫娜公主和克里斯蒂娜公主在王位繼承權上都排在費利佩之后。
然而，西班牙首相薩帕特羅領導的社會黨正打算修改這一歧視女性的法律，讓男女享有平等的王位繼承權，這樣萊昂諾爾有望成為西班牙女王。
費利佩王儲說萊昂諾爾會接受這方面的教育，以便有朝一日成為西班牙女王。
現年33歲的萊蒂齊亞·奧爾蒂斯和37歲的費利佩王儲2004年5月結婚。她是西班牙家喻戶曉的電視人物，她曾經離過婚，而且沒有任何皇室、貴族背景。
西班牙是一個君主立憲制國家，皇室只有禮節上的功能。
(中國日報網站薛曉文編譯) |
Updated: 2005-11-02 08:48
