Infante Gonzalo of Spain

Who was Infante Gonzalo of Spain?

Infante Gonzalo of Spain was the fourth surviving son and youngest child of King Alfonso XIII of Spain and his wife Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg.

Gonzalo was born in Madrid. He was baptized with the names Gonzalo Manuel María Bernardo Narciso Alfonso Mauricio. He received his final name in honor of his uncle, Prince Maurice of Battenberg, who was killed in World War I shortly before Gonzalo's baptism. The infante was educated privately. Because he inherited hemophilia from his mother's family, he suffered some ill health, although he was an active sportsman. He held the rank of a private in the Engineering Corps of the Spanish Army. In 1927 he was made the 1,166th Knight of the Spanish branch of the Order of the Golden Fleece.

In May 1924, nine-year-old Gonzalo inaugurated the Estadio Chamartín, the new football stadium for Real Madrid C.F., kicking the ball of honour and announcing "¡Hala Madrid!"

On 14 April 1931 Gonzalo accompanied his mother into exile. He studied Engineering at the Catholic University of Leuven, instead of at the University of Madrid as originally planned for him.