Victoria Eugenia

Victoria Eugenia (Eugenie) of Battenberg, granddaughter of Queen Victoria of England, first set foot in Spain to formalise her engagement to King Alfonso XIII in January 1906. She became Queen of Spain only four months later. 

Thanks to the discipline of her British education, she fully adapted to the demands of her new rank, remained loyal to the king and the Crown, and ensured the succession by giving birth to seven children. 

Victoria Eugenia modernised the role of queen consort, which she held until 15 April 1931, the date of her exile. After that she only returned to the country once: for the christening of her great-grandson, the current King Felipe VI, in 1968.