After nearly 40 years as king, Spain's Juan Carlos I plans to step down from the throne, according to Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy who made the announcement on Monday in a televised nationwide broadcast.

Crown Prince Felipe, 46, is expected to succeed his father and take over the throne.

Like Us on Facebook

Although the Prime Minister had not given a reason as to why the King intends to abdicate, a tweet from the Royal Palace announced that King Juan Carlos plans to address the nation later on Monday on this issue.

No specific date was mentioned on when the Crown Prince will take up the crown since a decree would have to be prepared to allow for the King's abdication.

The 76 year old king is renowned for bringing democracy to Spain after the dictatorial rule of Francisco Franco in 1975. The king is also noted for his stand against a military coup in 1981 when he announced that the sovereign would have zero tolerance toward any group that attempted to disrupt the country's democracy by force.

His popularity among Spanish citizens took a hit when a controversial incident occurred in 2012. While the country was going through a financial crisis, the king and his wife, Queen Sofia, was discovered to have gone on an elephant hunting trip when he broke a hip and had to be flown to a hospital for medical treatment.

Aside from facing the public's fury, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Spain removed him as its honorary president when it decided that his hunting expedition was not in-line with the WWF's goal of protecting species.

The king had sincerely apologized for his misjudgment.

Additionally, the king's reputation was also diminished from recent allegations of suspected embezzling and tax evasion cases filed against his son-in-law, Inaki Urgangarin.

Crown Prince Felipe studied law in the Autonomous University of Madrid and took a number of courses on economics. He earned his Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service.

He is married to Letizia, Princess of Austrias, who previously worked as a journalist with CNN. They have two daughters, Leonor, 8, and Sofia, 7.

Tagscrown prince felipe, prince felipe, World News, queen sofia, queen letizia, Inaki Urgangarin, princess cristina, King Juan Carlos I