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In 1975, the death of General Francisco Franco was announced in Spain, bringing to an end 36 years of dictatorship.

Franco had already chosen his successor: Prince Juan Carlos, grandson of the last monarch, Alphonso XIII. This was the man who - Franco thought - would continue his authoritarian, anti-democratic and deeply conservative regime.

But Juan Carlos defied expectations. In the years that followed, he would lead Spain from a dictatorship to a democracy until, in 1977, the country held its first free elections for 41 years.

Jane Wilkinson tells the story using excerpts from the 1981 ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ and TVE documentary, Juan Carlos: King of Spain. This episode was made in collaboration with ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Archives.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.

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(Photo: King Juan Carlos on his proclamation day as king. Credit: Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma via Getty Images)

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