Royal accident

Source: Sebastian Pociecha on Unsplash 

Spanish King Juan Carlos' grandson *shoots himself in foot

Felipe Juan Froilan, 13, was with his father, Jaime de Marichalar, when the accident happened on Monday afternoon at a family country house in the province of Soria in northern Spain.

He was wounded in his right foot after misfiring a small 36-calibre shotgun, the palace said, adding that he was taken to hospital in Soria city for treatment.

He was later transferred to a private clinic just outside Madrid for “surgical cleansing” of his wound. His mother, the Infanta Elena, who is the eldest daughter of the King and divorced from Felipe’s father spent the night at his bedside.

Upon leaving the hospital with Queen Sofia, Felipe’s grandmother, the Infanta said: “Kids do give you shocks.”

She added that her son was calm and was playing with his mobile phone when she left him.

“He’ll be in hospital for as long as the doctors say, but I think he’ll make a quick recovery.”

Later the Royal Household said he was expected to remain in hospital for several days.

The incident was of particular embarrassment to the royal family, as under Spanish law, children under 14 are not allowed to use firearms. The Spanish national news agency EFE suggested the boy’s father could face a fine of up to 3,000 euros (£2,490), for allowing a minor accuess to a firearm and allowing him to handle a shotgun without a licence. But it added the paramilitary Civil Guard, which handles firearms cases, had not yet opened an investigation.

The timing of the accident is also a painful reminder for the Spanish Monarch, who 56 years ago, was involved in a shooting accident in which his younger brother Alfonso, 14, was killed.

The shooting on March 29, 1956, in a bedroom at the Spanish Royal Family’s home in exile at Estoril in neighbouring Portugal, received little publicity under the Franco dictatorship. But then 18-year-old Juan Carlos was reported to have been devastated and to have told family and friends that he “felt responsible”.

However, the traumatic experience did not put off the future king from hunting, a love he shared with Franco after the old dictator brought the young prince back to Spain and groomed him to become his successor. Both men frequently shot together across Spain.

Source: Daily Telegraph 

"Spanish King Juan Carlos' grandson shoots himself in foot"

to shoot yourself in the foot - OK Fraulein did it literally but this is an idiom in English which doesn't involve the use of a gun. You shoot yourself in the foot when you unintentionally say or do something which causes you trouble or harms your own interests.

• She shot herself in the foot when she was overheard criticizing her colleagues. She won't get a promotion now. 
• The government seems to have shot itself in the foot over the issue. It will be very difficult to regain the trust of the public now.

Vocabulary:

to wound -

#WOTD wound (n,v) - an injury, usually involving the cutting or tearing of skin and often caused by a weapon
e.g. He died from multiple stab wounds to the neck.
e.g. Ten soldiers were wounded in the explosion.#confusing injury v wound:https://t.co/RJeo1TgJAw pic.twitter.com/2nBld2g3b7

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) September 19, 2019

to misfire -

to add -

the eldest -

upon -

to handle -

timing -

The kinds of birds coming through your neighborhood are probably changing, and so is the timing of their migrations. https://t.co/j1tSxuvFyf

— VOA Learning English (@VOALearnEnglish) May 13, 2019

a reminder -

neighbouring (adj) -

a dictatorship -

to put off -

#Madrid #PV PUT (sb) OFF (sb/sth) - make someone dislike sth or sb, or to discourage sb from doing sth
e.g. You have to work shifts and that PUTS A LOT OF PEOPLE OFF applyING for the job.
e.g. His meanness PUT ME RIGHT OFF HIM.
e.g. I hope I haven't PUT YOU OFF seeING the film. https://t.co/1a1ImWmdWj pic.twitter.com/IkgRIbE5rM

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) February 10, 2021

to groom sb (to do sth) -