The Infanta Pilar de Borbón, sister of King Juan Carlos, has died in Madrid, aged 83 years, sources from the Ruber International medical centre have confirmed, to which she was admitted on 5 January.

Her sister, Infanta Margarita, and her children were all at the hospital when she passed away. Queen Sofia also visited her this Wednesday morning and her brother, King Juan Carlos, was with her on Tuesday night.

Doña Pilar suffered from colon cancer and the last time she was seen in public was in November, at a solidarity initiative in which she was very involved.

The elder sister of King Juan Carlos was born in Cannes (France) on July 30, 1936, with the royal family in exile at the time, at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War. She held the title of Duchess of Badajoz.

She renounced her rights of succession to the throne by marrying a commoner, Luis Gomez-Acebo, in 1967, with whom he had five children.