Princess Maria Teresa of Spain becomes first royal to die from COVID-19

A man walks outside the San Carlos Clinic Hospital in Madrid, on March 29, 2020, during a national lockdown to fight the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. (Photo: AFP)

Washington DC: Spanish Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Parma has become the first royal to pass away due to coronavirus complications.

According to Fox News, the 86-year-old was a cousin of Spain's King Felipe VI. Her brother Prince Sixto Enrique de Borbon, the Duke of Aranjuez, announced on Facebook that she died after contracting COVID-19. The post reads, "On this afternoon... our sister Maria Teresa de Borbon Parma and Borbon Busset, a victim of the coronavirus COVID-19, died in Paris at the age of eighty-six."

Princess Teresa's death comes weeks after King Felipe VI of Spain tested negative for the virus.

According to People magazine, Born on July 28, 1933, Princess Maria Teresa studied in France and became a professor at Paris' Sorbonne as well as a professor of Sociology at Madrid's Complutense University.

She was known for her outspoken views and activist work, which led to her nickname the "Red Princess."

A funeral service for the princess was held on Friday in Madrid.

Meanwhile, Prince Charles became the first British royal to be tested positive for the coronavirus, earlier this week. The Clarence House confirmed the same to Fox News in a statement issued on Wednesday morning that reads, "The Prince of Wales has tested positive for Coronavirus. He has been displaying mild symptoms but otherwise remains in good health and has been working from home throughout the last few days as usual."

A Buckingham Palace spokesperson told Fox News, that Prince Charles' mother, Queen Elizabeth II, remains in a healthy condition despite her son testing positive.

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