First Royal Infected by Coronavirus REVEALED; Thought 'It Was Just a Flu'
Despite all the cautionary measures implemented around the globe to fight the coronavirus pandemic, one member of the royal family caught the virus and thought it was just simple flu.
On Thursday, the ancestral archduke of Austria, Karl von Habsburg, had himself tested positive for the coronavirus after realizing that he just had a contact with an infected person.
As soon as he acquired the test results, the 59-year-old politician headed to House of Habsburg-Lorraine and immediately called oe24, a news network in Austria, to reveal his current health status and talk about his experience.
According to the Archduke of Austria, he experienced flu-like symptoms more than a week before he volunteered to be tested.
"It's annoying, but I'm fine. It's not the Black Plague," the former member of the European Union's parliament shared on air. "I thought it was the usual flu. When a friend called me that he had a positive test at a congress in Switzerland, I was also tested."
It is worth noting that he is a member of the clan that led the country when a previous pandemic, the Black Plague, tortured the country in the 17th century and led to a legendary crisis.
Despite the fears, Karl of Austria calmed himself and expressed his gratitude towards the Austrian authorities who are working hard to lessen the spread of the coronavirus. In the end, he warned the citizens about how panic can make everything worse.
Not The First Royal to Be Tested
Though he remains the only royal as of this writing who has been confirmed positive of the coronavirus, the royal families around the world also underwent the same tests.
Meanwhile, others immediately took the necessary steps to avoid contracting the virus.
Recently, King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain have been tested negative. They decided to check their status as part of the preventive measure after exposing themselves with a government minister, Minister of Equality Irene Montero, who later became ill and caught the disease.
"Based on the recent public activities of HM the Queen and the information transmitted by the Government, as a preventive measure indicated by the health authorities, their Majesties have carried out the corresponding COVID detection test this morning," their statement read.
King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway are now on self-quarantined after their royal trip to Jordan, though they were in good health when they came back.
Meanwhile, Great Britain's Queen Elizabeth II plans to travel to Windsor Castle on Thursday. The scheduled drive is a week earlier than planned according to a statement released by Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.
Despite taking cautionary steps, Her Majesty will still meet with Prime Minister Boris Johnson and has two other planned "audiences" at the Palace, as planned before her departure.
"In consultation with the Medical Household and Government, a number of public events with large numbers of people due to have been attended by The Queen, and other Members of the Royal Family, in the coming months will be cancelled or postponed," the Palace said.
