Felipe VI turns 55: the challenges of 2023 and the coming of age of Princess Leonor

The king Philip VI He turns 55 this Monday, January 30. Casa Real’s agenda appears clear for this day. There are no official activities. Neither for him nor for his wife. Everything indicates that they celebrate this anniversary in a family and private way. The work week begins for both of them on Tuesday the 31st. Don Felipe, in Barcelona, ​​where he opens the Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) 2023 Fair and the IOT Solutions World Congress at the Fira Barcelona Gran Vía venue. Later, he presides over the delivery of offices of the LXXI promotion of the Judicial Career. Lady Letizia also travels. He is going to Alicante to attend the meeting of the Spanish Federation of Rare Diseases. The meeting will take place at the Sense Barreres day care center.

Don Felipe blows out 55 candles and adds eight years as head of State. This 2023 has started for him with the symbolic reunification of the Bourbon family in Athens. The funeral of Constantine II united the emeritus Kings, Felipe VI and Doña Letizia, the infantas Elena and Cristina and their children. A photo, that of the four kings together, which was avoided at all costs in the funeral ceremonies of the last king of the Hellenes. Another image, the official one that Casa Real shared on his Twitter, monopolized all the media covers: Don Felipe, between his mother and his wife. doña sofia He was holding his son by the right arm, while looking at his daughter-in-law. Behind them, she looked Don Juan Carlos, with cane and assisted by two assistants. The road, uphill, dusty and strewn with stones, symbolized a bumpy scene for the father of Felipe VI.

In addition, his mobility problems and his instability in the step were visible. That was the official narrative. The two kings, distanced and without contact. until we saw the kiss. An affectionate gesture from son to father (excited) at the time of the farewell to Athens. There are two stories in this relationship. In the public scene, there is distance. Juan Carlos I has been invisible since he expatriated himself to Abu Dhabi. Privately, they are father and son. There is affection, closeness, hugs and kisses. This double narrative is the biggest challenge: reconcile the public image with the private one and the impact that this reconciliation causes in the House.

Since Don Felipe ascended the throne, in 2014, he has implemented a policy of exemplarity and transparency in the House, unprecedented until then. Given the investigations to which the former head of state has been subjected, his legal proceedings, the noisy Corinna case, his regularizations with the Treasury and now the biopic of Bárbara Rey, where the actress confirms what was an open secret, there was no firewall large enough to stop the collateral damage that these fronts could cause to the institution. The emeritus, with just turned 85 and his visible mobility ailments, wants to visit Spain “frequently”, to be closer to home, to his family and his closest friends. He expressed it via statement. However, his progress, which is on its way to three years, is becoming chronic. And his visits are not taking place. And he continues to blow out candles in the Emirates.

19 years of marriage

The architecture of the reign of Felipe VI is based on transparency. In April 2022, he made public his assets of 2.5 million euros. A measure, historical and unprecedented, that responds to his desire to promote a new exemplary policy. The Head of State has to be a benchmark and as such he must act. It symbolizes the new times. In this task of modernizing Zarzuela, which started eight years ago, he has the unwavering support of Doña Letizia. The Queen, upon landing in the palace from another reality, favors this task of building bridges between the institution and the people. Adapting the House to changing times requires marketing. Rethinking the image that we Spaniards had and still have of the institution and drawing up a new communication campaign. In this strategy of brand image Letizia has been and is indispensable.

The Kings, who celebrate 19 years of marriage in May, form a cohesive and seamless work team. They are very close and in love. A gesture, a look, a minimum detail between them. A flash. Sometimes in an act, you can see that connection in the non-verbal communication.

Leonor, her ‘training’ towards coming of age

The monarch blows out 55 candles in the same year as his eldest daughter, Leonor, turns 18. On January 30, 2018, on the occasion of his 50th birthday, Don Felipe awarded the Princess of Asturias the Golden Fleece. It is the highest distinction of the Crown. It was a solemn ceremony, in the Royal Palace, which for her heiress was her first official act. This 2023 she will reach her majority. Throughout this five years, her parents have led her by the hand. They have been her guides on this path to adulthood and have given her prominence. To Leonor and her sister. This is how they let us know with the Christmas greetings of this last year. Only they appeared in the portrait. Since the age of 16, the princess has presided over solo events. Is his training for when you have your own agenda.

On October 31 of this year, the heiress will be of legal age and, with the Cortes constituted, will swear the Constitution. It will be the most anticipated ceremony of the year on the institutional agenda.