Leonor, Princess of Asturias

Leonor, Princess of Asturias[lower-alpha 1][2] (Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz; born 31 October 2005) is the heir presumptive to the throne of Spain as the elder daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia.

For the medieval heir presumptive, see Eleanor, Princess of Asturias.

Leonor
Princess of Asturias (more)
Leonor in June 2019
Born (2005-10-31) 31 October 2005
Ruber International Hospital, Madrid, Spain
Full name
Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz[1]
HouseBourbon
FatherFelipe VI of Spain
MotherLetizia Ortiz Rocasolano
ReligionRoman Catholicism
Signature

In addition to the official title of Princess of Asturias, she bears the historical titles of Princess of Girona, Princess of Viana, Duchess of Montblanc, Countess of Cervera and Lady of Balaguer. If Leonor ascends to the throne, she will be Spain's first queen regnant since Isabella II, who reigned from 1833 to 1868.

Birth

Leonor was born to Felipe and Letizia, then Prince and Princess of Asturias, on 31 October 2005 at 01:46, during the reign of her paternal grandfather, Juan Carlos I, in the Ruber International Hospital in Madrid by means of a caesarean section necessitated by non-progression of labour.[3] As the daughter of the heir apparent, she was an infanta and the second in the line of succession to the Spanish throne.[4] Her birth was announced by the royal family to the press via SMS.[5]

Her umbilical cord was clipped and sent for storage to the Cord Blood Registry based in Arizona.[6] Leonor left the Ruber International Hospital with her parents on 7 November 2005.[7][8] She was baptised in the Zarzuela Palace by the Cardinal Archbishop of Madrid, Antonio Rouco Varela, on 14 January 2006.[9] Like her father, Leonor was christened in a romanesque baptismal font used to christen Spanish princes since the 17th century and originally used by Saint Dominic with water from the Jordan River.[10]

Her godparents were her paternal grandparents, King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia.[11] She received the name of Leonor de Todos los Santos.[12]

Education and activities

Leonor's education began at the daycare for the children of the Spanish Royal Guard. She began her first year of primary school on 15 September 2008 at the Santa María de los Rosales School in Aravaca, just outside Madrid.[13] Her father is an alumnus of the private school and her younger sister, Sofía, is also enrolled there. Leonor is fluent in both Spanish and English (the latter learnt from her British nanny and also from her grandmother, Queen Sofía)[14] and has studied Mandarin.[15]

In May 2014, Leonor made her first official visit to the San Javier Air Force base in Murcia.[13]

On 18 June 2014, King Juan Carlos signed the instrument of abdication, and the following day at the stroke of midnight (18-19 June 2014) Leonor's father ascended the throne becoming King Felipe VI, and Leonor became his heir presumptive and became the brand new Princess of Asturias.[16]

Spanish monarchy operates under a system of male-preference cognatic primogeniture,[17] meaning that Leonor, as the elder of Felipe's two daughters, is first in line to inherit the throne. Under the current law, however, if her father has a legitimate son while still being king, Leonor would be displaced in the line of succession and again become an infanta.[13] There have been discussions[18][19][20] about changing the succession law to absolute primogeniture, allowing for the inheritance of the eldest child, regardless of sex; however, the birth of Leonor, followed by that of her younger sister Sofía, stalled these plans. Despite a change from male-preference to absolute primogeniture for Spanish titles of nobility in 2009,[21] as of 2021 no legislation has been passed affecting the succession to the throne.

In October 2014, a wax figure of Leonor was unveiled at the Museo de Cera in Madrid.[22] On 20 May 2015, Leonor received First Communion as per Catholic custom.[23][24]

A day before her 10th birthday, she was granted the Order of the Golden Fleece by her father.[25][26][27] In addition, the Council of Ministers approved the design of her personal standard and guidon.[28] Coinciding with the 50th birthday of King Felipe, in January 2018, the King officially gave Leonor the collar of the Golden Fleece.[29]

In September 2018, Leonor conducted her first public engagement outside the palace by accompanying her parents to Covadonga to celebrate the 1,300th anniversary of the Kingdom of Asturias.[30] On 31 October 2018, Princess Leonor gave her first public speech, held at the Instituto Cervantes in Madrid, where she read the first article of the Constitution of Spain.[31] The speech coincided with the 40th anniversary of the constitution and her 13th birthday.[32]

On 18 October 2019 she made her first significant speech at Premio Princesa de Asturias.[33] On 4 November 2019, she made her first speech at the Princess of Girona Foundation awards in Barcelona,[34] in which she spoke in Spanish, Catalan, English and Arabic.[35]

Titles, styles, honours and arms
Grand coat of arms of Princess Leonor, surrounded by the chain of the Order of the Golden Fleece
Main article: List of titles and honours of Leonor, Princess of Asturias

Before her father's ascension to the throne, her title was: Her Royal Highness Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz, Infanta of Spain.

Since her father's ascension, the Princess's full title is: Her Royal Highness Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz, Princess of Asturias, Princess of Girona, Princess of Viana, Duchess of Montblanc, Countess of Cervera and Lady of Balaguer.

Honours

As heir presumptive to the throne, she is the nominal chairwoman of the Princess of Asturias Foundation and the Princess of Girona Foundation, although because of her young age those functions are assumed by her father.[36][37]

See also

Notes
  1. In the languages of Spain, her name is:

References
  1. In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is de Borbón and the second or maternal family name is Ortiz.
  2. "Los 10 nobles años de Leonor en 10 imágenes". El Mundo (in Spanish).
  3. Galaz, Mábel (31 October 2005). "Nace la primera hija de los príncipes de Asturias, que se llamará Leonor". El País (in Spanish). Madrid: Prisa. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  4. "Nace la infanta Leonor". El País (in Spanish). Prisa. 30 October 2005. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  5. Marcos, Charo; Cernuda, Olalla (31 October 2005). "Letizia Ortiz da a luz una niña". El Mundo (in Spanish). Mundinteractivos, S.A. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  6. de Cózar, Álvaro (26 February 2006). "Células madre de la infanta Leonor se conservan congeladas en Arizona". El País. Madrid: Prisa. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  7. "La Princesa de Asturias y la Infanta Leonor abandonan este lunes el hospital". Libertad Digital (in Spanish). 6 November 2005. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  8. "La Princesa de Asturias y la Infanta Leonor abandonan a las 12:00 horas el hospital". Libertad Digital (in Spanish). 7 November 2005. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  9. "Princess Leonor of Spain: Facts about the future queen". hellomagazine.com. 31 October 2017. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  10. "Royal christenings around the world". The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited. 9 November 2015. p. 8. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  11. "Los Reyes serán los padrinos de Leono". El Periódico de Aragón (in Spanish). Grupo Zeta. 18 December 2005. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  12. "La Infanta Leonor sólo abrió los ojos en su bautizo al recibir el agua del río Jordán | elmundo.es". www.elmundo.es. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  13. Galaz, Mábel (4 June 2014). "Leonor becomes a crown princess". El País. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  14. "Crown Princess Leonor of Spain, Europe's youngest direct royal heir". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  15. "Princess Leonor preparing for her role as Spain's future queen". Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  16. "Spanish constitution" (PDF). Congress of Spain. congreso.es. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  17. "Una esperada confirmación". El Mundo.
  18. "LOS 'PROBLEMAS' SI EL PRIMOGÉNITO ES PRIMOGÉNITA: Pendientes de la Constitución hasta saber si será niño o niña". El Mundo.
  19. Woolls, Daniel (27 September 2006). "Royal Pregnancy a Conundrum for Spain". The Washington Post. The Associated Press. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  20. Govan, Fiona (30 September 2006). "Royal baby in waiting sparks row over throne". The Telegraph. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  21. Tremlett, Giles (12 July 2009). "Spanish nobles rebel over inheritance law". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  22. "Princess Leonor of Spain's waxwork is unveiled in Madrid". Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  23. Galaz, Mábel (20 May 2015). "Leonor hace la comunión como colegiala, no como princesa". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  24. Remírez, Carmen (20 May 2015). "La Princesa Leonor, tras su primera comunión: 'Estaba muy nerviosa'". El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  25. "El Rey concede el Toisón de Oro a Leonor por su décimo cumpleaños". El País (in Spanish). 30 October 2015. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  26. Remírez, Carmen (30 October 2015). "El Rey Felipe VI concede a la Princesa de Asturias el Toisón de Oro". El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  27. Real Decreto 978/2015 Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE)
  28. Real Decreto 979/2015 Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE)
  29. "King Felipe of Spain gives daughter Princess Leonor same honour as the Queen". HELLO!. 30 January 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  30. Abellán, Lucía (8 September 2018). "La princesa Leonor estrena su agenda oficial de viajes en Asturias". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  31. "La princesa Leonor lee en su primera intervención pública el artículo 1 de la Constitución". Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española (in Spanish). 31 October 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  32. Alberola, Miquel (1 November 2018). "La princesa Leonor hace su primera lectura pública para conmemorar la Constitución". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  33. "El histórico primer discurso de Leonor en los Premios Princesa de Asturias". Hola! (in Spanish). 18 October 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  34. "De rojo y con un discreto maquillaje: Leonor brilla en los Premios Princesa de Girona". ABC (in Spanish). Madrid: Vocento. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  35. "Leonor sorprende en los Princesa de Girona con su discurso en catalán, inglés y árabe". El Español (in Spanish). 4 November 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  36. "Leonor, princesa de Asturias, cumple diez años en la más estricta intimidad familiar". Republica.com. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  37. "Los primeros Premios Princesa de Asturias no tendrán a su Princesa". ¡Hola! USA (in Spanish). 19 October 2015. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
Leonor, Princess of Asturias
Born: 31 October 2005
Lines of succession
First
 Succession to the Spanish throne Succeeded by
Infanta Sofía
Spanish royalty
Preceded by
Felipe		 Princess of Asturias, Princess of Viana
Princess of Girona, Duchess of Montblanc,
Countess of Cervera, Lady of Balaguer
2014–present		 Incumbent
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