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The Spanish royals put up a united front on Friday. Queen Sofia publicly reunited with her son King Felipe , daughter-in-law Queen Letizia and granddaughters, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia , for her first family engagement since her husband former King Juan Carlos I left Spain this summer. The 81-year-old royal appeared to be in good spirits as she joined her family at the 2020 Princesa de Asturias Awards ceremony held at the Reconquista Hotel in Oviedo, Spain. Princess Leonor, 14, presided over her namesake ceremony for the second time on Oct. 16.
The Spanish royals were sharply dressed for the occasion—and all sporting face masks. Letizia stunned in her navy Delpozo dress, which she has previously worn. The mom of two swept her tresses up into a sleek ponytail highlighting the sophisticated number’s 3D rosette detail. The Queen’s daughters looked grown up wearing two-pieces sets to the awards ceremony. Leonor, who straightened her golden locks down for the big day, dazzled in a champagne-colored ensemble and kitten heels, while Sofia opted for an all-green outfit with ballet flats and a side braid.
In her speech at the ceremony, the future Queen of Spain revealed what she and her sister have learned from their parents. Leonor said, “If there is something that my sister Sofia and I have learned, it is the sense of responsibility. Our parents have always taught us this. And I think the young people of my generation are also aware of this. A sense of responsibility that goes through never forgetting the people around us, who love us and who we love.”
Although Queen Sofia’s summer holiday in Palma de Mallorca coincided with Felipe and his family’s vacation, they did not attend any public engagements together. Instead, the King’s mother was seen out with her sister Princess Irene and friends. Letizia and Felipe’s annual vacation came days after Sofia’s husband, whom she married in 1962, announced that he was leaving Spain amid his financial scandal. “Your Majesty, dear Felipe: With the same desire for service to Spain that inspired my reign and in the face of the public repercussion that certain past events in my private life are generating, I wish to express to you my utmost availability to contribute to facilitating the exercise of your functions, from the tranquility and tranquility that requires your high responsibility. My legacy, and my own dignity as a person, is what they demand of me,” Juan Carlos wrote in a letter to his son.
“A year ago I expressed my will and desire to stop developing institutional activities. Now, guided by the conviction of providing the best service to the Spanish, their institutions and you as King, I am communicating my thoughtful decision to move, at this time, outside of Spain,” the letter continued. “A decision I make with deep feeling, but with great serenity. I have been King of Spain for almost forty years and, during all of them, I have always wanted the best for Spain and for the Crown. With my loyalty forever. With the affection and affection of always, your father.”
After Juan Carlos fled Spain for the Middle East, sources close to the palace confirmed to El País that Queen Sofia would continue living at Zarzuela Palace in Madrid and would continue with her institutional activities.