Madrid is preparing with great enthusiasm to celebrate this Wednesday the ten years of Felipe VI’s reign.
The city has been filled with banners and portraits of the king, decorating downtown streets as well as public buildings and municipal buses.
The City Council has invited citizens to join the festivities by decorating their balconies and actively participating in the events.
10 years of Felipe VI’s Reign
The day of celebrations will begin with the raising of the Spanish flag in the central Plaza de Colón.
Then, at the Royal Palace, the solemn changing of the Royal Guard will take place.
King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, together with their daughters, Princess Leonor and Princess Sofia, will observe the ceremony from the central balcony of the Throne Room, this being the first time they will look out over the square.
Subsequently, the presentation of decorations will take place in the Hall of Columns of the Royal Palace. This tradition, which also took place in 2015, 2019 and 2021, serves to honor citizens who have demonstrated an exemplary life and professional work in the service of society.
The King and Queen wish to recognize and highlight the values of these individuals as a reflection of the best of Spanish society.
After the award ceremony, Felipe VI will deliver a speech in which he is expected to convey a message of optimism and hope, at a time marked by political polarization and social tension.
The king will highlight the values represented by the awardees, underlining their importance as an example for the nation.
Afterwards, the recipients, accompanied by their guests, will join the King and Queen and their daughters for lunch in the Gala Dining Room of the Royal Palace.
The event will also be attended by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, along with other branches of government and those who have presided over constitutional bodies since 2014.
In total, about a hundred guests will be seated together, mixing institutional positions and decorated, with the aim of symbolizing the union between the monarchy, the State and civil society.
It is worth mentioning that neither Queen Sofia nor King Juan Carlos, who abdicated a decade ago and has been living in the United Arab Emirates since 2020, will participate in these events.
The program will continue with a visit by Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia to the Royal Collections Gallery, together with a group of 40 young people who won the ‘What is a king for you?’ contest.
The writer María Dueñas, renowned for her intellectual trajectory and her experience as a teacher, will be in charge of leading this visit.
In the evening, the Royal Guard Music Unit will offer a concert in front of the Prince’s Gate of the palace, accessible to the public.
In this event, the piece ‘Obertura rey Felipe VI’, composed by Óscar Navarro, will be premiered.
The famous violinist Ara Malikian will also perform, offering a concert from one of the balconies of the palace.
The day of celebrations will conclude with a projection of images on the façade of the Royal Palace, which will last approximately four minutes.
The King and Queen and their daughters will watch this spectacle from the square, thus closing a day full of commemorative events and celebrations.