Felipe VI of Spain

Early life and family

Felipe was born at 12:45 (CET) on 30 January 1968 at Our Lady of Loreto Hospital in Madrid, as the third child and only son of Prince Juan Carlos of Spain (later King Juan Carlos I) and Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark (later Queen Sofía of Spain).

He was baptised on 8 February 1968 at the Palace of Zarzuela by the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Madrid, Casimiro Morcillo, with water from the Jordan River.

His full baptismal name, Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos, was given in honor of significant relatives and ancestors: the first Bourbon king of Spain, Felipe V; his grandfathers, Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona and King Paul of Greece; his great-grandfather, Alfonso XIII of Spain; and the customary Bourbons addition de Todos los Santos ("of all the Saints").

His godparents were his paternal grandfather, the Count of Barcelona, and his paternal great-grandmother, Queen Victoria Eugenie.

Shortly after his birth, Felipe was styled infante. The dictator Francisco Franco died just over two months before Felipe's eighth birthday, after which Felipe's father ascended the throne, having been appointed Prince of Spain in 1969. Felipe made his first official appearance at his father's proclamation as king on 22 November 1975.

Prince of Asturias

In 1977, Felipe was formally proclaimed Prince of Asturias. In May, nine-year-old Felipe was made an honorary soldier of the 1st King's Inmemorial Infantry Regiment. The occasion was marked on 28 May and was attended by the king, the prime minister and several other ministers in a ceremony at the infantry's barracks. On 1 November the same year, he was ceremonially paid homage as Prince of Asturias in Covadonga. In 1981 Felipe received the Collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece from his father, the Chief and Sovereign of the Order. On his 18th birthday on 30 January 1986, Felipe swore allegiance to the Constitution and to the King in the Spanish Parliament as required by the constitution, fully accepting his role as successor to the Crown.

In 1999, the construction began on a new royal residence near the Zarzuela Palace. This residence, known as the Prince's Pavilion (Spanish: Pabellón del Principe), became Felipe's private residence in the summer of 2002 and cost 4.23 million euros.

Education and military training

From 1972 to 1984, Felipe attended school at Santa María de los Rosales, which his daughters both attended. Felipe attended high school at Lakefield College School in Ontario, Canada in September of that year, and studied at the Autonomous University of Madrid, where he graduated with a degree in law; he also completed several courses in economics. He completed his academic studies by obtaining a Master of Science in Foreign Service degree from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., where he was the roommate of his cousin, Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece.

As the heir to the throne, a carefully regulated and structured plan was laid out for Felipe's military training. In August 1985, a Royal Decree named Felipe as officer at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza. He began his military training there in September. He completed the first phase of his formation in October. In July 1986, he was promoted to Cadet Ensign. He was also named as Midshipman. In September 1986, he began his naval training at the Naval Military Academy in Marin (Pontevedra), joining the Third Brigade. In January 1987, he continued his naval training on board the training ship Juan Sebastián Elcano.

In July, he was named as Student Ensign at the General Air Academy in Murcia. In September 1987, he began his air force training there where he learned to fly aircraft. In 1989, he was promoted to lieutenant in the Army, ensign in the Navy, and lieutenant in the Air Force. In 1992, he was promoted to captain in the Air Force. In 1993, he was promoted to lieutenant in the Navy and captain in the Infantry of the Army.

Further promotions in 2000 were commandant in the Army, corvette captain in the Navy, and commandant in the Air Force. Promotions in 2009 were lieutenant colonel in the Army, frigate captain in the Navy, and lieutenant colonel in the Air Force.

Since 19 June 2014, after his accession to the throne, he acquired the rank of Captain General (Commander-in-chief) of all the Spanish armies (Army, Navy and Air Force). During the 2016 Pascua Militar, the Chief of the Defence Staff, Fernando García Sánchez, on behalf of the Armed Forces, gave the monarch a personalized command baton, which symbolizes the loyalty of the armies to the king and the command he has over them. The piece, made by some jewelers from León, is made of cherry wood and the tips are adorned with silver pieces.

Participation in the Olympics

Felipe was a member of the Spanish Olympic sailing team at the 1992 Summer Olympics held in Barcelona. Felipe took part in the opening ceremony as the Spanish team's flag bearer. The Spanish crew finished in sixth place in the Soling class and obtained an Olympic diploma. He is an honorary member of the International Soling Association. Both his mother and uncle, King Constantine II of Greece, were on the Greek sailing team at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome (his mother as a substitute), and Felipe's father and sister were also Olympic sailors for Spain.

Marriage and children

Felipe's bachelor years were a source of interest to the Spanish press for several years. His name was linked with several eligible women, but only two notable girlfriends: Spanish noblewoman Isabel Sartorius, around 1989 to 1991, daughter of the Marquess of Mariño, who was viewed unfavorably by the Royal Family due to her mother's cocaine addiction, and Norwegian model Eva Sannum, who modeled underwear.

Although there were some engagement rumors in the previous weeks, on 31 October 2003, a TV program called Con T de Tarde announced unexpectedly that the Prince of Asturias was dating Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano, a television journalist who had been married previously. The following day, the Royal Household made official their engagement. According to the Royal House, they met in late 2002. The official hand petition was made on 6 November 2003 at the Royal Palace of El Pardo. Felipe proposed with a 16-carat diamond engagement ring with a white gold trim and gifted her with a pearl and sapphire necklace. Ortiz marked the occasion by giving him white gold and sapphire cufflinks and a classic book, El doncel de don Enrique el doliente by Mariano José de Larra.

The wedding, which was officiated by the archbishop of Madrid and president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Antonio María Rouco Varela, took place on the morning of 22 May 2004 in the Almudena Cathedral, with representatives of royal families from all over the world and most heads of state from Latin America present. In Spain alone, the royal wedding was watched by more than 25 million viewers, the most watched television event in the history of Spanish television.

Felipe and Letizia have two daughters: Leonor, Princess of Asturias (born 31 October 2005) and Infanta Sofía (born 29 April 2007). Both were born at Ruber International Hospital in Madrid.

Activities in Spain and abroad

Felipe undertook his constitutional duties as heir to the throne, hosting many official events in Spain and participating in all events of different sectors and aspects of Spanish public life. Since October 1995, Felipe has represented the Crown on a series of official visits to the Spanish regions, starting with Valencia. Felipe has held regular meetings with constitutional bodies and state institutions keeping up-to-date with their activities. He also attends meetings of the various bodies of the General State Administration and of the Autonomous Communities Administrations as required by his national and international constitutional obligations. In particular, he has held meetings with people of his generation who have built successful careers in political, economic, cultural and media circles. As part of his military training, Felipe trained as a military helicopter pilot. On occasions when King Juan Carlos I was unable to attend, Felipe presided over the annual presentation of dispatches to officers and non-commissioned officers in the Armed Forces as well as participating in military exercises held by the three Armed Services.

Since January 1996, Felipe has represented Spain at many Latin American presidents' inauguration ceremonies. As Prince, he visited every country in Latin America except Cuba, which he visited as King in 11–14 November 2019. He made over 200 foreign trips in total.

Felipe has also played an active role in promoting Spain's economic, commercial and cultural interests and the Spanish language abroad. He frequently represents Spain at world economic and trade events (e.g. Expotecnia, Expoconsumo, and Expohabitat), and is especially interested in promoting the creation of Centres and University Chairs to advance the study of Spain both historically and in the present-day at major foreign universities.

Following the March 2004 Madrid bombings, Felipe, along with his sisters Elena and Cristina, took part in a public demonstration.

Social activities

In addition to his official activities, Felipe serves as honorary president of several associations and foundations, such as the Codespa Foundation, which finances economic and social development in Ibero-America and other countries, and the Spanish branch of the Association of European Journalists, comprising outstanding communications professionals. Most noteworthy is the Prince of Asturias Foundation, where he presides annually at the international awards ceremony of the highly prestigious Princess of Asturias Awards (formerly the Prince of Asturias Awards).

Felipe was appointed a "UN-Eminent Person" by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in 2001, during its International Year of Volunteers, and continues to make contributions internationally towards enhancing the importance of voluntary work.

Felipe is a member of the Sons of the American Revolution due to his ancestor Charles III of Spain.

Reign

Accession

On 2 June 2014, King Juan Carlos announced his intent to abdicate in Felipe's favor. As required by the Constitution of Spain, the Council of Ministers began deliberations the following day on an organic law to give effect to the abdication. The law had to be passed by a majority of all members of the Congress of Deputies, the lower house of the Cortes Generales. According to Jesús Posada, the president of the Congress of Deputies, Felipe could be proclaimed king as early as 18 June. On 4 June, El País of Madrid reported that Felipe would indeed be proclaimed king on 18 June.

Felipe ascended the throne at the stroke of midnight on 19 June; his father had given his sanction to the organic law effecting his abdication just hours earlier. The next morning, after receiving the Captain General's sash from his father (symbolizing the transfer of royal and military power), he was formally sworn in and proclaimed king in a low-key ceremony held in the Cortes. He swore to uphold the Constitution before formally being proclaimed king by Posada. Upon his accession, he became the youngest monarch in Europe, being nine months younger than King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands.

As king, Felipe has fairly extensive reserve powers on paper. He is the guardian of the Constitution and is responsible for ensuring it is obeyed and followed. It was expected that he would follow his father's practice of taking a mostly ceremonial and representative role, acting largely on the advice of the government. He indicated as much in a speech to the Cortes on the day of his enthronement, saying that he would be "a loyal head of state who is ready to listen and understand, warn and advise as well as to defend the public interest at all times". While he is nominally chief executive, he is not politically responsible for exercising his powers. Per the Constitution, his acts are not valid unless countersigned by a minister, who then assumes political responsibility for the act in question.

A poll conducted by El País, however, indicates that a majority of Spaniards wish Felipe would play a greater role in politics, with 75% of the 600 people surveyed stating they would approve if he personally pushed the political parties to reach agreements on national problems. According to an El Mundo newspaper poll, Felipe had a greater approval than his father prior to his reign. During a poll conducted in 2025, Felipe VI gained approval of some 44% of the respondents; 21% voiced their disapproval and 35% remained neutral. The approval rate was visibly higher among females than among males; it was the highest in Andalusia, and the lowest in Catalonia. The poll made public in 2026 revealed that on a scale from 0 to 10, Felipe VI gained an average rate of 6.1; PP voters rated him at 7.9, PSOE voters at 6.5, VOX voters at 5.5 and Podemos/Sumar voters at 4.9.

Household reforms

During his ascension speech, Felipe pledged a "renewed monarchy for a new time". A few days later after this, Felipe and Letizia became the first Spanish monarchs to receive and recognize LGBT organisations at the Palace. Felipe also changed the protocol in order to allow people to take the oath of office without a crucifix or Bible. This did not mean, in any way, a change in his relations with the Catholic Church or religion, in fact, on their first overseas trip as king and queen, Felipe VI and Letizia met Pope Francis in the Apostolic Palace on 30 June 2014. They subsequently met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and Under-Secretary for Relations with States Antoine Camilleri. The visit followed one by King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía on 28 April.

The king also established a difference between the royal family and the King's family, leaving his sisters and their descendants outside the royal family and, therefore, not carrying out institutional representation of the Crown (although they do it occasionally). In July 2014, the king banned the royal family from working outside the Royal Household and he established an external audit made by the Office of the Comptroller General of the State.

Following orders from the king, since 1 January 2015, the Spanish royal family cannot accept "expensive gifts" when "they exceed social or courtesy uses". In February 2015, Felipe announced he would cut his annual salary by 20% as a result of the economic recession and hardships continuing to hamper Spain.

In June 2015, Felipe VI stripped his sister, Infanta Cristina, of her royal title of Duchess of Palma de Mallorca, after the tax fraud allegations surrounding her and her husband, Iñaki Urdangarín. While her husband was eventually sentenced to six years in prison, she was acquitted of all charges.

In 2017, the Crown opened for the first time the gardens of the royal family's vacation palace, the Marivent Palace, at the request of the regional government of the Balearic Islands. The public can enjoy the gardens as long as the royal family is not there.

In February 2024, the king appointed a new Private Secretary, diplomat Camilo Villarino, at that time Head of the Cabinet of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell. Villarino replaced Jaime Alfonsín, private secretary to Felipe for almost 30 years, both as prince and king. Alfonsin remains in the Household as private counselor. Likewise, in April 2024 the king appointed a new private secretary to the Queen, State lawyer María Dolores Ocaña Madrid, replacing the duke of Abrantes. At the end of 2024, the king concluded the renewal of the senior positions of his Household, appointing two other women: parliamentary clerk Mercedes Araújo Díaz de Terán was appointed Secretary-General; diplomat Carmen Castiella Ruiz de Velasco was appointed Diplomatic Counselor.

National politics

The elections in 2015 resulted in no party winning enough seats to form a government. No agreements with the different parties were successful. After months of talks with the different party leaders, and with there being no apparent candidate in a position of support in forming a government, the king issued a royal decree dissolving parliament with new elections being called in June. This marked the first time since the transition to democracy that an election was called under Article 99.5 of the Constitution, wherein the initiative for issuing the dissolution of the Cortes belonged to the King and not to the Prime Minister.

After the second elections, some socialist MPs abstained in order to make it easy for the conservative prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, to form a new government. The king swore in the new cabinet on 4 November 2016.

On 3 October 2017, as huge protest rallies and a general strike took place in Catalonia following the 2017 Catalan independence referendum that was deemed illegal by Spanish authorities, Felipe delivered an unusually strongly worded televised address, watched by more than 12 million people across the country, in which he condemned the actions of the referendum organizers for acting "outside the law", accusing them of "unacceptable disloyalty" and of "eroding the harmony and co-existence within Catalan society itself". He also warned the referendum could put the economy of the entire north-east region of Spain at risk.

Reactions to Felipe's speech were mixed. Party officials from the PP, PSOE and Ciudadanos applauded the King's "commitment to legality" and the "defense of the Constitution, the [regional] Statute, the rule of law and the territorial integrity of Spain", whereas leaders from Unidos Podemos and Catalunya en Comú criticized it "as unworthy as it was irresponsible", paving the way for a harsh intervention of the Catalan autonomy. Some PSOE leaders were upset that the King had not made any call to understanding or dialogue between the Spanish and Catalan governments.

After the speech, where Felipe ordered the "legitimate powers of the State" to ensure "constitutional order", the Spanish government started the process to apply article 155 of the Constitution, which gives special powers to the central government to intervene in a Spanish region. On 27 October 2017, the Spanish Senate approved government proposal to impose direct rule in the region with the support of conservative and socialist votes. The Spanish government dismissed all Catalan authorities, dissolved the regional parliament and called for early elections in 2017.

Accession anniversary

In 2024 Felipe marked his 10th anniversary of his accession and, for this occasion, the king renewed his motto: "Servicio, compromiso y deber" (English: "Service, commitment and duty"). As was customary during his reign, it was announced that the events to celebrate this anniversary would be discreet.

The celebrations began in the Royal Palace, when the royal family presided, from the interior balcony of the palace, over the Royal Guard changing. Subsequently, and after greeting the citizens who approached the palace, the king presented the Order of Civil Merit to 19 anonymous citizens, each from a Spanish region, as well as from the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla. This event ended with a lunch for the invited authorities and the recipients. Before the start of lunch, the Princess of Asturias and Infanta Sofía surprised the king with an improvised speech to congratulate him on the anniversary.

In the afternoon, the monarch's daughters visited the Royal Collections Gallery with 40 young people who, at some point, won the contest "What is a King to you?", organized annually by the Royal Household and two private foundations that promotes the monarchy. On this occasion, the monarchs surprised the attendees by attending the event when it was not planned. To conclude the celebrations, public concerts were held in the Royal Palace, including one of the violinist Ara Malikian, as well as a projection of images on the façade of the palace attended by the royal family.

After a year of celebrations across the country, the anniversary concluded on 18 June 2025 with another concert in Madrid's Plaza Mayor, performed by the Royal Guard.

On 19 June 2025, on the 11th anniversary of the proclamation of the sovereign, the Royal Household announced the creation by King Felipe of his first nobility titles. Jaime Alfonsín, former secretary of the king was created Marquess of Alfonsín and Grandee of Spain, while former tennis player Rafael Nadal was created Marquess of Llevant de Mallorca, swimmer Teresa Perales was created Marchioness of Perales, singer Luz Casal was created Marchioness of Luz y Paz, biochemist Carlos López Otín was created Marquess of Castillo de Leres and photographer Cristina García Rodero was created Marchioness of Valle de Alcudia.

Sports

Felipe is a huge fan of sports and has attended hundreds of sports events since 1976, when he accompanied his father to a match between Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid at the 1976 Copa del Generalísimo final. At the end of the event, when asked by journalist about his favourite team, he said Atlético de Madrid. He is also the club's honorary president since 2003. Besides football, he loves skiing, squash and sailing.

As King of Spain, most of the sports have a tournament in his honor, Copa del Rey (English: King's Cup), which he normally attends and delivers the trophy to the winner. Also, since the reign of Alfonso XIII (1886–1931), the King exercises high patronage over the sports federations. Most of them hold the title of "royal" granted by the ruling monarch; the latest federation to receive this honor was the Rugby Federation in 2023.

It is also common for him to attend international sporting events in which Spanish clubs or Spanish national teams participate. If he cannot attend, it is common for him to be replaced by a member of the royal family, such as Leonor, Princess of Asturias and Infanta Sofía in the UEFA Women's Euro 2022 or Queen Letizia in the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup final.

International agenda

Since his proclamation as king on 19 June 2014, Felipe VI has visited, as of 8 August 2026, 61 sovereign countries on four continents, in 162 official visits abroad (The number of countries includes Puerto Rico, which has the status of "Commonwealth of the United States"). The first international trip was to the Vatican City on 30 June 2014, to meet with the Pope. The last one was to Cali, Colombia on 7 August 2026, to attend the inauguration of Abelardo de la Espriella as president of Colombia.

Most of his visits have been to European countries (24 countries in 91 visits), followed by American countries (19 countries in 47 visits), Asian (13 countries in 17 visits) and African (5 countries in 7 visits). He has never visited an Oceanian country as a king; as prince of Asturias, he visited Australia and New Zealand in 1990.

Like his father did, Felipe VI has maintained an important presence and influence in the countries of Latin America, Portugal and Brazil. As King of Spain, he represents Spain in all the Ibero-American Summits, normally calling for the "unity" of the region and the strengthening of relations with Spain and the European Union. In this sense, Spain is also the main contributor to the Ibero-American General Secretariat, headquartered in Madrid. This organization is mainly financed by Spain, with more than 60 per cent of the budget as of 2016. Felipe VI has attended all the summits since he ascended the throne. For the 2021 Ibero-American summit in Andorra la Vella, Felipe became the first Spanish monarch to visit neighbouring Andorra, a principality whose co-prince is the Spanish Bishop of Urgell.

Also, as he did as prince of Asturias, Felipe has kept the tradition of attending the inauguration of Latin American leaders. As of January 2024, he has attended more than 80 presidential inaugurations.

During the reign of Felipe VI, good relations between Spain and Portugal have continued. After his visit to the Vatican, Felipe dedicated his second foreign visit to Portugal, in July 2015. There, he met with President Aníbal Cavaco Silva and Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho, and stated that the relationship between the two countries was "not only the relationship of good neighbors, but of brother countries" and remembered that his grandfather, Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona, chose Portugal to live while in exile. He also made it clear that he intended to keep the good relationship between the neighbor countries.

Jews

Felipe, like his father before him, has supported the initiatives of Spanish institutions to normalize relations with the Jewish people and religion. In 1990, he awarded the Sephardic Jewish communities with the Prince of Asturias Award.

In December 2015, the King hosted a solemn ceremony in the Royal Palace to celebrate the approval by the Cortes Generales and the subsequent sanction by the Sovereign of the law that granted Spanish nationality to the Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain in 1492 due to the Alhambra Decree. At his speech, Felipe thanked the Sephardic Jews for preserving their language, Ladino, and for teaching their own children "to love this Spanish homeland". He also welcomed them "back home", adding that they had "returned home forever." The Jewish associations thanked the gesture, declaring that they were no longer "Spaniards without a homeland."

In January 2020, the King attended the Fifth World Holocaust Forum at Jerusalem. Felipe, who claims the title of King of Jerusalem as one of the historic titles of the Spanish crown, was the only international leader to speak at the opening dinner. In his speech, he stated that "there is no room for indifference in the face of racism, xenophobia, hatred and antisemitism" and that "forgetting the Holocaust would be extremely dangerous and an utter disrespect to the memory of the victims."

On 9 October 2023, King Felipe condemned "with all firmness" the Hamas-led attack on Israel, called for "doing everything possible to avoid greater suffering, destruction, hopelessness and the loss of more human lives" and affirmed that Spain "remains faithful to its commitment to peace and stability in the region". Later that month, during the 2023 Princess of Asturias Awards ceremony, Felipe referred to the ongoing conflict asking for unity to resolve it and recalled that in 1994, Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat received the Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation for their "effort to create conditions of peace in the region" after the Madrid Conference of 1991 and the 1994 Oslo I Accord. On 11 January 2024, the King, in a meeting with the diplomatic corps in Spain, called for the release of war hostages and defended the "establishment of the Palestinian State next to Israel" to stop the "cycle of violence".

During his State Visit to Egypt, King Felipe criticized the "unbearable" humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, which "has caused unspeakable suffering of hundreds of thousands of innocent people" and supported a "viable Palestinian state that coexists in peace and security with Israel". The Palestinian state would be formed by "Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem". He defended a similar position during his speech at the general debate of the eightieth session of the United Nations General Assembly, asking for the "massacre" to be stopped and pushed for the two-state solution.

Honours and awards

In 2019, as King, Felipe received the World Peace & Liberty Award from the World Jurist Association at the World Law Congress in Madrid. Felipe VI holds the Guinness World Record for being the tallest reigning monarch in the world, standing at 1.97 metres (6 ft 5½ in).

Titles, styles and arms

Titles and styles

Juan Carlos became King in late November 1975, but no title was conferred on Felipe as heir apparent until 1977, when he was made Prince of Asturias, the traditional title normally held by the heir to the Spanish throne. The royal decree granting him this title also entitled him to use "the other historical titles corresponding to the heir of the Crown". Felipe started using the Aragonese title of Prince of Girona publicly on 21 April 1990, during a trip around Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia, becoming the first Bourbon to use this title.

Upon ascending the throne, Felipe assumed the same titles held by his father. If the former Kingdoms of Aragon and Navarre had separate naming styles, he would also be known as Felipe V of Aragon and Felipe VIII of Navarre along with Felipe VI of Castile.

Arms

As heir to the Spanish throne, Felipe's arms were the Spanish coat of arms with a label of three points azure (blue). The first quarter represents Castile, the second León, the third Aragon, and the fourth Navarre; below are the arms of Granada. In the centre, on an inescutcheon, were the ancestral arms of the sovereign House of Bourbon-Anjou. Surrounding the shield was the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece and surmounting it was the heraldic crown of the heir to the throne, decorated with four half-arches.

Following his accession to the throne, the label on his arms was removed and the crown of the heir was changed to that of the monarch's (eight half-arches instead of four). These arms differ from those of his father's as king, as they omit the Cross of Burgundy, the yoke, and the sheaf of five arrows.