Royals Welcome Saudi, Portuguese Leaders

King Felipe and Queen Letizia have been busy with international matters in recent weeks.

Last week, they welcomed Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa for a state visit. Leaders of the neighboring countries keep extremely close ties.

Their Majesties hosted a welcoming ceremony at the Royal Palace in Madrid and attended a reception at El Pardo Palace just outside the city.

Other stops for de Sousa included the Reina Sofia Museum and the University of Salamanca.

Tiara debut

During a dinner at the Madrid Royal Palace for the Portuguese president, Queen Letizia wore the family’s Cartier tiara for the first time ever.

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Queen Sofia has often word the headpiece, but Queen Letizia has generally favored the smaller tiaras in the collection.

Saudi Visit

Earlier this month, the King and Queen welcomed the Saudi crown prince for a less formal gathering at the Madrid Royal Palace and Zarzuela Palace.

King Juan Carlos was recently vacationing in Saudi Arabia. where he keeps close touch with its royals.

New Royal Message In Catalonia

King Felipe was in Barcelona today handing out royal dispatches to new judges and expressed support for the profession.

The comments were notable because Spain’s justice system has been active in prosecuting Catalan separatists.

rey_despachos_carrera_judicial_20180409_08 — © Casa de S.M. el Rey

King Felipe also met with Catalan business leaders at Albéniz Palace, which His Majesty uses for events in Barcelona.

King Welcomes U.S. Delegation

King Felipe welcomed a sizable U.S. congressional delegation to Zarzuela Palace on Friday.

rey_congresistasEEUU_20180406_02 — © Casa de S.M. el Rey

The Royal Household did not release details of the encounter, which included U.S. House Republican Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana.

Royal Household Pushes Image Of Normality

All is well in the Spanish Royal Household. That’s the message from King Felipe after visiting his father at the hospital following an operation this weekend.

A supposed spat between Queen Letizia and Queen Sofia made international news soon after Easter.

On Saturday, they were both all smiles as their went into the La Moraleja Hospital in Madrid.

The controversy was over images appearing to show Queen Letizia blocking Queen Sofia from posing for pictures with Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia.

Notably, on Saturday Queen Sofia walked holding both her young granddaughters’ hands. Other members of King Juan Carlos and King Felipe’s family also showed up.

Queen Makes First Public Appearance After Spat

Queen Letizia today made her first public appearance since controversy erupted over an apparent spat with Queen Sofia.

On Eastern Sunday, Queen Letizia apparently prevented Queen Sofia from posing for pictures with Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia.

Spanish society and royal watchers have been divided in their response, many condemning Queen Letizia as mean, inflexible, petty and un-royal.

During an event on disabilities today, the queen greeted the public but did face at least one heckler.

reina_discapacitados_20180405_01 — © Casa de S.M. el Rey

A friend of the queen told media outlets Her Majesty was concerned, surprised and hurt about the controversy.

Monumental Royal Spat

An apparent Easter spat between Queen Letizia and Queen Sofia has caught fire and generated more family bickering.

King Felipe, Queen Letizia, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia attended Easter services over the weekend with Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia.

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Videos have been circulating online showing Queen Letizia attempting to block her mother-in-law, Queen Sofia, from posing with photographers alone with her granddaughters, Infanta Sofia and Princess Leonor.

Queen Letizia, who tries to manage her daughters’ public appearances, apparently only wanted one photo of the entire family outside the church, as is custom.

Still, media outlets and critics are repeating claims of the Queen’s bad temper and strained relations with her mother-in-law.

As if all that wasn’t tough enough, Greek Princess Marie-Chantal — wife of Queen Sofia’s nephew — weighed in on social media.

Marie-Chantal criticized Queen Letizia’s actions and said Her Majesty had shown her “true colours.”

800px-Kronprins_Pavlos_av_Grekland_med_gemål — Prince Pavlos and Princess Marie-Chantal.

Whatever many European royals feel about Queen Letizia, they are also not likely to take well a princess in exile openly criticizing a reigning queen.

Media outlets often cite sources saying Queen Letizia doesn’t get along with Queen Sofia’s extended family, but they also talk about Queen Letizia’s efforts to encourage an active and exemplary monarchy in Spain. Marie-Chantal, an heiress, is known for her lavish lifestyle.

Royals Honor Count of Barcelona; Infanta Cristina Reappears

Members of the Spanish Royal Family today honored the death of His Royal Highness Juan, the late Count of Barcelona.

The mass was at the royal palace, monastery and pantheon of San Lorenzo del Escorial outside Madrid.

Untitled1 — King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia watch as King Felipe and Queen Letizia arrive at the mass. © Casa de S.M. El Rey

Untitled — King Felipe and Queen Letizia during the mass. © Casa de S.M. El Rey

Don Juan, King Felipe’s grandfather and King Juan Carlos’ father, never got to reign over Spain. Still, he used the title of Count of Barcelona, which is generally attached to Spanish monarchs.

Events leading to the Spanish Civil War forced his abdication along with Queen Victoria Eugenie. He remained in exile for much of his life but died in Spain in 1993.

J._de_Borbón — National Archives of the Netherlands

After King Juan Carlos succeeded dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, he held a ceremony at Zarzuela Palace for his father, Juan, to officially renounce his claim to the throne.

Infanta Cristina

A significant occurrence at the event was that Infanta Cristina, King Felipe’s sister, attended the services.

elena-cristina-1-z — Infanta Cristina with Infanta Elena as photographed by the magazine ¡Hola! several years ago.

She has kept a distance from other members of the Royal Family and King’s Family amid controversy surrounding her husband’s business dealings.

King May Meet Trump

The Spanish government is working on coordinating a meeting between King Felipe and U.S. President Donald Trump, news outlets reported.

rey_evo_morales_20180316_01 — King Felipe during a recent meeting with Bolivian President Evo Morales.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy met with the American president at the White House last year.

Now he is working on the King meeting trump during an upcoming visit to the U.S., outlets reported.

King Juan Carlos was the first head of state to meet with President Obama. Spain has been slower to arrange gatherings with Trump.

Royals Celebrate Easter

Members of the Spanish Royal Family were in Palma de Mallorca today for Easter services at the cathedral there.

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It’s the first time in several years that King Juan Carlos, who turned 80 earlier this year, attended the services.

In the coming days, the family will commemorate the anniversary of the death of Infante Juan, Don Juan Carlos’ father.

Focus On King Juan Carlos

The focus continues on King Juan Carlos, King Felipe’s father, following his 80th birthday this year.

Galician leaders have made His Majesty ambassador for life for the Camino de Santiago, a pilgrimage route for Christians worldwide.

rey_jc_camino_santiago_20180323_06 — © Casa de S.M. el Rey

A Saudi news outlet revealed Don Juan Carlos traveled to that country, where he keeps close ties with its rulers.

King Felipe and Queen Letizia are also vacationing for Easter, first in a secret location and soon will be seen in Mallorca as is custom.