The Spanish royal family constitutes the Spanish branch of the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a dynasty that originated in the Kingdom of France as a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Kingdom of Navarre, Navarre in the 16th century. A br ...

(), also known as the House of Bourbon-Anjou (). The royal family is headed by King Felipe VI and currently consists of the King; Queen Letizia; their children,

Leonor, Princess of Asturias Leonor, Princess of Asturias (; born 31 October 2005) is the heir presumptive, heiress presumptive to the Spanish throne. She is the elder daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia. Leonor was born during the reign of her paternal grandf ...

, and Infanta Sofía; and Felipe's parents, King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía. The royal family lives at the Zarzuela Palace in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, although their official residence is the

Royal Palace of Madrid The Royal Palace of Madrid () is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only for state ceremonies. The palace has of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the largest royal palace in Eu ...

. The membership of the royal family is defined by royal decree and consists of: the King of Spain, the monarch's spouse, the monarch's parents, his children, and the heir to the Spanish throne.

Titles and styles

The titles and styles of the Royal Family are as follows: * The occupant of the throne is the King () or the Queen (Spanish: ''la Reina''), together with other titles pertaining to the Crown or belonging to members of the royal family. They are styled '' His or Her Majesty''. * The King's wife bears the title of Queen (consort) with the style ''Her Majesty''. * The husband of the

Queen regnant A queen regnant (: queens regnant) is a female monarch, equivalent in rank, title and position to a king. She reigns ''suo jure'' (in her own right) over a realm known as a kingdom; as opposed to a queen consort, who is married to a reigning ...

, known as "Consort to the Queen of Spain", bears the title of Prince and is styled ''

His Royal Highness Royal Highness is a style (manner of address), style used to address or refer to some members of royal families, usually princes or princesses. Kings and their female Queen consort, consorts, as well as queens regnant, are usually styled ''Maje ...

''. * The King's

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir app ...

bears the title of Prince or Princess of Asturias with the style ''Royal Highness''. * A monarch's children besides the Prince or Princess of Asturias, as well as the children of the Prince or Princess, bear the title of

Infante Infante (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as "infant" or translated as "prince", is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to the ...

or Infanta and use the style ''Royal Highness''. The children of an Infante or Infanta have the rank (but not the title) of

Grandee Grandee (; , ) is an official royal and noble ranks, aristocratic title conferred on some Spanish nobility. Holders of this dignity enjoyed similar privileges to those of the peerage of France during the , though in neither country did they ha ...

s and the style of ''

Excellency Excellency is an honorific style (manner of address), style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder ...

''. * Spouses and widows/widowers of the monarch's sons and daughters, other than those of the Prince or Princess of Asturias, are entitled to the form of address and honours the monarch may grant them. * The sovereign may also grant the dignity of Infante or Infanta with the style of ''Highness''.

Members of the royal family

* King Felipe VI was born on 30 January 1968. He is the third child and only son of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía. He became

when his father became king in 1975, and was named

Prince of Asturias Prince or Princess of Asturias () is the main substantive title used by the heir apparent, or heir presumptive to the monarchy of Spain, Spanish Crown. According to the Spanish Constitution of 1978: The title originated in 1388, when King J ...

in 1977. He married Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano on 22 May 2004. He became king on 19 June 2014 upon his father's abdication. * Queen Letizia was born on 15 September 1972, the eldest daughter of Jesús José Ortiz Álvarez and María de la Paloma Rocasolano Rodríguez. The King and Queen have two daughters. *

, is the elder daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, and the

to the Spanish throne since her father's accession in 2014. She was born on 31 October 2005. * Infanta Sofía is the younger daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia. She was born on 29 April 2007. * King Juan Carlos I is the former

king of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

, reigning from 1975 to 2014. He was born on 5 January 1938 as the eldest son and second child of

Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona (Juan Carlos Teresa Silverio Alfonso de Borbón y Battenberg; 20 June 1913 – 1 April 1993), was a claimant to the Spanish throne as Juan III. He was the third son and designated heir of King Alfonso XIII o ...

, and Princess María de las Mercedes, Countess of Barcelona. Through his father, he is a grandson of King Alfonso XIII. On 14 May 1962, Juan Carlos married Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark, with whom he has three children. Following General Franco's death, Juan Carlos was proclaimed king on 22 November 1975. On 19 June 2014, he abdicated and his son was enthroned as King Felipe VI. * Queen Sofía is the wife of King Juan Carlos I. She was born on 2 November 1938, and is the eldest child of King Paul and Queen Frederica of Greece. Sofía was the

queen consort of Spain This is a list of the women who were queen consort, queens as wives of List of Spanish monarchs, Spanish monarchs from the 16th century, when Spain was unified, until present. Francisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz is the only ''King Consort'', as th ...

during her husband's reign.

Members of the King's family

Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo (Elena María Isabel Dominica de Silos de Borbón y de Grecia; born 20 December 1963), is the first child and eldest daughter of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía of Spain, Queen Sofía. As the eldest sister of ...

, born 20 December 1963, is the eldest child of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía. She married Jaime de Marichalar y Sáenz de Tejada on 18 March 1995, and they divorced in December 2009. The Duchess has two children with Marichalar: **Don Felipe de Marichalar y Borbón (born 17 July 1998) **Doña Victoria de Marichalar y Borbón (born 9 September 2000) *

Infanta Cristina Infanta Cristina (Cristina Federica Victoria Antonia de la Santísima Trinidad de Borbón y de Grecia, born 13 June 1965) is the younger daughter of King Juan Carlos I and his wife, Queen Sofía. She is sixth in the line of succession to the S ...

, born 13 June 1965, is the second child and younger daughter of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía. She married Iñaki Urdangarin Liebaert on 4 October 1997, and they divorced in December 2023. Infanta Cristina and Iñaki Urdangarin have four children: **Don Juan Urdangarín y Borbón (born 29 September 1999) **Don Pablo Urdangarín y Borbón (born 6 December 2000) **Don Miguel Urdangarín y Borbón (born 30 April 2002) **Doña Irene Urdangarín y Borbón (born 5 June 2005) *King Felipe's aunt, the late

Infanta Pilar, Duchess of Badajoz Infanta Pilar of Spain, Duchess of Badajoz and Viscountess of La Torre (Spanish language, Spanish: ''María del Pilar Alfonsa Juana Victoria Luisa Ignacia y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón''; 30 July 1936 – 8 January 2020), sometimes kn ...

, had five children with her husband Luis Gómez-Acebo y Duque de Estrada, 2nd Viscount of La Torre. The children of the Duchess and the Viscount are: **Doña Simoneta Gómez-Acebo y Borbón (born 31 October 1968) **Don Juan Gómez-Acebo y Borbón, 3rd The Viscount of La Torre (1969-2024) **Don Bruno Gómez-Acebo y Borbón (born 15 June 1971) **Don Luis Gómez-Acebo y Borbón (born 20 May 1973) **Don Fernando Gómez-Acebo y Borbón (1974-2024) * Infanta Margarita, Duchess of Soria and Hernani, is the younger sister of King Juan Carlos and the aunt of King Felipe VI. She was born on 6 March 1939 as the third child and younger daughter of

, and Princess María de las Mercedes, Countess of Barcelona. She married Carlos Zurita y Delgado on 12 October 1972. * Carlos Zurita, Duke of Soria and Hernani, was born on 9 October 1943 as the son of Carlos Zurita y González-Vidalte and María del Carmen Delgado y Fernández de Santaella. The Duchess and Duke of Soria have two children: **Don Alfonso Zurita y Borbón (born 9 August 1973) **Doña María Zurita y Borbón (born 16 September 1975) File:L’infante_Hélène_d’Espagne,_duchesse_de_Lugo_en_2011_(cropped).jpg, The Duchess of Lugo File:(Froilán) Presentación de los carteles de la feria taurina de San Isidro 2 (cropped).jpg, Felipe de Marichalar y Borbón File:Victoria_Federica_de_Marichalar_y_de_Borbón_(cropped-2).png, Victoria de Marichalar y Borbón File:Infanta Cristina, Duchess of Palma de Mallorca.jpg,

File:Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Soria cropped.jpg, The Duchess and Duke of Soria

House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies

* Princess Anne, Dowager Duchess of Calabria, is the widow of Infante Carlos, Duke of Calabria (16 January 1938 – 5 October 2015), who was the cousin of King Juan Carlos I. Princess Anne was born on 4 December 1938, and she is the daughter of Henri, Count of Paris, and Princess Isabelle of Orléans-Braganza. She married the Duke of Calabria on 11 May 1965. The couple had five children. File:Princess Anne, Duchess of Calabria (cropped).jpg, The Dowager Duchess

Royal family tree

;Notes * - Member of the Royal Family (as opposed to the Family of the King, or extended family) ** - Member of the Extended royal family

Public role

Members of the Spanish Royal Family are often asked by

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

charitable Charity is the voluntary provision of assistance to those in need. It serves as a humanitarian act, and is unmotivated by self-interest. Various philosophies about charity exist, with frequent associations with religion. Etymology The word ...

cultural Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

, or religious organizations within and outside Spain to become their

patrons Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

, a role the Spanish constitution recognizes and codified in Title II Article 62 (j). It is incumbent for the monarch "to exercise the High Patronage of the Royal Academies". Royal patronage conveys a sense of official credibility as the organization is scrutinized for suitability. A royal presence often greatly raises the profile of the organization and attracts media publicity and public interest that the organization may not have otherwise garnered, aiding in the charitable cause or cultural event. Royalty make use of their considerable

celebrity Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...

to assist the organization to raise funds or to promote government policy. Additionally, members of the royal family may also pursue their own charitable and cultural interests. Queen Sofía devotes much of her time to the Queen Sofia Foundation (''Fundación Reina Sofía''); while

presents the annual

Princess of Asturias Awards The Princess of Asturias Awards (, ), formerly the Prince of Asturias Awards from 1981 to 2014 (), are a series of annual prizes awarded in Spain by the Princess of Asturias Foundation (previously the Prince of Asturias Foundation) to individuals ...

(''Premios Princesa de Asturias''), which aims to promote "scientific, cultural and humanistic values that form part of mankind's universal heritage."Prince of Asturias Foundation
/ref> The Princess of Asturias Foundation (''Fundación Princesa de Asturias'') holds the annual

acknowledging the contributions of individuals, entities, and/or organizations from around the world who make notable achievements in the sciences, humanities, or public affairs. King Felipe VI serves as president of the

Organization of Ibero-American States The Organization of Ibero-American States (, , ; abbreviated as OEI), formally the Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture, is an international organization made up of Member states of the Organization of Ibero-Am ...

which hosts the annual

Ibero-American Summit The Ibero-American Summit, formally the Ibero-American Conference of Heads of State and Governments (, ), is a yearly meeting of the heads of government and state of the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking nations of Europe and the Americas, as mem ...

, serves as president of the Codespa Foundation, which finances specific economic and social development activities in Latin American and other countries, and serves as president of the Spanish branch of the Association of European Journalists, which is composed of achieving communications professionals. King Felipe VI also serves as honorary chair of the Ministry of Culture National Awards Ceremonies.

, Juan Carlos' elder daughter, is the Director of Cultural and Social Projects of Mapfre Foundation, while

, Juan Carlos' younger daughter, served as the Goodwill Ambassador to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

for the 2nd World Assembly on Ageing, and is a member of the Dali Foundation Board of Trustees, president of the International Foundation for Disabled Sailing, and Director of Social Welfare at the La Caixa Foundation in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

where she lives with her family. King Juan Carlos, Queen Sofia, and Infanta Cristina are all members of the

Bilderberg Group The Bilderberg Meeting (also known as the "Bilderberg Group", "Bilderberg Conference" or "Bilderberg Club") is an annual off-the-record forum established in 1954 to foster dialogue between Europe and North America. The group's agenda, originally ...

, an informal

think-tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

Titles and styles

Members of the royal family

Members of the King's family

House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies

Royal family tree

Public role

See also

Notes

References

External links