Princess Leonor swears the flag in Zaragoza at the start of a key month for her future as heir

The Kings will accompany the heir to the throne for the occasion and Felipe VI will make a speech

MADRID, 7 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Princess Leonor will swear the flag this Saturday along with her classmates at the General Military Academy of Zaragoza, where she has begun her military training, at the start of a key month for her future as heir to the throne that she will crown with the swearing in of the Constitution before the Cortes on October 31.

The future captain general of the Armed Forces began her military training on August 17 at 'la General', as the Army Academy is popularly known, and, after completing the first phase of her instruction and receiving the saber that symbolically accredits her as a lady cadet, this Saturday she will carry out the most transcendental act in the life of the military: the swearing of the flag. With this, they commit to defending Spain, even at the cost of their own lives.

Unlike what happened with her father, King Felipe VI, the Princess of Asturias will not take the flag oath alone but accompanied by more than 400 other cadets who, like her, have recently begun their training. Don Felipe, who completed this important procedure in October 1985 in an event that was chaired by Juan Carlos I, will speak during the event, as his father, who also studied at 'la General', did at the time. .

On this occasion, the heir to the throne will be supported by her parents, the Kings, but not by her sister, Infanta Sofía, who is studying Baccalaureate at the same center in Wales where she did. When the then Prince of Asturias was sworn in alone, the highest levels of the State attended, including the then president, Felipe González.

However, at this Saturday's event the Government will be represented by the acting Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, given that the president, Pedro Sánchez, will be in Granada, where a PSOE event is planned.

The flag oath will take place in the courtyard of the Academy, where its director, General Manuel Pérez López, will be in charge of pronouncing the oath formula: "Gentlemen and ladies ensigns, cadets, cadets and students! Do you swear by God or Do you promise, out of your conscience and honor, to faithfully fulfill your military obligations, to keep and ensure that the Constitution is kept as a fundamental norm of the State, to obey and respect the King and your leaders, to never abandon them and, if necessary, to give your life in defense of Spain? ".

Next, the lady cadet Borbón Ortiz and her companions will respond in unison with the cry of "yes we swear", after which all of them will parade one by one kissing the flag and thus materializing the oath they have taken.

The flag that Princess Leonor and the rest of the cadets will kiss was made by order of Queen María Cristina of Habsburg, widow of Alfonso XII, and was embroidered by Spanish artists of the time. The presentation of the flag took place on July 17, 1886 at the Alcázar of Toledo, the initial headquarters of the General Military Academy, as explained on the Academy's website.

After kissing the flag, a ritual that more than 29,000 officers have already carried out, there will be a parade for three of the cadets who will pass under the arch formed by the saber and the flag, thus symbolizing that the country accepts its oath .

The event will conclude with a speech by the general director of the Academy, a tribute to those who gave their lives for Spain, the interpretation of the Academy anthem and a parade of the cadet units.

Less than a week later, the heir to the throne will once again be present at the traditional parade on October 12, after two years away due to her high school studies in Wales. However, unlike her father, who did parade while he was undergoing his military training, it is not expected that on this occasion Princess Leonor will participate in the parade, which this year has been moved to the Plaza de Neptuno .

On October 20, another date marked in recent years on Princess Leonor's agenda will take place, the delivery of the Princess of Asturias Awards. As in previous editions, she will be accompanied by her parents and it will still be the King who presides over the ceremony at the Campoamor Theatre, since the Princess of Asturias has not yet reached the age of majority, but next year she will be the one to do so.

In addition to the presentation of the prestigious awards, which this year have gone to actress Meryl Streep and writer Haruki Murakami, among others, the Kings and Princess Leonor will attend the traditional concert the day before and on October 21 the three will visit the parishes of Arroes, Pion and Candanal, in the council of Villaviciosa, and who have received this year the award for the exemplary town of Asturias.

But without a doubt, the most important day in the Princess of Asturias' calendar is October 31. That day she reaches the age of majority and, as established by the Constitution, she will swear the Magna Carta before the Cortes in a solemn session in the Congress of Deputies to which only the Kings and the Infanta Sofía will attend.

Zarzuela recently settled speculation about the eventual presence of the King Emeritus at his granddaughter's swearing in of the Constitution, since when the then Prince of Asturias did the same on January 30, 1986, Don Juan, her grandfather, was present at the event. , indicating that he will only attend the family celebration that will take place at the Palacio del Pardo, to which, in addition to Don Felipe's family, Doña Sofía's family has also been invited.

The King's parents will also not attend the delivery of the Collar of the Order of Charles III that will take place in the Royal Palace after the formal ceremony in Congress, nor the lunch that will take place for the historic oath of the future Queen to which they will be invited. the highest authorities of the State.