The Spanish royal family has respected this tradition for years: on Epiphany, Queen Letizia visits her father. Although January 6 is a busy day for sovereigns, Letizia and Felipe usually share the king cake with Jesús Ortiz and their two daughters, Leonor and Sofia. This year, Telma Ortiz and Paloma Rocasolano, Letizia’s sister and mother, were also present at the family Reunion.
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Reunion of the Ortiz clan: Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia reunite with their grandfather, aunt and grandmother for Twelfth Day
In Spain, January 6 is Military Easter Day, a celebration that remembers the Spanish military victory against British troops in the Balearic Islands in 1782. This date is today dedicated to the Spanish armed forces and serves as a celebration of new year. King Felipe, 56, Queen Letizia, 52, and Princess Leonor, 19, make their first public engagement of the new year by presiding over ceremonies in front of and in the Royal Palace of Madrid, starting at noon .
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A few hours after this highly anticipated and highly publicized event, King Felipe and Princess Leonor had removed their military uniforms, while Queen Letizia had abandoned her gala dress, to go more discreetly to Letizia’s father. Epiphany Day is sacred to the royal family, who have a tradition of meeting at Jesús Ortiz’s house every January 6. The family meeting is of course completely private but the sovereigns have gotten into the habit of greeting behind the windows of their car and smiling at the journalists stationed in front of Letizia’s father’s house.
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Telma Ortiz and Paloma Rocasolano present at the family reunion organized by Jesús Ortiz
Princess Leonor, who will board the training ship Juan Sebastián Elcano this Saturday, was seated in the back of the car next to her sister, the Infanta Sofia. Princess Leonor certainly had something to tell her grandfather, as she is preparing to spend the next five months at sea. Infanta Sofia, 17, was present this year, while last year she had missed this family meeting, already back in Wales where she is finishing her secondary studies.
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This year, another surprise: Queen Letizia’s sister was present. Telma Ortiz was photographed arriving by car in front of her father’s house. His partner, Irish lawyer Robert Gavin Bonnar, was driving the car. Telma is the mother of two girls, the last of whom was born in 2021. Telma’s second pregnancy caused a lot of talk in the press due to her age. Telma and Robert are now 51 and 57 years old.
Another surprise: the presence of Paloma Rocasolano, the mother of Letizia and Telma. Jesús and Paloma are divorced but Queen Letizia’s parents meet frequently for family reunions which are not always easy to organize due to the royal couple’s schedule. Paloma arrived alone by car at her ex-husband’s home, having traveled from the region of Murcia, where she now lives with her partner, Marcus Brandler. All together, they shared the famous kings roscónthe Spanish equivalent of the galette des Rois, which is a brioche cake presented in the shape of a crown. This family reunion of the close-knit Ortiz clan recalls the sad absence of Erika, sister of Letizia and Telma, who ended her life in 2007.
Nicolas Fontaine
Editor-in-chief
Nicolas Fontaine has been a designer-editor and author for numerous Belgian and French brands and media. A specialist in royal family news, Nicolas founded the site Histoires royales of which he is the editor-in-chief. [email protected]
