Felipe VI | |||||
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King of Spain (more...) | |||||
Reign | 19 June 2014 – present | ||||
Enthronement | 19 June 2014 | ||||
Predecessor | Juan Carlos I | ||||
Heir presumptive | Leonor | ||||
Prime Minister | Mariano Rajoy | ||||
Born |
Nuestra Señora de Loreto Clinic, Madrid, Spain |
30 January 1968 ||||
Spouse | Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano (m. 2004) | ||||
Issue |
Leonor, Princess of Asturias Infanta Sofía |
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House | Bourbon | ||||
Father | Juan Carlos I of Spain | ||||
Mother | Sofía of Greece and Denmark | ||||
Religion | Roman Catholic | ||||
Signature |
Full name | |
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Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia |
Felipe VI (Spanish: [feˈlipe]; born 30 January 1968) is the King of Spain. He ascended to the throne on 19 June 2014 following the abdication of his father, King Juan Carlos I. He is the only son of Juan Carlos and his wife Sofía of Greece and Denmark. When Juan Carlos was chosen in 1969 to be Francisco Franco's successor, Felipe became second in line to the Spanish throne. Felipe became heir apparent when Juan Carlos succeeded Franco as head of state following his death in 1975. He was created Prince of Asturias in 1977, the traditional title for the first in line.
As Prince of Asturias, he worked to support philanthropic causes and to promote international fellowship among Spanish-speaking countries. In 2004, Felipe married TV presenter Letizia Ortiz with whom he has two daughters. Leonor, the elder, is his heir apparent. He succeeded his father as King of Spain when he abdicated in 2014. In accordance with the Spanish Constitution, as monarch, he is head of state and commander-in-chief of the Spanish Armed Forces, and also plays a role in promoting relations with Hispanic America, the "nations of its historical community".
Felipe was born in Madrid at the Nuestra Señora de Loreto Clinic, the third child and only son of Infante Juan Carlos of Spain and Princess Sofía of Greece and Denmark. He was baptised on 8 February 1968 at the Palace of Zarzuela by the Archbishop of Madrid, Casimiro Morcillo. His full baptismal name, Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos, consists of the names of the first Bourbon King of Spain (Philip V), his grandfathers (Infante Juan of Spain and King Paul of Greece), his great-grandfather King Alfonso XIII of Spain, and de Todos los Santos as is customary among the Bourbons. His godparents were his paternal grandfather Juan and his paternal great-grandmother, Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain. Shortly after his birth he was styled infante, although his father was not yet king. The ruling dictator General Francisco Franco died just over two months before Felipe's eighth birthday, and Felipe's father ascended the throne. In his first official appearance, Felipe attended his father's proclamation as king on 22 November 1975.