The Kings preside over the Spanish Armed Forces Day

 

Parade before the Kings, in Madrid

Tribute in Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Flag Raising in A Coruña

Their Majesties the King Don Felipe and Queen Doña Letizia presided over the key events in Madrid on May the 30th on the occasion of the Spanish Armed Forces Day, consisting of a tribute to those who have given their lives for Spain and a military parade.

The events began first thing in the morning with the raising of the Flag in the Jardines del Decubrimiento (Discovery Gardens), near Plaza de Colón, Madrid.

Later, at eleven thirty in the morning, the Kings were received by the acting president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso; the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles; the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida; and the Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral General Teodoro E. López Calderón in Plaza de la Lealtad.

After listening to the Spanish national anthem, the King reviewed the formation made up of a company of honours from the Royal Guard, and greeted the other attending authorities, led by the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska; the president of the Madrid Assembly, Juan Trinidad, the Government delegate in the Community of Madrid, Mercedes González; and the rest of the authorities of the Ministry of Defence, among them, the Chief of Staff of the Army, Army General Francisco. J. Varela.

Later, an act of homage to those who gave their lives for Spain took place, with the interpretation of the anthem “La merte no es el final” (Death is not the end). Next, Don Felipe deposited a laurel wreath carried by two soldiers of the 1st Infantry Regiment "Inmemorial del Rey", at the foot of the monument to the fallen and listened to the interpretation of the prayer call, concluded with a rifle shot, while the sky was dyed red and yellow as the Patrulla Águila (Eagle Patrol) passed.

Finally, there was a brief parade on foot along Paseo del Prado, led by a mixed battalion made up of a squad of “Gastador” soldiers, a flag guard, music unit and five companies belonging to the Royal Guard, the Army,  specifically to the "Inmemorial del Rey" Regiment, the Navy, the Air Force and the Civil Guard.

The morning had begun with the traditional raising of the National Flag in the Jardines del Descubrimiento, next to Plaza de Colón, and concluded with a videoconference from the General Headquarters of the Defense Staff in which the King, the Minister and The Chief of the Defence Staff contacted different Spanish contingents on international missions.

Other celebrations

The Day of the Spanish Armed Forces was celebrated throughout Spain, as well as in all those parts of the world where Spanish Armed Forces are deployed. In Spain, tribute events were held, among other places, in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, presided over by the head of the Canary Islands General Command, Lieutenant General Carlos Palacios; in A Coruña, chaired by the head of the Operations Support Command, General Juan F. Arrazola; in Palma de Mallorca, presided over by the general commander of the Balearic Islands, General Fernando G. Blázquez; in Ceuta, presided over by the general commander of Ceuta, General Alejandro Escámez; and in Melilla, presided over by the general commander of Melilla, General José M. de los Santos.