Leonor de Borbón y Ortiz recently turned 20, but public interest around the heir to the Spanish throne continues to grow. Eldest daughter of Kings Felipe VI and Letizia, the princess of Asturias is today one of the most watched figures of European royalty and also one of the most reserved. According to Flash magazine, Leonor is seen by many as “the most mysterious princess in Europe”.
In 2024, still aged 19, she was awarded the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Christ in Portugal by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, in a ceremony that took place at the Belém Palace.
“It is a tribute to your highness, to the Kingdom of Spain, to our friendship forever”, stated the President of the Republic, quoted by SIC Notícias. The decoration highlighted the symbolic role of the young princess in the relationship between the two Iberian countries.
Destiny traced from birth
“Leonor has everything, except the freedom to choose her future”, said Pilar Eyre, journalist and writer cited by . The observation summarizes the condition of the princess, whose path was defined since her birth, on October 31, 2005, at the Ruber clinic, in Madrid. Direct heir to the Spanish crown, Leonor lives under permanent public and media scrutiny.
According to the same source, the young woman is currently the target of an authentic “Leonor Mania” in Spain. Many consider that she has already surpassed her mother, Queen Letizia, in popularity and media exposure, which increases curiosity about the future monarch.
The enigma of the princess of Asturias
Despite her public prominence, very little is still known about Leonor. “What we know about her barely fits on half a sheet of paper”, writes Pilar Eyre, quoted by the same magazine. The princess attended the Santa María de los Rosales School, studied at UWC Atlantic College in Wales, and speaks several languages. Furthermore, your daily life remains shrouded in silence.
The journalist adds that the heiress’ grades, friendships or extracurricular activities are not known. Little is also known about his performance in military training. “The information that exists is the result of rumors and assumptions never confirmed by the Zarzuela Palace”, he explains.
Childhood of silence and contrast
Pilar Eyre remembers that King Felipe VI had a childhood that was much more exposed to the public. “Thanks to his teachers and classmates, we knew that he played the flute, that he loved theater, that he had suffered minor injuries and even his blood type”, reports the writer. “But about Leonor, what do we know?” he asks.
According to the same source, the only occasion on which the princess spoke spontaneously in public was on a home video, in which she responded to her father with the word “two”, when he asked her how many tests she still had to take. Since then, communication around Leonor has been carefully controlled by the Zarzuela Palace.
Between Portugal and Spain, a symbol of continuity
The official visit to Lisbon and the decoration by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa reinforced the princess’s international presence at a time of consolidating her public image. According to SIC Notícias, the gesture of the Portuguese head of state was also “a tribute to the friendship between the two nations”.
Today, Leonor is simultaneously a symbol of institutional stability and mystery. He grows up at a time when transparency is required, but his figure continues to be shaped by the silence and reserve that his role imposes.
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