Tensions between Letizia and Sofia seem to have been confirmed with a bizarre confrontation after Easter Mass
A curiously Spanish scandal erupted this week. The former monarchs and current Royal family were being seen together in public for the first time in four years as they attended Easter mass in Mallorca when an extraordinary spat ensued.
A disagreement between Queen Sofia, the mother of the current King, Felipe VI – and his wife, Queen Letizia over the heir to the Spanish throne, Princess Leonor has had Spanish social media buzzing with outrage. Sofia prepared to position herself with her granddaughters for a photo and Leticia seems to intervene. There is a clear disagreement between the two women and the Princess throws her Grandmother’s arm of her shoulder twice during the tense moment. Felipe intervenes to try and calm the situation while his father Juan Carlos looks on from a distance with seeming bewilderment. The video was posted on Twitter by user @rabillodelojo and quickly went viral.
A further moment of tension happened outside the cathedral as Sofia kisses her granddaughter before Letizia seems to wipe the Princess’s forehead clean. The Spanish national newspaper El Pais reported that Queen Sofa “regrets” not having the opportunity to see the Princesses very often, even though the girls are “both living in Zarzuela Palace”, it is claimed this is down to the “strict discipline” enforced by Queen Letizia.
There is an aggressive reaction in Spain toward Letizia, people generally falling upon two positions, one that, Letizia is a commoner and has no class and the other is that no Grandmother should be treated so cruelly. We can only speculate as to what the underlying tensions may be and sources close to Letizia have said it is much ado about nothing, an instinctive reaction from a mother that is highly protective of her children and their image in the public eye. This does not explain the Princess throwing her Grandmother’s arm off twice, nor the act of “cleaning” Sofia’s kiss of her forehead shortly after. It is clearly the second incident that demonstrates something far deeper than a desire to protect two young girls from public exposure.
There have been rumours and counter rumours of tensions in the royal household for some time, in fact datingback to the announcement of the engagement between Felipe and Letizia, but it would seem that this episode has finally brought the feud to the public arena. There has, of yet, been no formal response from the Royal household, but the commentary at allowing a “Republican commoner” to become Queen have been vaunted once more, it would seem the former TV presenter Fairy Princess story is under considerable strain.