After King Juan Carlos of Spain abdicated on Wednesday evening, one of the first notable changes to be seen was online.The Spanish royal family's official website was changed overnight, in honour of the new reigning monarch King Felipe and Queen Letizia.
Royal watchers will have noted that a photograph of King Juan Carlos and his wife Queen Sofía – who have reigned for 39 years – had previously graced the main page of www.casareal.es. That had been taken down, presumably to make way for the first official picture of Spain's new king and queen. A quote was also removed which dated back to a speech Juan Carlos made in 2011. It reiterated the Spanish crown's duties of democracy, unity and service to the people.The profiles and individual pages of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía still read "his majesty" and "her majesty" respectively, as the couple were expected to keep their official titles, while Felipe and Letizia saw changes from "prince" and "princess" to "king" and "queen".
Before King Juan Carlos could legally abdicate, a law was passed and approved by Mr Rajoy and the Spanish government, which stated that he would be stepping down. The ceremony took place at the Royal Palace on Wednesday at 6pm local time in front of 150 witnesses.Thursday morning will be dedicated to Prince Felipe VI. The swearing-in will happen at 9:30am when King Juan Carlos will hand over his military sash to his son Felipe, during a ceremony at the Palace of Zarzuela located on the outskirts of Madrid.The newly proclaimed King Felipe VI, his wife Queen Letizia and their two children Princess Leonor – who will be styled as the Princess of Asturias – and Princess Sofía will leave the palace and head to the Spanish Parliament.King Felipe will give a speech, the national anthem will be sung and the constitution will be reiterated.The family of four will then be driven around the streets of Madrid to greet the Spanish people, as well as making an appearance on the palace balcony.