Princess Leonor has completed military training across Spain’s three armed forces and received the Grand Cross of Aeronautical Merit from her father, King Felipe VI. Her training began in August 2023 and included academic study and field exercises at several military academies. The three-year program took her through each branch, preparing her for future responsibilities as heir to the Crown.
The Royal Household released a two-and-a-half-minute video on its social media channels, offering a rare look at Leonor’s journey. Some footage had not been seen before. It opens with her arrival at the Academia General Militar in Zaragoza and follows basic moments, from the flag oath to trench maneuvers and tank training. The scenes trace her integration with first-year cadets and later with the 82nd promotion as her military education progressed. Leonor began this stage after completing the International Baccalaureate at UWC Atlantic College in Wales and swearing allegiance to the Spanish Constitution before the Cortes Generales upon reaching adulthood.
Leonor continued her Navy training during the 2024-2025 academic year. She joined third-year students of the 427th promotion at the Escuela Naval Militar in Marín, Pontevedra, and sailed aboard the Juan Sebastián de Elcano training ship, putting academy instruction to practical use at sea. The video also captures family moments, including farewells in Cádiz and a stopover in Gijón with her sister, Princess Sofía. She spent her final year at the Academia General del Aire y del Espacio in San Javier, Murcia, training alongside the 78th promotion. There, she piloted a PC-21 aircraft and completed parachuting courses. She also flew with King Felipe VI and finished the final phase as an alférez alumna of the Air and Space Force.
Although Leonor’s formal military training has ended, she will not receive her official commissions as lieutenant in the Army and Air and Space Force, or as ensign in the Navy, until the 2026-2027 academic year. Her cohort’s final phase of studies is due to conclude in July 2027, when she is scheduled to take part in official commissioning ceremonies in Zaragoza, Marín, and San Javier. Until then, she has started the civilian university phase of her education: in September 2026, she began studying Political Science at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid’s Getafe campus.
The Royal Family’s involvement in these milestones has drawn large attention, particularly after the recent graduation event in Murcia, where Leonor received the distinction from King Felipe VI. For details of the ceremony and its protocol, see the coverage of the Murcia graduation event. Her move to university and a more prominent public role follows training across the three services. King Felipe VI described the family’s reaction to her new stage as “a mixture of excitement, pride and uncertainty that accompanies every impressive beginning,” in remarks reported by Vanitatis.
Correos has also marked Leonor’s military pathway with a four-stamp issue in its “Casa Real Española” series. The stamps depict her progression through the academies, including uniforms and insignia, decorations, and changing roles from cadet to naval trainee and pilot student. Correos presented the issue as recognition of a impressive stage in the heir’s institutional trajectory. The program broadly followed the structure of King Felipe VI’s military preparation, adapted to the academies’ current arrangements.
Military preparation for Spanish heirs is intended to equip future monarchs with leadership skills and an understanding of national defense. Leonor’s program combined academic study with naval and aeronautical training at the Academia General Militar in Zaragoza, the Escuela Naval Militar in Marín, and the Academia General del Aire y del Espacio in San Javier. Her university studies extend that preparation as she takes on a growing role in public life. By October 2026, she had begun receiving recipients of the Princess of Asturias Awards without her parents accompanying her, another marker of the transition. The ceremonies scheduled for 2027 will formalize her military ranks and mark a further stage in her public responsibilities.
