There won’t be a fire alert or a cat up a tree, but the firefighters They will make an appearance this Monday at the Congress of Deputies. Your mission will be very different from your daily life, nothing about dealing with fire or rescuing people. They will have to hang a gala canopy on the façade of the Lower House, the so-called ‘canopy‘, 130 square meters of red fabric, with silk embroidery, weighing about 220 kilos. It will be the final touch to a week of frenetic activity in Congress to celebrate, with the pomposity it deserves, the swearing of the Constitution of the Princess of Asturias, Leonor de Borbón.
The usual clientele of the Lower House changed completely in the last week. The deputies were replaced by carpenters, electricians and other workers to get everything ready for this 31 Octoberwhen Leonor will turn 18 and swear the Constitution, as marked by the article 61 of the Magna Carta itself. The objective of all of them has been replicate the scenery in which Felipe VI did the same in 198637 years ago.
The first of the missions was to remove from the chamber the more than 350 armchairs which are usually occupied by deputies, too large and bulky for this occasion in which senators will also attend. Instead, they have been installed 600 chairs upholstered in burgundy velvet for the parliamentarians of both Houses and no one else. Capacity problems are not expected, after formations such as CKD, Together, EH Bildu either PNV have already announced that they will not attend the event.
With the box seats ready, the most complex part arrived. The workers have had to dismantle the tribune that occupies the Congress Table to install in that space a scenario in which Leonor’s swearing will take place. To cover it, from the Royal Tapestry Factory a floral pattern rug, the same one that Felipe VI used in 1986 and in 2014, when he was crowned King. On that occasion, an eight-year-old Leonor already paraded through Congress. A decade later she returns, although this time as the protagonist.
This will not be the only similarity with the event held 37 years ago. Leonor will use a facsimile of the Constitution on which his father swore in 1987. As on that occasion, the weight of the volume will force a table to be installed in the middle of the platform, where the different powers of the State will also sit. The rest of the guests must observe the ceremony from the upper stands.
The act
With everything ready, the event will start this Tuesday at 11:00 in the morningwhen the Princess of Asturias, accompanied by her parents and sister, arrives at Congress, escorted by the squad of Lancers of the Royal Guard. Before the steps of the Lower House he will welcome you the president of Congress, Francina Armengoland that of the Senate, Pedro Rollan. Then, they will enter through the Lion Gate, which is only opened on special occasions.
After greeting the various authorities, the delegation will enter the chamber via a staircase installed for the occasion in the main hallway of the Chamber. The national anthem will sound, Armengol will give a speech, Leonor will swear in the Constitution, the anthem will sound again and the event will be over. Afterwards, the Princess of Asturias will receive the medals from the Congress and the Senate and will inaugurate the second Book of Honor of the Lower House. With this done, the celebration will move to the Palace Real Madridwhere the Government will impose on the princess Necklace of the Order of Charles III in the presence of the powers of the State.