By Jessica Wedemeyer
1:00pm PST, Dec 20, 2023
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In August 2023, Queen Letizia and King Felipe of Spain said goodbye to the older of their two daughters, Princess Leonor, as the then-17-year-old future queen kicked off three years of military training at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain.
After a year at the military academy, Leonor will transfer to the Naval Military Academy at Marín in Pontevedra, Spain, where she'll work as a midshipman aboard the Juan Sebastián de Elcano training ship. She'll then spend a year studying with the Spanish Air and Space Force at the Aeronaval Base in San Javier, Spain.
When she completes her studies, she'll rank as a lieutenant in both the army and the air force. She'll rank as an ensign in Spain's navy.
When she becomes Spain's first queen regnant since Queen Isabella II — who reigned from 1833 to 1868 — Princess Leonor will also become the leader of the country's armed forces.
Her father, King Felipe — who's currently the captain general of Spain's army, navy and air force — studied at multiple military academies and even earned his pilot wings.
According to CNN, during an Aug. 15 press conference, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles said of the future queen's training, "It's an essential step in the life of Her Royal Highness … toward the leadership of our country. … It shows that we will have, when the time comes, a supreme commander who is a woman, and in the recent years, we've made a big effort to incorporate women into the armed forces."
Join us as we take a look at the best photos of the future queen as she kicked off her work as a Lady Cadet and continued her military training, starting with this shot…
Princess Leonor hit the slopes of Astun, a ski resort in in Huesca, Spain, in the Aragonese Pyrenees mountains, during her military training with her classmates from the General Military Academy of Zaragoza on Dec. 19, 2023. This mountain visit seeks to develop soldiers' skills in winter conditions and strengthen comprehensive military training.
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Princess Leonor hit the slopes of Astun, a ski resort in in Huesca, Spain, in the Aragonese Pyrenees mountains, during her military training with her classmates from the General Military Academy of Zaragoza on Dec. 19, 2023.
This mountain visit seeks to develop soldiers' skills in winter conditions and strengthen comprehensive military training.
MORE: Stars who've served in the military
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Princess Leonor marches alongside fellow cadets in uniform at a wreath-laying ceremony before the Statue of the Virgin of Pilar in Zaragoza, Spain, on Oct. 6, 2023.
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Princess Leonor of Spain appears in full military regalia at a flag swearing-in ceremony at the Military Academy of Zaragoza in Northern Spain on Oct. 7, 2023.
Her parents, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, attended the event.
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Spain's King Felipe VI salutes as he walks by cadets — including his daughter and heir to the Spanish throne, Princess Leonor — at a flag swearing-in ceremony at the Military Academy of Zaragoza in Northern Spain on Oct. 7, 2023.
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Spain's Royal Household released this photo of Princess Leonor taking part in a military training course at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, on Sept. 20, 2023, about a month into her three-year military education.
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Princess Leonor trains as a Lady Cadet at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, in August 2023.
The future queen's name-tag reads "Borbón Ortiz." Her full name — Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz — honors each of her parents' families: Spain's royal family belongs to the House of Bourbon, while Queen Letizia was born Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano.
In Spain and Spanish American countries, except Argentina, People magazine explained, people traditionally have two surnames: The first comes from their father and the second coms from their mother. Leonor is not using her royal titles during her military training.
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Princess Leonor — in full military fatigues — trains as a Lady Cadet at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, in August 2023.
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Princess Leonor dons a camouflage-print bucket hat while training as a Lady Cadet at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, in August 2023.
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Princess Leonor trains as a Lady Cadet with several of her peers at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, in August 2023.
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Princess Leonor wears her hair in a low bun while studying as a Lady Cadet at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, in August 2023.
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Princess Leonor trains as a Lady Cadet at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, in August 2023.
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Princess Leonor trains as a Lady Cadet at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, in August 2023.
