Imogen Calderwood
IT was an austerity coronation to beat all others.
As far as PR campaigns go it certainly got the message across to the masses.
Apart from the fact that the bargain coronation had no foreign dignitaries or royalty, the new King Felipe VI has also made it clear he and his family will not be living in the extravagant Zarzuela Palace in Madrid.
However, he will be using its main office, but with one key change.
The first move of the new king was a spot of symbolic decorating as he took over his dad’s office in the palace.
Felipe has stripped the wall of its former centrepiece – a painting of Felipe de Borbon, who later became the future Duke of Parma and founder of the Borbon-Parma dynasty.
In its place now sits an oil painting of King Carlos III, an enlightened monarch renowned for his development of science and culture.
He was also the mayor of Madrid.
Let’s hope the change of decor is an inspiration to the new king.
