Proud moment for Spanish royals as baby Sofia is baptised

15 Jul 2007

Spain's Crown Princess Letizia and her husband Crown Prince Felipe glowed with pride on Sunday as they watched their second daughter Sofia being baptised in the gardens of Madrid's Zarzuela Palace. The little princess, who was born on April 29 and is named after her grandmother Queen Sofia, wore the same lace baptismal gown as her grandfather King Juan Carlos and was blessed with water from the river Jordan during the outdoor ceremony.

While it was undoubtedly blue-eyed Sofia's big day, her elder sister Princess Leonor ensured her share of the spotlight. The 21-month-old toddler elicited a smile from the Archbishop of Madrid as she played during the ceremony, at one point kicking off her shoes. Pretty in a white frock, she entertained the regal gathering as she danced for them on the lawn to the delight of her parents and grandparents.

Sofia is third in line to the Bourbon throne behind her father Felipe and her sister, but as the Spanish constitution stands if Letizia, 34, gives birth to a boy in the future he would then be second-in-line after his father.

Sunday's service marked a happy moment for former newsreader Letizia who had to cope with the tragic death of her younger sister Erika just months before giving birth to her second daughter.