One of the great celebrations that take place every year when the October 12th festival or National Holiday arrives is the military parade of the armed forces that takes place in Madrid. A great parade that last year was overshadowed due to the Coronavirus pandemic , but that this 2021 will take place tomorrow although with some restrictions. Let us then know all the information about the Parade of October 12 in Madrid with its route, schedule and keys.
October 12 parade in Madrid: route, schedule and keys
The traditional military parade that takes place every October 12 , the day of the National Holiday in Madrid, can be celebrated this year and also, recovering a route that surely the (few) attendees (allowed) will appreciate since they will be able to witness the parade in all its splendor although one more year in a somewhat “reduced” version. In this way, and after the 2020 parade that was completely removed from as it had always been, for this 2021 the route will extend through Paseo de la Castellana-Paseo de Recoletos and Paseo del Prado, in Madrid.
Thus, the idea of establishing a closed venue again for the events of October 12, as it already happened in 2020 when an event was organized at the Royal Palace of Madrid, is more than discarded and the parade through some of the main arteries of Madrid will begin to 10:00 am (according to the website of the Madrid City Council) with the initial presence of the Honors Battalion of the Royal Guard in the Plaza de Lima . Kings Felipe and Letizia will arrive at 10.30 am and it will be then that the acts of military honors will take place, with the tribute to those who fell by Spain, the paratrooper jump and the flag is raised.
After these acts, the military troops will begin the parade from the Plaza de Cuzco, until they reach the point designated as the end in Nuevos Ministerios, at the crossroads with Raimundo Fernández Villaverde. Once the parade is over, it will take place at the farewell of the monarchs and the lowering of the flag, for the subsequent celebration of a reception at the Royal Palace.
This will be the parade on October 12 in Madrid
The event will be halfway between what the Armed Forces parade was like before the pandemic and what it was like last year. In this way, although it will have this tour through main streets and we will also be able to see the spectacular nature of the air parade carried out by the Eagle Patrol, there will be a series of restrictions that have to do especially with the number of participating military personnel as well as the number of fact of guaranteeing security measures and also avoiding large crowds.
For this, the Ministry of Defense has not installed the stands that used to be erected next to the king’s rostrum. Some tiers that were occupied by spokespersons for congressional and Senate parliamentary groups, as well as other political and institutional representatives, almost always accompanied by their respective partners.
However, there will be institutional representatives, although in a reduced number, as seen in 2020. Of course, the presence of the Kings Felipe and Letizia and the Infanta SofÃa will stand out, but without Princess Leon, who will finally remain in the boarding school of Wales who is attending this course.
As for the people who used to gather at street level to see the parade up close, it seems that there will also be capacity restrictions adding that the designed route will actually be shorter and will also last less.
Reduction in the number of participating military personnel
And as for the military units that are going to parade, it is planned that a company of the Royal Guard will attend, as in 2020, and sections of about 30 soldiers representing the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Military Emergency Unit and the Civil Guard . As well as representatives of the Legion .
In terms of numbers, it is expected that there will be a midpoint between the slightly more than 500 military personnel who paraded in 2020 and the 4,200 who did so in 2019. This average term is estimated at 2,656 military personnel, 68 aircraft between airplanes and helicopters and 115 vehicles .
