José_Manuel_de_Zuleta_y_Alejandro
José Manuel de Zuleta y Alejandro, 14th Duke of Abrantes, GE, is a Spanish aristocrat and senior Spanish Army officer who currently serves as Private Secretary to Queen Letizia since 2014.
The Duke of Abrantes | |
|---|---|
| Private Secretary to the Queen | |
| Assumed office 25 June 2014 | |
| Monarch | Queen Letizia |
| Preceded by | Arturo Luis Coello Villanueva |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1960-12-08) 8 December 1960 (age 63) Melilla, Spain |
| Spouse |
Ana Pérez de Guzmán y Lizasoain
(m. 1986) |
| Children | 4 |
| Parents |
|
| Alma mater | General Military Academy |
| Profession | Military officer, courtier |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Spain |
| Branch/service |  Spanish Army |
| Years of service | 1979– |
| Rank | Divisional general |
He was born on 8 December 1960, in Melilla, Spain. The son of José Manuel de Zuleta de Reales y Carvajal, 13th Duke of Abrantes and Virginia Alejandro y García, he joined the General Military Academy in 1979 and graduated with the rank of lieutenant in 1984.
In the mid-1990s, he started to work in the Royal Household,[1] serving in relevant positions in the Royal Guard, in the King's Military Household and in the Protocol Department.[2]
In 2007, he joined the Household of the Prince of Asturias (Prince' Secretariat), where he assisted the Princess of Asturias, Letizia.[1] In 2014, after the accession to the throne of King Felipe VI, he was appointed head of Queen Letizia's Secretariat.[3]
In 2019, he was promoted to the rank of divisional general (OF-7).[1]
On early April 2024, the Royal Household made public that the Duke would step down as private secretary to the Queen after 17 years of service. He would be replaced by State lawyer María Dolores Ocaña Madrid.[4]
In 1986, he married Ana Pérez de Guzmán y Lizasoain,[3] daughter of Joaquín Pérez de Guzmán y Escrivá de Romani, 6th count of La Marquina. They have four daughters: Ana Luisa, María, Blanca and Loreto.[5] In 2009, the Duke granted his eldest daughter, Ana Luisa, the title of marchioness of Sardoal.[6]
His brother, Felipe de Zuleta y Alejandro, was the riding instructor of the Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo.[3]
In June 1978, shortly after coming of age, his father gave him the title of 14th marquess of Sardoal,[7] a title he held until 2009, when he did the same with his eldest daughter, Ana Luisa.[6]
He currently holds the following titles:
- 14th Duke of Abrantes, grandee of Spain.
- 6th marquess of the Duero, grandee of Spain.
- 15th marquess of Valdefuentes.
- 23rd count of Balalcázar.
- 18th count of Casares.
- 15th count of Lences.
- 5th count of Cancelada.
Other honors
- Grand Cross of the Royal and Military Order of Saint Hermenegild (2016).
- Grand Cross of Military Merit, with White Decoration (2017).
- "Un general, a las órdenes de doña Letizia". El País (in Spanish). 2019-03-14. ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
- "HomeÁrea de Prensa - D. José Manuel". casareal.es. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
- Higuera, Raoul (2014-06-27). "José Manuel Zuleta, la nueva mano derecha de la Reina doña Letizia". vanitatis.elconfidencial.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-08-22.
- González, Belén Domínguez Cebrián, Miguel (2024-04-05). "La Zarzuela pone por primera vez a una mujer al frente de la Secretaría de la Reina". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-04-07.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Tiburcio, Núria (2019-03-13). "José Manuel Zuleta, la 'mano' de la Reina, consigue un ascenso". vanitatis.elconfidencial.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-08-22.