The future queen of the Netherlands bloomed up in Madrid on Monday to open a tulip garden in time for spring.
Princess Catharina-Amalia studied online from the Spanish capital in 2023 after the Moroccan mafia threatened to kidnap her from her student residence while studying at the University of Amsterdam. As a result of the threats, the future queen initially moved out of student housing and back into her parents’ home before settling abroad in Madrid, partially under the protection of the Spanish Royal Family.
The future queen sent tulip bulbs to the city as a thank you last November, with Dutch Ambassador to Spain, Roel Nieuwenkamp, and the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, planting them in the Plaza de Oriente in front of the Royal Palace of Madrid.
At the time, Princess Amalia shared on social media how “[t]he warmth with which I was received ensured that it could also become my home for a while” and that her gift of tulips would be “a piece of Dutch floral splendor” that “especially in the spring, it will add some extra color to life in Madrid, just as the city has given me.”
On Monday, she arrived in Madrid under absolute secrecy—her engagement was not published in the Dutch Royal Court’s schedule for security reasons—to unveil a plaque at her now-blooming garden. The plaque reads: “Muchas gracias por mi tiempo en Madrid. Disfruten los tulipanes” or “Many thanks for my time in Madrid, enjoy the tulips.”
This was also Princess Amalia’s first official solo visit abroad, and she was joined by Madrid’s Mayor Martínez-Almeida for the engagement. Afterwards, she spoke to briefly to the press, sharing how “Madrid is like a second home to me, especially in a time that was difficult in the Netherlands. In this very Dutch way I want to thank everyone who took care of my safety and well-being in Madrid.”
Mayor Martínez-Almeida said that the future queen’s tulip garden “moves us Madrid residents. It’s a very kind gesture that makes our gratitude eternal. These kilometers that separate us from Amsterdam are no longer a distance.”
