The Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, has announced that the City Council will award the Gold Key of the City to Pope Leo XIV during the Pontiff’s visit to the capital on June 7, in his capacity as head of State of the Vatican City.
The announcement was made during the informational breakfast of Nueva Economía Fórum, an event in which the president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Monsignor Luis Argüello, also participated. Almeida described the Pope’s visit as “historic,” recalling that since the World Youth Day in 2011 with Benedict XVI, no pontiff had visited Spain.
Madrid will receive the Pope with its highest institutional distinction
The awarding of the Gold Key of the City is framed within the Regulations on Honors and Distinctions of the Madrid City Council, which provides for this distinction for foreign heads of State as a gesture of courtesy and international friendship.
The piece, crafted as a work of goldsmithing, symbolically reproduces the ancient keys of the city wall and represents the trust and welcome of the Madrileños to the leaders who officially visit the city.
Almeida assured that Madrid “feels deeply proud” to receive the Holy Father and to offer him “the welcome he deserves.”
“An indispensable moral compass”
The mayor emphasized that the presentation of the Gold Key will be a “testimony of the affection, admiration, and affection” of Madrid toward Leo XIV, whom he defined as “an indispensable moral compass in the times we live in.”
Almeida also used the announcement to reclaim the Christian roots of the capital. Madrid, he stated, is “a city that does not ignore or forget its roots” and that is built upon them as “the best way to face our future.”
The precedent of Benedict XVI
The presentation of the Gold Key to Leo XIV follows the municipal tradition of honoring great international leaders who visit Madrid on official trips.
During his visit to the capital in 2011 on the occasion of World Youth Day, Benedict XVI received the same distinction.
