The president of the Congress of Deputies and the president of the Senate, on behalf of the Cortes Generales, presides over the solemn Flag-raising ceremony to celebrate the Constitution Day

• They were accompanied by the Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral General Teodoro Esteban López Calderón

The president of the Congress of Deputies, Meritxell Batet, and the president of the Senate, Ánder Gil, representing the Cortes Generales, have presided over the solemn raising of the National Flag on the occasion of the 44th anniversary of the Constitution. On this occasion the responsibility of the hoisting has fallen on the Guardia Civil.

This is the first time that the flag-raising ceremony has taken place at the main door of the Congress of Deputies, as it is usually held in the Jardines del Descubrimiento in the Plaza de Colón.

The President of the Congress of Deputies and the President of the Senate were accompanied by the Chief of Defence Staff (JEMAD), Admiral General Teodoro Esteban López Calderón. The Chief of Staff of the Army Amador Enseñat y Berea, the Admiral Chief of Staff of the Navy Antonio Martorell Lacave, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force Javier Salto, the Director General of the Guardia Civil, María Gámez, the Secretary General for Defence Policy, Admiral Juan Francisco Martínez Núñez and the Deputy Director of Operations of the National Police, Chief Commissioner José Ángel González Jiménez, also attended the ceremony.

On his arrival at the Carrera de San Jerónimo, before the beginning of the ceremony, the JEMAD was received by Major General José Antonio Berrocal Anaya, head of the 1st Zone of the Guardia Civil.

The Guard of Honour, commanded by the Captain of the Guardia Civil, Arturo Fernández Moratalla, head of the 1st Company of the Reserve and Security Group N.1, was composed of the following members: Honor Unit- Sappers-, Music Unit and a Mixed Company formed by a Section of the Army, a Section of the Navy, a Section of the Air Force and a Section of the Guardia Civil.

The Sections belong to the Infantry Regiment "Inmemorial del Rey" N.1 - Spanish Army-, the Marines -Spanish Navy-, the Security Unit of the Air Force Headquarters and the Reserve and Security Group N.1 of the Civil Guard.

The hoisting team is made up of personnel from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Guardia Civil and the National Police.

The sequence of events was as follows:

• Arrival of the JEMAD
• Arrival of the President of the Congress and the President of the Senate
• Honours to the authorities
• Inspection of the Guard of Honour
• Flag Raising
• Parade of the Guard of Honour

The flag hoisting ceremony at Plaza de Colón [Columbus Square] is held every third Wednesday on a monthly basis. Four times per year, the hoisting is performed on an extraordinary manner and is called Solemn hoisting. The first of those four takes place on May 15, on the occasion of San Isidro holyday. The second one on June 19, the anniversary of the proclamation of H.M. the King. The third is on 12 July, on the anniversary of the Constitutional Court, and the fourth is on 6 December, the Day of the Spanish Constitution.

The flag hoisted on this occasion measures 4x3 metres and the flagstaff on which it has been raised measures 12 metres and has been supplied by the Unidad Militar de Emergencias (UME)