Pretty in lilac! Queen Letizia stuns in a plunging purple dress as she attends a conference with Felipe

Queen Letizia looked effortlessly elegant in a figure-hugging purple dress as she attended a conference in Cadiz with King Felipe this afternoon.

The European monarch, 50, beamed as she arrived at the Falla Theater ahead of the International Congress of the Spanish Language.

For the event, the mother-of-two – who recently split opinion by showing off her natural shades of gray – opted for a striking purple dress with a deep V-neckline.

In addition to ruffles around the chest, the midi dress also featured slightly puffed sleeves and a thigh-high slit down the front.

To match her spring-ready attire, Letizia accessorised her dress with a small £110 leather handbag from Spanish brand Olivia Mareque in the exact same shade of lilac.

Queen Letizia of Spain, 50, donned a plunging purple dress with ruffled sleeves to attend the International Congress of the Spanish Language at the Falla Theater in Cadiz this afternoon

But instead of keeping the chunky lilac leather strap that comes with the bag, Letizia opted for a £26 alternative – with two dainty leather knots either side.

Letizia let her spring-inspired dress take center stage and completed her ensemble with a pair of nude patent slingback heels by Venezuelan designer Carolina Herrera.

To complement the purple theme of her outfit, Letizia also opted for some brown toned makeup.

The queen was pictured with a shimmery smoky eye, which she balanced with a swipe of copper lipstick.

Letizia cut a sophisticated figure, styling her hair in a bouncy blow dryer with subtle loose waves.

Aside from some feather-shaped earrings, Letizia kept her jewelry to a bare minimum for the outing.

The royal joined her husband this afternoon to open the 10th International Congress of the Spanish Language.

After an opening speech, the King and Queen of Spain will visit two exhibitions of the conference organized by the Cervantes Institute.

They will later attend sessions featuring some of the 300 experts from around the Spanish-speaking world who have gathered for the conference.

Queen Letizia paired her purple dress with some blue and purple feathery drop earrings for her engagement today

The Queen pictured speaking to members of the public when she arrived at the venue in Cadiz with her husband King Felipe

The mother-of-two paired her lilac dress with nude patent slingback heels by Venezuelan designer Carolina Herrera

Pictured: King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain greet crowds outside the conference in Cadiz this afternoon

The queen accessorized her purple gown with a shimmery brown eyeshadow and copper lipstick

This includes an evening lecture at the Parador Nacional entitled “Unity and Diversity of Spanish: Tradition and the Challenge of Artificial Intelligence”.

Christa D Souza wrote for the Daily Mail today that Letizia’s gray stripe signifies “a woman who has given up”.

She wrote: “Gosh Queen Letizia of Spain, 50, is beautiful. This skin. This number. And this hair – luscious and brown and now with a single gray streak running down one side. Although on the front, if I may be so bold, Your Majesty, are you sure you agree with the grey?’

In 2021, stylists told FEMAIL that Letizia “embraced her authentic natural beauty” by showing off her gray hair.

Celebrity hairstylist Tom Smith said: “Lockdown has helped Queen Letizia adjust to her natural tones and she feels empowered and confident.

Queen Letizia looks more youthful and radiant with the shimmery gray.”

“Queen Letizia is making a bold statement by flaunting her gray roots in public while the world’s media will be criticizing her. Changing beauty ideals means gray hair is no longer taboo. Gray hair has become part of a person’s identity.”

Letizia, who previously worked as a journalist, has been working closely with the Royal Spanish Academy for several years, which has been the official institution overseeing the Spanish language since 1713.

Queen Letizia of Spain was pictured with a strand of her gray hair at an engagement earlier this month

Pictured: Queen Letizia of Spain shows off her natural gray stripe while attending the 10th Promotion of Honorary Ambassadors for the ‘Spain’ brand at the Palacio Real de El Pardo

The Queen, whose father Jesús José Ortiz Álvarez and stepmother Ana Togores are both journalists, met her husband King Felipe when she was asked to interview him in her job as a reporter.

Letizia’s media career was a long one, beginning with a stint at the Asturian daily La Nueva España.

Next came a role at ABC, a popular national newspaper with the third largest circulation in Spain, before working at EFE and Guadelajara-based Mexican publication Siglo 21.

Back in Spain a year later, she worked for the Spanish version of Bloomberg, a news channel and news agency specializing in economics, before moving to CNN+.

When she met her future husband, Letizia worked for the popular TV channel 24 Horas, where she hosted the popular evening news show Telediario 2.