Royal Protocol and Etiquette


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It is all pretty fluïd and no longer chiseled in granite who should come before who. The big lines are clear. The details can differ.
 
Prince Philip of England

I find it curious that Prince Philip walks behind Queen Elizabeth (I think it is two paces) even when they are not on an official visit somewhere. Even in the pictures where they sat on a blanket to show off the infant Prince Andrew, he walked behind her coming in. Little Prince Charles, and little Princess Anne were already seated on the blanket. When they walked out, the Queen pushed the new baby carriage herself, with the nurse walking just behind. Prince Philip was holding the other children's hands, and the three of them were behind the carriage and the nursemaid.

Maybe ANY photograph to be shown to the public must be arranged that way. I am happy they announced that in private the Royal Couple is still very affectionate with each other after 70 years together!!

It is known that Prince Philip gave up an entire, promising career in the Royal Navy in order to marry Queen Elizabeth. Romantic:p
 
He married Princess Elizabeth. He was still a naval officer until Queen Elizabeth acceded to the throne after her father's death. King George VI was always a rather frail man, but I think the couple hoped when they married in 1947 that they could have perhaps a decade before they had to be full time royals, even if, even after her marriage, Elizabeth had to help her parents by performing some engagements.
 
The Countess of Wessex said of The DofE that he was a "gentleman" and a "gentle man".

He was raised in an age where manners and politeness where taught to be second nature (although, maybe not so much political correctness).

I am sure his positioning is as much "ladies first" as it is "monarch followed by consort" - especially in an informal setting.
 
I don't think it's that uncommon for men to walk behind their wives at times. Just depends on the situation/location.


LaRae
 
I'm assuming this is the correct place for this question. Why is it that some royals wear their sashes differently? I noticed some wear on the right and some wear on the left.
 
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Depends on the order and what other orders are being worn at the time. There is no standard rule covering 'orders' in general only ones covering each order in turn.
 
i saw this picture of WA's 50th birthday banquet. to the right of the picture, the lady wearing white seems to be wearing a large hat. this was an evening reception where you can see the queen wearing a long dress (and other guests). from the pictures i have seen there weren't other ladies wearing hats. is it correct etiquette to wear a hat for an evening banquet inside? i assume the lady was wearing a long dress, but i may be wrong.

http://us.hola.com/imagenes/hola-en...ay/0-50-747/image-filename-900x540-king-a.jpg
 
i saw this picture of WA's 50th birthday banquet. to the right of the picture, the lady wearing white seems to be wearing a large hat. this was an evening reception where you can see the queen wearing a long dress (and other guests). from the pictures i have seen there weren't other ladies wearing hats. is it correct etiquette to wear a hat for an evening banquet inside? i assume the lady was wearing a long dress, but i may be wrong.



http://us.hola.com/imagenes/hola-en...ay/0-50-747/image-filename-900x540-king-a.jpg



I can't comment on European custom but here in the UK the 'rules' of hat wearing now go something like this -

Hats are worn by ladies at daytime functions inside and outside.

Hats are not generally worn after 6pm (The Queen sometimes does for example at the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony s few years ago).

Hats are not removed to eat, during the National Anthem etc.

When attending a wedding hats are removed around 6 o'clock, but guests take their lead from the mother of the bride.

So I would guess a hat at the King's Banquet wasn't strictly correct as the dress was Black Tie and very firmly an evening event!
 
No, I believe that hats were not required. That said, I can't blaim the lady for wanting to go all out the one day in her life she gets to eat diner next to the King.

Sent from my SM-A510F using The Royals Community mobile app
 
It's obvious that dress code wasn't properly specified. Maxima wore gala-dress more fitting for white-tie event, some ladies wore long dresses or cocktail dresses, some ladies wore daytime outfits.
It was a dinner for people from different social groups. The palace had to specify dress code clearly.
 
Well, firstly I think the lady in question looked fantastic. I think had the hat been an etiquette or protocol issue, she would have been asked to remove it - but in doing so, that in itself might have seemed rude when she had quite obviously spent much time and effort on her appearance.
 
Well, firstly I think the lady in question looked fantastic. I think had the hat been an etiquette or protocol issue, she would have been asked to remove it - but in doing so, that in itself might have seemed rude when she had quite obviously spent much time and effort on her appearance.
The biggest faux-pas you can commit etiquette wise is to point out the mistakes of others.
 
I don't know if this is the right place for this, but this somewhat relates to roles in the family. There has been some criticism of Meghan in articles following the Friday engagements that she walked in front of Harry at times. Do the royals still observe the concept of royal spouse having to walk behind the royal they are married to? Other than for the Queen, obviously. It didn't seem like Harry minded as at times he put his hand on her back to guide her before him.
 
Meghan Markle during the visit in Nottingham on friday: ‘We can’t do selfies unfortunately, I am sorry’

She’s learning
 
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Ah hadn't thought of that...thank goodness she's being guided.


LaRae
 
Meghan Markle during the visit in Nottingham on friday: ‘We can’t do selfies unfortunately, I am sorry’

She’s learning

They can do selfies, but it’s not encouraged do to time and the need for other members of the public wanting to do their own selfies.
 
The more experienced royals can use their discretion but for people like Meghan it’s best to just go by the book
 
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The royal correspondents had a little fun with this on Twitter this week. One of them tweeted this quote and then someone found a selfie of Charles. However, that was a different situation. Charles wasn't at a walk about. They'd never be able to get out of there if they started doing selfies. :lol:
 
One day Meghan will be an old pro. Catherine was doing an interview for the The Queens jubilee and she she said everyone in the family teases her because she spends so much time talking to people.

Meghan like Catherine will develop her own style as time goes by. Meghan did say Catherine’s been invaluable as a source of advice.
 
One day Meghan will be an old pro. Catherine was doing an interview for the The Queens jubilee and she she said everyone in the family teases her because she spends so much time talking to people.

Meghan like Catherine will develop her own style as time goes by. Meghan did say Catherine’s been invaluable as a source of advice.

Meghan is doing pretty well on her own in this regard. The biggest criticism she got for this was she waved too hard and didn't walk behind Harry, which I don't think Harry wanted anyways as he was putting his hand on her back or holding her hand. :lol: I'm sure Kate can give her advice on protocol as such, but as for public speaking, interview, and walkabouts? Nah, Meg's got it. :lol:
 
Catherine can certainly give Meghan pointers on protocol. Meghan will always have to walk a step behind Kate. Meghan will learn fast.
 
Catherine can certainly give Meghan pointers on protocol. Meghan will always have to walk a step behind Kate. Meghan will learn fast.

I'm sure Meghan is well aware a formal protocol is in place and is cool with it. If not, she wouldn't have agreed to marry Harry. She clearly has a lot of respect for the institution and history that she's marrying into judging by the interview. I'm sure she's fine with these things as she respects the institution. But obviously things like always walking a step behind your husband at a walkabout is no longer a strictly enforced rules. And I don't know about "always". Formal occasions, yes. I don't always see Kate walking behind William at engagements either.
 
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The royal butler gives his advice

William Hanson reveals 'cheat sheet' for Meghan Markle | Daily Mail Online

And by what I mean is, watch the next time ‘the royal trio’ has an engagement, William goes first, followed by Catherine then last comes Harry. It will be the same thing if the royal trio becomes a ‘royal quartet’.

Nothing against Meghan, just precedence.
 
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Well I doubt there will be many royal quartet engagements, thankfully. Either way, Meghan doesn't need Kate to tell her where to walk. That's protocol she will have learned from her husband and staff.
 
It'll take a bit to get used to it all. She'll have to remember to walk slightly behind Harry at official engagements etc.


LaRae
 
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It'll take a bit to get used to it all. She'll have to remember to walk slightly behind Harry at official engagements etc. She'll have to get her curtsey rules down etc.


LaRae

Everyone is going to watch the first curtesy we get to see
 
It'll take a bit to get used to it all. She'll have to remember to walk slightly behind Harry at official engagements etc.


LaRae

Well, Harry will have to remember not to put his hand on her back. :lol:How is anyone suppose to walk behind him if he has his hand on her back? I loveed it though. :wub:
 
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