Bowing and Curtseying


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Some differences I have noticed in Bowing/Curtseying habits between British RF and Da

British RF and Danish RF

1. The monarchs sons:

BRF : All the monarch's sons bow to her duly when they greet/welcome her
DRF : I have seen Fred&Jo bowing only at Fred's wedding. At almost all other occasions of greeting/welcoming, most importantly at Openings of Parliament, they do not bow..just kiss her..

2. The monarch's siblings:

BRF: Princess Margaret duly curtseyed the Queen along with everybody when The Queen was entering a Service, or at a first meeting of the day (atleast public ones)..
DRF: Princess Benedikte NEVER curtseys The Queen. In fact she is the only woman in an occasion/gathering that doesnt curtsey The Queen..

3. To The Monarch's consort:

BRF: Never seen any member of The RF bow/curtsey to Prince Philip.. except for the little bend kate did on Balcony on Trooping in 2011.May be he is cool with that.
DRF: All the royal ladies (again not Benedikte) curtsey to Prince Henrik..
 
Thanks vkrish! Very informative!
 
sarahedwards2 said:
What about Anne?
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Of course she curtsies.. I searched a lot for a video of her curtseying HM, other than the one at her wedding. But I couldnt get.
Finally in the video of The Queen and DoE entering the Abbey for Coronation Diamond Jubilee Service, there is a top view of all the members of RF bowing and curtseying her. You should be able to spot one just on basis of their seating position and their hats..
Go to Youtube and search for "I was Glad" video of Coronation D.Jubilee Service..
 
Do we have any photos of curtsey from members of the Princely Family of Monaco or the Casiraghis? Or any photos of HSH Prince Albert being curtsied to?
 
Aside from HSH Princess Charlene who seems to curtsy every chance encounter she has with foreign royals.
 
I believe that as Albert is the head of state, Charlene is his wife, and Caroline is the wife of the head of a royal house, none of them would be expected to bow or curtesy to anyone (although, Charlene at least does do so).
 
Ish said:
I believe that as Albert is the head of state, Charlene is his wife, and Caroline is the wife of the head of a royal house, none of them would be expected to bow or curtesy to anyone (although, Charlene at least does do so).
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I thought as she's a HSH and not HRH, Charlene having a lower rank regardless of her being Princess Consort of Monaco, means she has to curtsey to pretty much everyone at a major Royal gathering she attends. I could be wrong of course, but that's what I think is the answer.
 
Question:

When if ever does a royal courtesy a deposed monarch or the head of a house (Brazil, Portugal, Romania)? Or, do royals only courtesy reigning monarchs?

Another: What if princess Madeline for example or Martha Louise were to visit CP Pavlos and CP MC, would there be a courtesy?

Lastly. What about heads of houses who are not king/Queen (Serbia a, etc)? And what about CP Victoria or Mary, are they ever courtesy to? Or the heir to a non-reigning house?
 
USCtrojan said:
Question:

When if ever does a royal courtesy a deposed monarch or the head of a house (Brazil, Portugal, Romania)? Or, do royals only courtesy reigning monarchs?

Another: What if princess Madeline for example or Martha Louise were to visit CP Pavlos and CP MC, would there be a courtesy?

Lastly. What about heads of houses who are not king/Queen (Serbia a, etc)? And what about CP Victoria or Mary, are they ever courtesy to? Or the heir to a non-reigning house?
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the key issue to answer your question is quite easy actually. It depends on the style and/or their role as a Head of State.
The style is that "acronym" preceding a title. In the case of Kings and Queens is HM (His/Her Majesty).In the case of an Emperor/Empress it is HIM(His/Her Imperial Majesty). They don't bow/courtsey to anyone but they're bowed and curtsied by everyone, whether they are still ruling or not.
If the Head of a State it's not a King/Queen/Emperor/Empress but a Prince or a Grand duke people will bow/courtsey to them . this happens not because of their styles [it can be HSI (His/Her Serene Highness) for a Prince, HGI (His/her Grand ducal highness) or HRH(His/Her Royal Highness) for a grand duke/grand duchess] but because of their position as Head of State.
Heads of State and ex Heads of State do not bow/courtsey to each other. they're considered to be at the same level.

Nowadays Princes and Princesses with the same style (His/Her Royal Highness, His/Her Highness, His/Her Serene Highness) that are not heads of State tend not to bow/courtsey to each other, even if they outrank each other (heir to the throne, second/ third in line to the throne, extinct monarchies members and so on), but probably in the past you would have seen a brother/sister of the Dauphin of France bowing/courtsey to him and his wife and their children for example.
 
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I was wondering: is there a proper technique of curtseying? which foot has to be put behind before bending: the right or the left one? because I see pictures of princesses doing it in different ways and I read many articles about the subject but they confused me even more. I mean...I thought certain etiquette rules and technique were universally applied.
 
Ish said:
I believe that as Albert is the head of state, Charlene is his wife, and Caroline is the wife of the head of a royal house, none of them would be expected to bow or curtesy to anyone (although, Charlene at least does do so).
Click to expand...

Pcs Caroline curtsays to the Queen EII, I have a pic. It is normal because the Queen is an active Monarch and Pcs Caroline is the wife of the head of a former Royal House, not severeign anymore.
Charlene is just a Serene Higness and not a Majesty, and in top of that she is much much younger, so she pays respect to the Queen.
The question is, should a former King bow to an actual King?
in example does former King Kostantin bow to King JC???
 
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fandesacs2003 said:
Pcs Caroline curtsays to the Queen EII, I have a pic. It is normal because the Queen is an active Monarch and Pcs Caroline is the wife of the head of a former Royal House, not severeign anymore.
Charlene is just a Serene Higness and not a Majesty, and in top of that she is much much younger, so she pays respect to the Queen.
The question is, should a former King bow to an actual King?
in example does former King Kostantin bow to King JC???
Click to expand...

I don't think King Constantine bows to King Juan Carlos...that is because they're brothers in law
 
Marchesina said:
I don't think King Constantine bows to King Juan Carlos...that is because they're brothers in law
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Family bonds have nothing to do with protocol rules! All the Crown Princes bow to their royal parents.
And as it was said before, Pcws Margaret bowed to the Queen EII.
 
fandesacs2003 said:
Family bonds have nothing to do with protocol rules! All the Crown Princes bow to their royal parents.
And as it was said before, Pcws Margaret bowed to the Queen EII.
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I know that but some families have more strict rules than other...Princess Benedicte never curtsey to her royal sister Queen Margrethe. and any way...i don't think former monarchs bow/curtsey to the current ones. as I said in a previous post what matters is their style of Majesties rather than their position as Head of state
 
Marchesina said:
I don't think King Constantine bows to King Juan Carlos...that is because they're brothers in law
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I saw a pic of (then) Princess Sofia curtsying to her sister in law Queen Anna Maria. So family ties has nothing to do with it. Only rank. When Sofia became Queen, the curtsying stopped.
 
Marchesina said:
I don't think King Constantine bows to King Juan Carlos...that is because they're brothers in law
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No he wouldn't as ex-King Constantine is still regarded as a King in royal circles.

I've seen photos of The Princess of Asturias & Spanish Infantas curtsying to Constantine II & Anne Marie of Denmark.
 
They're still equal in rank and title, despite Constantine being a deposed monarch, so he wouldn't bow to any monarch. If he did so to perhaps Queen Elizabeth, that's as a matter of courtesy and respect, I would think.
 
BRF: Never seen any member of The RF bow/curtsey to Prince Philip.. except for the little bend kate did on Balcony on Trooping in 2011.May be he is cool with that.

Here's video from the arrival of the family to the chapel for Prince George's christening. There's an amusing air-kiss and curtsey from Camilla to HM, a very formal bow from Harry, and a little later, Kate doing a little curtsey when greeting Phillip.

Prince George's Christening: Royal Family gather for service - YouTube

I especially like the warm greeting between Phillip and Charles. I know they haven't had the easiest relationship, but hopefully it's mellowed as everyone's gotten older.
 
AndreaLF said:
BRF: Never seen any member of The RF bow/curtsey to Prince Philip.. except for the little bend kate did on Balcony on Trooping in 2011.May be he is cool with that.

Here's video from the arrival of the family to the chapel for Prince George's christening. There's an amusing air-kiss and curtsey from Camilla to HM, a very formal bow from Harry, and a little later, Kate doing a little curtsey when greeting Phillip.

Prince George's Christening: Royal Family gather for service - YouTube

I especially like the warm greeting between Phillip and Charles. I know they haven't had the easiest relationship, but hopefully it's mellowed as everyone's gotten older.
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My personal favourite was watching Camilla greeting Prince Phillip. How when she asked how he was, she also gave him that little pat/light slap on his shoulder, like she was also saying "Are you behaving yourself?" In a light hearted way. One of my favourite moments of the day that we got see.
 
Um, excuse me, but, why did Charlene curtsey to him? He is not royal. He is a priest. Dont get it. Just wondering since I have never seen QEII do it ever.

Sent from my SCH-I800 using The Royals Community mobile app
 
LadyGabrielle said:
Um, excuse me, but, why did Charlene curtsey to him? He is not royal. He is a priest. Dont get it. Just wondering since I have never seen QEII do it ever.

Sent from my SCH-I800 using The Royals Community mobile app
Click to expand...

If we ever see QEII curtsey to a Catholic Archbishop, I will die of shock. :eek::ohmy::lol:
 
LadyGabrielle said:
Um, excuse me, but, why did Charlene curtsey to him? He is not royal. He is a priest. Dont get it. Just wondering since I have never seen QEII do it ever.

Sent from my SCH-I800 using The Royals Community mobile app
Click to expand...

I don't think that occasion had anything to do with royal status or protocol but probably just out of respect for a priest of her faith.
 
AdmirerUS said:
If we ever see QEII curtsey to a Catholic Archbishop, I will die of shock. :eek::ohmy::lol:
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We wouldn't see QEII do that for obvious reasons, but we also wouldn't see her curtesy to an Anglican Archbishop as well because she's the head of the church - it would be like the pope bowing to a cardinal.
 
Ish said:
We wouldn't see QEII do that for obvious reasons, but we also wouldn't see her curtesy to an Anglican Archbishop as well because she's the head of the church - it would be like the pope bowing to a cardinal.
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I agree with you 100% here but the more I see of the Pope, it wouldn't surprise me if he did bow to anyone he meets come to think of it. Its a personal way of showing respect for another. With QEII, it all about being Queen and protocol though. There are just things that the Queen never does and things that are expected protocol wise from people that are around her. I would imagine that in personal prayer, she does kneel which also is a way of showing respect for her God.
 
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