Hello my loves! Today I bring a small series of posts focusing on royal protocol. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do and they somehow, become useful for you in the future. Or if not, I still hope you like it!

Now, before starting I feel I should explain what  Royal Protocol is.

So, what is Royal Protocol?

Royal Protocol is a set of suggestions (rather than rules, which everyone in gossip magazines wrongly forces us to believe) that help royals do and show their best in their jobs. And if you're wondering, yes, being a Queen, a Princess or a Duchess is indeed a job. They work for the Monarchy, an institution.

Please allow me a bit of a rant here: I absolutely detest it when gossip magazines force the "Protocol rules Princess/Duchess X or Y broke." There's NO such thing! Royals are still humans, and if protocol is "broken" well, guess what, humans make mistakes. You can't expect a person to deal with everything swiftly and not put a foot wrong once or twice. People were especially harsh to Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, because she came from out of the family into a new world that was practically unknown to her. The press was absolutely awful with her when she got in, and now they are angry that she got out. Ironic, isn't it?

And I also don't like that such a thing as "protocol breaking" is worthy of a gossip magazine headline. It gives people the wrong impression. As if royals are forced and then usually the headlines are followed by a second one ridiculously saying "the Queen is angry". That makes us believe she humiliated them. News flash sweeties: The Queen could literally NOT care less! 

In fact, she has ignored protocol quite a few times. Now, I should say, while protocols are not rules and making a fuss over them on magazines is too much, that doesn't mean they are useless. You are expected to behave politely while in the presence of a royal, as that makes them seem professional at their job of representing the Crown - and if you do something really bad, of course people will stare at you and frown. It's not like people will judge you because you dropped your fork at dinner or closed the car door with your own hand. That's... ridiculous.

Now that we have that out of the way, let's properly start.

Have you ever wanted to be a Princess, or at least feel like one? If yes, read these and you'll be good to go!

The first things that we're going to discuss is manners. All royals typically have good manners. You don't have necessarily to be a royal to have good manners. They cost us nothing. I spend a lot of time (like, a LOT) reading about royals and royalty, so trust me when I give you this advice:

 Try doing the "Duchess slant." Close your legs and slant them to the side. You then have the option to keep your feet tidy together or tuck one behind the other. Sitting like this makes your legs look more elegant and longer.

1. It is advisable that whenever you're about to sit in public, if wearing a skirt or dress, gently gather the fabric at the back bottom before sitting. It will be very handy because it keeps the fabric tidy. Should you not do it, you'd potentially look sloppy.

2. And when sitted, be sure to always close your legs. It's not considered proper of a (female) royal to sit in public with either open legs or crossed at the knees. The first being a big no no. Modesty is still very important when you're representing a royal institution. Male royals however, are advised to cross their legs.

3. A royal always speaks clearly and calmly, so avoid raising your voice.

4. When going up or down a flight of stairs, it's advisable that you gracefuly put your hand on the handrail. As said before, royals are the epitome of good manners. But that's not all. They must act gracefully as well. The hand on the handrail goes for both male and female royals.

5. When getting out of a car, you must sit in the same position as mentioned in point 2 and take out of the car one leg at each time to keep your modesty intact, otherwise you'd give the press a field day.

6. In the presence of Her Majesty The Queen, you must always walk two steps behind her. Never step in front of her Majesty!

7. And speaking of her, depending on the event, if you come without the Queen, it is likely that you'll arrive first (the Queen arrives last) so you must curtsy. This also applies when she's leaving. Curtsying is customary also when the Queen enters Buckingham Palace after her Trooping the Color parade. Members of the Royal Family usually curtsy from the balcony. Male royals bow their heads while female royals have to do the full curtsy by puting one leg behing the other and bending them. Curtsying is not something you just do for Queen only. It's always done according to rank.

Let's say the Duchess of Cambridge. As the wife of the son of the heir to the crown - therefore the future king and queen - if accompanied by William, Kate must only curtsy to the Queen, Prince Philip, Prince Charles and Camilla. Then blood princesses like Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice must curtsy to William AND Kate, because of her rank. Should Kate be alone, it is her who has to curtsy to Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice because she wasn't born royal. Other than that, lower ranks to her such as Duchess of Sussex, Countess of Wessex and the other of the Queen's children and grandchildren would have to curtsy to Kate in either scenario.

When Kate's son Prince George becomes King, (assuming Kate is alive) she will be required to curtsy to him and would also be referred to as Queen Mother.

8. The head bowing. Normally for males, but whenever on a carriage and either the National Anthem is playing or when you ride past a Cenotaph or Memorial, you must bow your head as a sign of respect regardless if you're a male or female.

9. Royals are advised to avoid public demonstration of affection, although that is relaxed for members of the family who are not on the direct line of sucession. It only extends to the first 6 members of the family - now 5, since Harry and Meghan left - (sigh). Some affection doesn't kill anyone, so it's not like the world will end if you spot Kate and William kissing at less formal events. This is to make them sound professional, not to make them sound hearthless and cold. Let's say you are working and are on a meeting with several other people one of your colleagues is your partner. Would you kiss them just like that in front of your boss and your colleagues? Of course not! Private life stays at home, and I assure you no one wants a glimpse of anyone's private lives in professional environments.

10. Royals must not sign autographs or take selfies when meeting with fans and well-wishers. This is to prevent their signature to be stolen and used for vile purposes. As for the selfies, they are simply not done because it's always best to spend the few minutes royals walk past you on a walkabout talking to them rather than wasting valuable time taking a photo. And also because it doesn't look too dignified.

Well, this sums up the personal part of the protocol and I hope you enjoyed it. I still have a few protocol parts that I want to know, such as diner, dressing up and a few extras, so see you next time! ♥