A boy grabs an impromptu selfie with Queen Elizabeth in 2014. Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images Members of the British royal family used to be distant and inaccessible to the general public. Interacting with present and future monarchs has become less stuffy over time.
The traditional greeting remains a bow or curtsy, though royals now opt for handshakes and hugs. Members of the royal family used to be distant and inaccessible to the general public. But in an age where royals marry commoners and have their own Instagram accounts, interacting with present and future monarchs has become less stuffy.
Here’s how meeting members of the royal family has changed over the years. The traditional way to greet a member of the royal family has always been to bow or curtsy. A woman curtsies to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 1939.
APWomen usually perform curtsies, and men usually bow. Curtsying involves placing one leg behind the other and bending forward slightly. Then-Princess Elizabeth greets a ballerina in 1949.
APThe curtsy is usually accompanied by a handshake, but only if the royal extends their hand first. The proper way to bow to a royal is a neck bow, inclining just one’s head. Former US Ambassador to England Walter J.
Annenberg bows to Queen Elizabeth in 1976. APA full bow is not necessary. On walkabouts, older generations of royals generally kept a respectful distance from the crowds.
A girl leans over a police barricade to welcome the Queen Elizabeth at the Barbados Airport in 1989. APQueen Elizabeth would walk along the barricades and smile at people gathered there, but she would not stop for hugs or other greetings. Princess Diana set a new tone for the way royals can interact with the public.
The Princess of Wales helping a patient at Mother Teresa’s hospice in Calcutta, India, in 1992. Jayne Fincher/Getty ImagesWhen Diana visited orphanages, homeless shelters, hospitals, and other charity organizations she didn’t act like a princess. She sat and talked with people, held their hands, and asked about their lives.
She became known as the “people’s princess” for her warm, hands-on approach, especially with individuals or groups who were stigmatized. Princess Diana hugs and plays with an HIV-positive baby in 1991. Dave Caulkin, File/APDiana’s charity work focused on HIV/AIDS patients, orphans, and people experiencing homelessness.
She famously shook the hand of a patient with AIDS to dispel the incorrect belief that HIV or AIDS could be transmitted by touch. Diana shakes the hand of an AIDS patient in 1987. John Redman/AP”If a royal was allowed to go in shake a patient’s hands, somebody at the bus stop or the supermarket could do the same,” a nurse who witnessed Diana’s hospital visit once told the BBC.
“That really educated people. “Prince William appears to have inherited her informal, personable approach. Prince William hugs a worker during a visit to the Royal Marsden in 2019.
Frank Augstein, Pool/APPrince William is known to give out hugs on royal engagements. Kate Middleton doesn’t always stick to royal protocol either. Kate Middleton hugs a girl at Shooting Star House Children’s Hospice in 2013.
BRADLEY PAGE/AFP via Getty ImagesShe was a commoner herself until she married Prince William. When he was a working royal, Prince Harry was known to be a bit of a goofball on royal engagements. Prince Harry and Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt pose at the Usain Bolt Track at the University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica, in 2012.
Suzanne Plunkett/ReutersEver since he was young, Harry has had a playful sense of humor. He often opts for cracking jokes at events, making kids laugh, and giving out bear hugs in lieu of formal greetings. In her official capacity as Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle also appeared to prefer hugs to curtsies.
Meghan Markle hugs a woman at the Royal Foundation Forum in 2018. Chris Jackson – WPA Pool/Getty ImagesAt the One Young World Summit in 2019, Markle insisted on hugging the event’s founder, Kate Robertson, when she tried to curtsy. The traditional greetings are still used by some today, but regular handshakes are also perfectly appropriate.
Prince William shakes hands with members of the public gathered at Windsor Castle to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth. Chris Jackson – WPA Pool/Getty ImagesThe royal family’s official website says that “There are no obligatory codes of behaviour when meeting The Queen or a member of the Royal Family, but many people wish to observe the traditional forms. “With the rise of smartphones, royal selfies are a new, rare opportunity.
A boy grabs an impromptu selfie with Queen Elizabeth in 2014. Peter Macdiarmid/Getty ImagesRoyals generally prefer personal interactions over posing for photos in a crowd. Selfies with royals are usually prohibited in large crowds, but they’ll make occasional exceptions.
A woman takes a selfie with King Charles in 2015. Lynne Cameron – WPA Pool/Getty ImagesOn Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s first royal engagement together, Markle politely declined photo requests and told people, “We’re not allowed to do selfies. ” CNN royal commentator Victoria Arbiter previously told Insider that selfies are usually “strongly discouraged” or prohibited altogether in large crowds.
Taking a selfie requires close proximity, which could be a security issue. And if you grant one person a selfie, there will be hundreds more who want one, too. Since Markle and Harry are no longer working members of the royal family, they have more freedom to greet members of the public however they’d like.
Meghan Markle stops for a selfie during the Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023 – One Year To Go events in September 2022. Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023Markle stopped to take selfies with fans at an event for the Invictus Games, Prince Harry’s multi-sport event event for wounded veterans. Even Queen Elizabeth herself eschewed royal protocol every now and then.
Queen Elizabeth greets Michelle Obama in 2009. Daniel Hambury, Pool/APMichelle Obama wrote in her memoir, “Becoming,” that she put her arm around Queen Elizabeth when they bonded over wearing uncomfortable shoes in 2009. It was technically a breach of protocol, but Obama wrote that the Queen didn’t seem to mind.
“If I hadn’t done the proper thing at Buckingham Palace, I had at least done the human thing,” she wrote. “I daresay the Queen was okay with it, too, because when I touched her, she only pulled closer, resting a gloved hand lightly on the small of my back. “Obama also wrote that Queen Elizabeth brushed aside protocol about where to sit in a car with her, reportedly saying, “Oh it’s all rubbish, just get in.
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From: insider
URL: https://www.insider.com/royal-family-meeting-changed-then-and-now
