Being first in line to the throne, you might assume that the only person Prince Charles is required to bow down to is the Queen. However, it seems the future King is quite the gent as he actually ensures he shows respect to all the royal women in his life.
Yep, despite being the second top-dog when it comes to the Royal Family, the Prince of Wales has a subtle but incredibly sweet way of showing his respect to women. As for how he does that, it's a gentle peck on the hand – proper old school stuff.
Whilst kissing the hand of women who are a higher rank than he is – which, in this case, is only his mother, the Queen – is an expected sign of respect, doing so for women "below" his rank is a curtesy he's adopted of his own accord.
Kissing the hand of the Monarch is not a new phenomenon (however in a post-pandemic world it's likely to be followed by lashings of antibac) and has been a longstanding tradition, especially for members of the government who are required to do so as a way to show their loyalty.
But hand kissing isn't the only sign of respect afforded to members of the Royal Family, as curtsying to Her Majesty is an absolute must as well – although, Meghan Markle was surprised by this when she joined The Firm. In fact, when the now Duchess of Sussex met the Queen for the first time, she wasn't expecting to have to curtesy behind closed doors, believing it to be a tradition that was only carried out whilst in public. As such, ahead of meeting Her Majesty, she had to have a quick lesson from then husband-to-be Prince Harry.
"I remember Harry and I were in the car and he says, 'OK, well my grandmother's going to be there so you’re going to meet her," the Meghan recalled during her history-making interview with Oprah Winfrey last year. "I said, 'OK great! I loved my grandmother, I used to take care of my grandmother.' He goes, 'Right, do you know how to curtsy?'"
That's when Meghan admitted that she didn't realise the Royal Family curtsied to each other when they weren't in the public eye. "I thought genuinely that’s what happens outside, that was part of the fanfare, I didn’t think that’s what happens inside," she added.
