Do Crown Families Follow Monarchy Traditions?

So, you’ve binged The Crown again, and now you’re wondering: do actual, real-life crown families—you know, the ones with palaces and tiaras—actually follow all those ancient monarchy traditions? Or do they secretly order takeout on thrones while binge-watching reality TV? Let’s spill the tea. And trust me, it’s steeped in both pageantry and pajamas.

First, the big truth: yes, they follow a surprising amount of those stiff-backed traditions. From the “Sovereign’s Orb” handover to the weirdly specific rules about who can walk where in a procession, royal protocol is alive and… well, creaky. Think of it as a family business with a 1,000-year-old employee handbook. For instance, the British royals still have a “Royal Swan Keeper”—yes, a person whose job is literally to count swans. They also must never sign autographs (too informal), and they’re forbidden from eating shellfish on official visits (food poisoning risk? Snobbery?). It’s a mix of “because we’ve always done it” and “please don’t embarrass Great-Great-Grandma Victoria.”

But here’s where it gets juicy: behind the velvet ropes, these families are secretly rebelling against the stuffy stuff. Take the modern royal moms: Catherine, Princess of Wales, has been photographed doing school drop-offs in joggers, not a coronet in sight. Huge scandal? Nope. Just relatable. And let’s not forget the time Prince William admitted to making “terrible, burnt” pasta for his kids—imagine King Charles III overhearing that while polishing his coronation spoon. The tradition of “never showing emotion in public”? Totally cracked. Princess Anne once told a reporter to “naff off,” and we love her for it.

Then there’s the great “succession rule” shake-up. For centuries, the crown went to the nearest male heir, even if his sister was, like, dramatically better at diplomacy. But in 2013, the British monarchy actually changed the law (cue collective gasp!) so that birth order, not gender, determines the throne. That means Princess Charlotte, William’s daughter, won’t get bumped by a younger brother. King Charles definitely didn’t foresee that when he was a boy—his sister Princess Anne was literally excluded from ballroom training because “girls don’t need to bow.” Now? She’s the hardest-working royal. Tradition, thou art a slippery fish.

And what about the glitzy, 12-hour coronation ceremonies? Well, Queen Elizabeth II apparently thought her own 1953 coronation was “a bit of a faff.” She reportedly quipped, “I hope the next one is on a Saturday, so we can avoid a bank holiday.” (Spoiler: Charles III’s was on a Saturday.) But here’s the kicker: they genuinely keep some weird traditions as family inside jokes. The Danish royal family still plays a game where the heir must be “lifted” over a threshold by the king during their baptism. It’s bizarre. It’s adorable. It’s their version of a secret handshake.

An Inside Look At Some Of The Crown's Annual Traditions And Customs

So, do crown families follow monarchy traditions? The answer is a gloriously messy “sorta.” They’ll wear the heirloom tiara for a state banquet, then change into fuzzy slippers and argue about who forgot to buy milk. They’ll teach their kids the ancient art of the curtsey, then let them play Fortnite on a palace iPad. The secret isn't rigid adherence—it’s knowing when to bend the gilded rules. They’re humans in crown-shaped hats, just trying to keep a very old, very weird puzzle from falling apart.

And honestly? That’s what makes them so watchable. They’re not living in a museum; they’re living inside their weird, wonderful, and increasingly flexible family story. So the next time you see a royal wave stiffly from a carriage, just imagine them texting their bestie from the other hand: “SOS, can’t feel my arm. Send snacks.” Because at the end of the day, even a diadem can’t protect you from the universal struggle of getting through a Tuesday. And that, my friend, is a tradition we can all get behind.