Not always, as it turns out.
Still, bowing has long been a standard gesture in the presence of the British royals.
Today, some royals are likely to engage in hugs and handshakes along with bows and curtsies.
This, however, has only made things more complicated.
And the rules involved can be arcane and complicated.
Despite this, most people assume that bowing and curtsying are standard and expected.
And evenPrince Harry, who was born and raised observing royal rituals, realized the absurdity of these customs.
“How do you explain that you bow to your grandmother and that you would need to curtsy?
Especially to an American.
That’s weird,” he said in the documentary “Harry and Meghan” (perPeople).
And royal-watchers have captured plentiful documentation of royal family members doing just that.
One photo shows Prince William and Princess Catherine offering Queen Elizabeth II a brief bow and curtsy.
As royal historian Marlene Eilers Koenig told Hello!
“The only person they will curtsy or bow to is the sovereign,” she explained.
Among these customs are the complex rules of who bows to whom in the royal family.
Thus, princesses by marriage are obliged to curtsy to princesses by birth.
But according toDebrett’s, another twist makes this odd rule seem even more arbitrary.
However, the rules determining who gets to be called HRH have changed over time.
And tradition-bound as they are, members of the royal family are practical enough to realize this.
(viaTravel and Leisure).
Other royals including Charles did not because they had come from Sandringham and had already seen the queen."
And the next generation of royals is planning to continue modernizing the monarchy.
“I didn’t think that’s what happens inside.”
For those who choose not to, a polite handshake will do.
For a long time, relative ranks in the family were determined by longtime (but unofficial) tradition.
Today, at least officially, the royal family has loosened such expectations.
Nobody is expecting you to scrap your head against the floor or even do a deep waist bend.
And be aware that overdoing the gesture can be seen as disrespectful.
