Many would like to be part of the British royal family. The attention of the whole world, many servants, jewelry, palaces and other joys of aristocrats - isn't it a fairy tale? However, everyone forgets that being in the public eye of millions of people and constantly maintaining a brand can be incredibly difficult. The life of royals is subject to regulations and is filled with sometimes really strange requirements that they must certainly fulfill.

The British royal family is called one of the main attractions of Great Britain. The British are proud of their monarchy. They celebrate the Queen's Birthday along with other holidays. They follow with interest the relationship in the royal family. But not all Englishmen know about the origin of the dynasty, about the real names of its members and about other interesting facts.

The name of the ruling dynasty in Great Britain is Windsor. But until 1917 it was called Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, which indicates its connection with the German rulers. During World War I, King George V decided to change the name of the dynasty in order to give up the German titles. He chose the surname Windsor after Windsor Castle, one of the royal residences. This surname became official to all members of the royal family. And after the wedding of the then Princess Elizabeth to Philip Mountbatten, the surname began to sound Mountbatten-Windsor.

Interestingly, none of the members of the royal family is required to use the surname. And when they go to school, serve or work, they can take a different surname. For example, Princes William and Harry were known in the army as Wales. And the two grandchildren of Queen Elizabeth from Princess Anne have their father's surname - Phillips.

Bemorepanda collected some more interesting facts about the royal family.

1. Princess Diana was supposed to play the main role in the 2nd part of "The Bodyguard" with Kevin Costner. A kissing scene was planned, but the film itself never came out due to the tragic death of Lady Dee in 1997 in a car accident in Paris. In the story, a romantic relationship between the protagonists begins when a bodyguard is tasked with protecting the princess from the paparazzi.

2. On their travels, Elizabeth II and her son Charles are accompanied by a doctor of the British Royal Navy, who must have a supply of their blood with him. This measure is necessary for an emergency transfusion in case of an emergency.

3. Shellfish, crabs, lobsters, shrimps, and garlic are banned in Buckingham Palace, as sea creatures are allergenic and garlic has an unpleasant odor. However, this rule is now adhered to only by the queen.

4. Six ravens (and one spare) must always dwell in the Tower of London. According to one of the versions, this rule is observed, since the prediction of the royal court astrologer-monk Charles II (1630-1685) says: "If the crows leave the Tower, the kingdom will fall." After the famous fire of 1666, almost all the birds were exterminated, but thanks to the prophecy of the ravens, they were left in the care of the crown. They are considered part of the royal family, they have servants and a special raven keeper who is chosen from 38 members of the Tower's ceremonial Yeomen guard ("beefeaters"). In addition, the birds are officially enlisted in the ranks of the royal army.

5. Long before becoming part of the royal family, Kate Middleton lived with her family in Amman, Jordan. The father of the future Duchess, Michael Middleton, worked as a manager for British Airways and ended up in the Middle East on duty. Then Kate was 2 years old, but she already went to kindergarten and, in addition to English, studied Arabic. The Middletons have lived in Jordan for almost 3 years.

6. During the opening of the new session of Parliament, the Queen must take a hostage - one of the Members of Parliament, who will be guarded by the staff of Buckingham Palace throughout the ceremony. This tradition appeared due to the fact that earlier monarchs and parliament, to put it mildly, did not get along. Now everything is peaceful, but no one is going to change anything.

7. Queen Elizabeth II, then 21-year-old Princess Elizabeth, married Prince Philip on 20 November 1947 in a coupon-purchased wedding dress. She deliberately did not take advantage of her opportunities, since in the post-war period the whole country was slowly getting out of the ruins.

8. The crown of Elizabeth II is nothing more than the diadem of King George IV, created in 1820 at the request of the king himself. It is set with 1,333 diamonds for a total of 320 carats (64 g), including a 4-carat yellow diamond. There are 2 strands of pearls along the base. Initially, the upper thread had 86 pearls and the lower one - 94, but in 1902 the number of pearls was changed to 81 and 88.

9. To avoid embarrassment in windy weather, all the hem of the skirts of Queen Elizabeth II are weighed down by small loads

10. Initially, princes William and Harry were supposed to be called Arthur and Albert, as their father Charles wanted, but Lady Diana insisted on William and Harry, although Arthur and Albert are the middle names of the princes.

11. Queen Elizabeth II is a godmother for 30 crowned godchildren and this is not the limit.

12. Kate Middleton is a relative of George Washington.

13. At Christmas in the royal family, it is customary to give funny gifts. For example, Meghan Markle gave the Queen a toy singing hamster. But besides the fun, the royal couple - Elizabeth II and Prince Philip - must remember their duty. They send about 750 Christmas cards to heads of state, top politicians, Commonwealth leaders and family members.

14. Before and after Christmas dinner, all members of the royal family must weigh themselves. This long tradition was introduced by King Edward VII around 1900. He was very worried that someone would go away hungry after a sumptuous reception.

15. The Queen has the right to dissolve the current parliament both in Britain and in Australia and Canada.

16. Princess Diana gave her son, Prince William, an incredible 13th birthday surprise. Since the boy was in love with supermodel Cindy Crawford, she invited her to a festive tea party.

17. The most unusual titles that Elizabeth II bears are Duke of Lancanster and Duke of Normandy.

18. Pearl necklace of three strands almost always adorns the queen's neck - this is a visiting card of her style. When Elizabeth was 10 years old, she received such a necklace as a gift from her grandfather George V, and it became her favorite piece of jewelry.

A little later, Queen Mary, Elizabeth's grandmother, gave her pearl earrings. To this day, they, complete with a necklace, form part of the image of a modern monarch.

19. Since ancient times, monarchs from different countries have adopted a throne name during their time in power, which is different from that which was given to them at birth. In Britain, this tradition was also maintained. So, Queen Victoria was Princess Alexandrina before her coronation, and King George was named Albert. Elizabeth II chose not to change her name, because this is only permissible, but not mandatory for the monarch.

20. Elizabeth is often called the queen of England, but this is not true. First, she is the monarch of the entire United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and England is just a part of it.

21. Misconceptions about princesses are no less common. Lady Dee after her wedding with Prince Charles began to be called the princess. However, she was not a princess by birth, so by all the rules her title should have sounded like "Her Royal Highness Princess Charles of Wales", as strange as it may sound.

22. As for the chosen one of their eldest son William, Kate Middleton is also not a princess. She married the Duke of Cambridgeshire, and therefore her official title is Duchess of Cambridge.

23. According to official sources, different family members have their own privileges in addressing the Queen. So, the husband of Elizabeth II calls her Lilibet. The future queen called herself this name when she was very little and could not pronounce “Elizabeth”.

24. Elizabeth II is very economical and serves as an excellent example in this for her subjects. So, it is known that she always turns off the light when leaving the room, and requires this from all the inhabitants of the palace. The queen wears the same dresses for a long time.

25. Representatives of Buckingham Palace report that all of the Queen's overseas travel is in accordance with the recommendations of the British government. Therefore, most often Elizabeth visits those countries in which she needs to be present based on current state affairs.

During her 65 years on the throne, the Queen has made over 120 official visits. Most often, the queen visited Canada (27 times) and Australia (18 times).

26. Some people who were born shortly before or immediately after the New Year celebrate their birthday twice, but in general, usually a person has one birthday. But the Queen has two of them - on April 21, she was born for real, and in May or June, official celebrations are usually organized on her birthday.

27. Queen Elizabeth II currently rules Britain for the longest time in history: her term of reign is now 64 years. Queen Victoria, who ruled before her, remained on the throne for 63 years and 216 days. Nowadays, it is difficult for a person not to lose his job even for a year, let alone more than 60 years!

28. Only in 2013, Great Britain moved away from the concept of male succession, thus proclaiming that any member of the royal family, regardless of gender, can inherit the throne. You may ask: how then did Elizabeth II ascend to the throne? Elementary: her father had no sons.

29. What is the Queen's surname? I think many would like to know. But in fact, this is not so important: being on the throne, a person can take almost any surname for himself. Elizabeth II's father changed his surname from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor; later Windsor became Mountbatten-Windsor.

30. If you have ever seen Buckingham Palace up close, at least in a movie, you know that it is huge. It is located on an area of ​​77,000 square meters, it has 775 rooms and about 800 employees who keep it and the life of the royal family normal. There are cooks, maids, butlers, security guards and even watchmakers!