
While you don't have to bow or curtsy when meeting a member of the British Royal Family, many people choose to do so as a mark of respect.
If you're wondering what a curtsy looks like, a royal fan account on TikTok was recently asked to edit together footage of people curtsying to Princess Kate, and they happily obliged.
The result is a video that is going viral and attracting a slew of comments from royal fans and dissenters alike.
"I would definitely curtsy to Kate if I met her," wrote one person.
"She deserves it. We respect and love her," said another.
"She is iconic ... love Kate," added a third person.
Others weren't so impressed with the footage. "Like hell I would ever bow to royals...." someone remarked.
Others still pointed out how odd this whole thing is. "Imagine you are a normal person and a few years later everyone just bows to you"
If all of this has you wondering what exactly you're supposed to do if you ever find yourself in the presence of a British royal, here it is, according to the official family website (this particular page hasn't been updated since Queen Elizabeth's sad passing).
"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.
"For men this is a neck bow (from the head only) whilst women do a small curtsy. Other people prefer simply to shake hands in the usual way.
"On presentation to The Queen, the correct formal address is 'Your Majesty' and subsequently 'Ma'am,' pronounced with a short 'a,' as in 'jam'.
"For male members of the Royal Family the same rules apply, with the title used in the first instance being 'Your Royal Highness' and subsequently 'Sir'.
"For other female members of the Royal Family the first address is conventionally 'Your Royal Highness' and subsequently 'Ma'am'."
As Newsweek points out, there has been renewed interest in curtsies and bows among royals since Meghan Markle drew attention to the custom in Harry & Meghan on Netflix.
During the docuseries, the Duchess of Sussex remembered preparing to meet the Queen for the first time.
"I remember in the car driving up, and he [Harry] said, 'You know how to curtsy right?' [...] And I just thought it was a joke."
She also demonstrated a very over-the-top "joke" curtsy, which—it seems—was designed to show how little she knew how to behave when she first met the royals, but which drew a lot of criticism from people who saw it as disrespectful.
Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Bustle and Shape. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.
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