30 Little-Known Yet Fascinating Facts About The Royals

Here's a doozy: The late Queen travelled all over the world, and sometimes found herself in environments where access to blood might be tough to attain. The solution? She and her doctor brought along the Queen's own blood just in case she needed it. Clever! Weird, but clever.

Members of the royal family are required to learn basic words, such as greetings, whenever they travel to another country or meet people from another culture. This practice is to ensure that the royals make a good first impression and that they show appropriate respect while traveling.

It's probably not a surprise to learn that the Queen travelled with an entourage, but you might be surprised to learn that it was made up of over 30 people. The group included various officers and secretaries, other employees who make official duties happen, bodyguards, valets, hairdressers, and stylists.

The Royal Marriage Act of 1772 was passed because King George III was angry when his brother, Prince Harry, wanted to marry Anne Horton. That act gives the monarch the power to veto any royal marriage that they desire to.

In 2013, the Succession to the Crown Act refined the rule to state that the monarch had no say about marriages for royals who are outside the first six in line for the throne.

Female members of the royal family have one pretty clever trick: They have small weights sewn into the hems of their skirts to prevent them from blowing up when boarding or departing a plane. Kate Middleton had this happen not once but twice — first in 2011, then in 2012. Since then, she's had weights sewn into what she wears to avoid it happening in the future.

When the Queen's father died in 1952, she was traveling, and a black outfit had to be flown to Kenya so she could don appropriate mourning attire. Since then, all members of the family are required to travel with a mourning outfit, typically all black.

It might surprise you to learn that the royals aren't always jetting off on private jets whenever they need to travel. Instead, they are often spotted flying commercial, just like the rest of us. However, that doesn't mean they don't pay for the good seats. In 2002, Prince Philip explained, "If you travel as much as we do, you appreciate the improvements in aircraft design of less noise and more comfort — provided you don’t travel in something called economy class, which sounds ghastly."

Many people have commented on the Queen's preferences in attire, and she was often spotted wearing brightly colored outfits from head to toe. It turns out that this wasn't just a preference; the Queen wore bright colors so her staff could find her more easily at events.

While many celebrities might stop and sign a photo of themselves for an enthusiastic fan, the members of the royal family aren't allowed to do so. The rule came about from a desire to prevent anyone from forging the signature of a member of the family.

The Queen was always photographed with a handbag, which isn't too much of a surprise. Like the rest of us, she probably had things she needed to carry around. But unlike the rest of us, it turns out Queen Elizabeth used her purse to send secret messages to her staff.

If the Queen needs to get out of a conversation, she will very subtly shift her purse from her left arm to her right. As royal historian Hugo Vickers told People, the move is a signal that Elizabeth is done: "It would be very worrying if you were talking to the Queen and saw the handbag move from one hand to the other. It would be done very nicely. Someone would come along and say, 'Sir, the Archbishop of Canterbury would very much like to meet you.'"

The royals are used to being able to have access to exactly what they like whenever they want it, and that seems to apply even to their drinks. In fact, Prince Charles and Camilla are said to bring their own drinks when they travel. Prince Charles is fond of packing his own gin and tonics, while Camilla prefers red wine.

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If you really pay attention, you might notice one funny detail about young royal boys: they're always wearing shorts. It turns out that the boys in the family age into wearing long pants around the age of 8.

Etiquette pro William Hanson explained to Harper's Bazaar, "Trousers are for older boys and men, whereas shorts on young boys is one of those silent class markers that we have in England. Although times are (slowly) changing, a pair of trousers on a young boy is considered quite middle class — quite suburban."

Prince Harry and Prince William are known for a funny fact: They're both apparently pretty smitten with fast food. Former royal chef Darren McGrady told Marie Claire that the pair were particularly infatuated with McDonald's, thanks to their mom.

"I remember the Princess came into the kitchen one day and said, 'Cancel lunch for the boys I'm taking them out, we're going to McDonald's. And I said, 'Oh my god your royal highness, I can do that, I can do burgers.' And she said, 'No, it's the toy they want.'"

If you think the alarm on your phone is an obnoxious way to wake up, try the Queen's: For years, she was woken up by a bagpipe player who played while standing directly under her window. Her last player was Pipe Major David Rodgers, who played every single day at 9 a.m. when the Queen was at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Balmoral, or Holyroodhouse.

Before World War I, the British royals didn't have last names. Instead, they were known by their houses (e.g., House of Tudor). During the war, King George V needed a way to distance himself from his German relatives and the surname used at the time: Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. He decided the family would be known as the Windsors.

Before Kate Middleton joined the family in 2011, no other royal spouse had held a college degree. Kate graduated with a degree in art history from the University of St. Andrews.

Meghan Markle also has a degree, which she earned in 2003. She majored in theater and international studies.

Royals are human like the rest of us, and have their own preferences and tastes when it comes to what they eat. It turns out The Queen used to absolutely hate garlic, and it wasn't allowed on any royal menu, period. A former royal chef told Marie Claire, "The queen would never have garlic on the menu. She hated the smell of it, she hated the taste of it."

Prince Charles has a reputation for being very pampered, and it seems that might be totally justified. The documentary Serving the Royals: Inside the Firm revealed quite a few things about Charles, but one of the more bizarre facts is that he reportedly doesn't even squeeze his own toothpaste before brushing his teeth.

Princess Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell, explained that the future king "has his valets squeeze one inch of toothpaste onto his toothbrush every morning."

Just about every member of the royal family considers their work for the monarchy as their job, but Princess Eugenie has a full-fledged career that she's really proud of. The daughter of Prince Andrew and ex-wife Sarah Ferguson works at an art gallery in London called Hauser & Wirth.

Very few people can travel internationally without a passport, but the Queen of England is one of them. Why? All UK passports are issued in her name, so she simply doesn't need to give herself permission to travel.

There are a lot of rules about how members of the royal family can dress and behave in public, and there are even rules about how dark nail polish can be. It turns out the Queen was a big fan of one specific shade: Ballet Slippers by Essie.

While she wasn't legally obligated to, the Queen began paying her own taxes back in 1992. The royal family offers lots of insight into this choice: "In 1992, The Queen volunteered to pay income tax and capital gains tax, and since 1993 her personal income has been taxable as for any other taxpayer. The Queen has always been subject to Value Added Tax and pays local rates on a voluntary basis."

The British Empire was once much larger, but these days the ruler is actually the ruler of several countries, known as the Commonwealth. The countries are Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, and, of course, the United Kingdom.

Prince Charles might have a reputation for being a bit fussy, but the Queen wasn't far behind him. The Queen's dressmaker revealed in her book that someone else broke in the Queen's shoes for her: "The Queen has very little time to herself and no time to wear in her own shoes, and as we share the same shoe size it makes the most sense this way."

While it's difficult to have imagined her doing so, it turns out Queen Elizabeth could fully ignore speed limits if she wants and drive as fast or as a slow as she wants to. The Sun explains the reason for the exception: "The PM and royal family are driven by the police so the driver would be exempt because the police have an exemption in law."

King George I instituted a rule that decreed that the monarch at the time has legal custody of their grandchildren. While the issue isn't relevant now, the rule is the reason there was no mention of a custody battle when Prince Charles and Princess Diana divorced.

One royal tradition is definitely surprising. The family saved a tier of fruitcake from Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding and served pieces of it to their children when they were baptized. The cake is stored in a freezer, which has kept it preserved until it's been needed each time.

Because the family members are considered quite elite, there are several words they don't use as a sign of their class. Instead of toilet, they say lavatory. Instead of couch, they would say sofa. They also tend to use mummy and daddy instead of mum and dad.

While he became a citizen through marriage, Prince Philip was of Greek and Danish ancestry. So even though his wife is seen as the head of the Church of England, Prince Philip was baptized as Greek Orthodox when he was a baby.

Despite having wealth that only few people ever achieve, the Queen was actually quite frugal. Phil Dampier, who wrote What’s in the Queen’s Handbag and Other Royal Secrets, told Express, "Very often when she’s at home she’ll be happy to have leftovers. She is careful with money and always watches the pennies. She has got handbags which she has had for 30 or 40 years and which she continues to use."