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Prince George and Princess Charlotte joined their parents Prince William and Kate Middleton on the last day of the Wimbledon tournament on Sunday, but did they break previous Wimbledon rules?
The young royals eagerly watched the men’s final, which proved to be an exciting match between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic, however, it had been widely reported that children are not allowed to sit in the royal box.
Over 20 years ago, the Duchess of Kent, Katharine, discovered this rule when she made a kind gesture and asked the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club (AELTC) if she could invite the 12-year-old son of one of her friends at the time into the royal box.
The Duchess was reportedly upset by the rule as her royal request was turned down and followed by an apology statement by the club chairman at the time, John Curry.
The statement read: "I regret any unintentional hurt this may have caused to her Royal Highness. Because of demand for space in the royal box, we also ask that, apart from children of the royal family, children are not invited as they exclude other worthy people from attending, many of whom contribute to tennis."
It is currently unclear if the same rules still apply today as the official Wilbledon website information on the royal box, doesn’t include this rule.
The information on the website states: “The Royal Box has been used for the entertainment of friends and guests of Wimbledon since 1922. The Royal Box has 74 seats. They are dark green Lloyd Loom wicker chairs.
“British and overseas Royal Families are invited as well as heads of government, people from the world of tennis, commercial partners, British armed forces, prominent media organisations, supporters of British tennis and other walks of life.”
The information also discussed how people receive invitations: “Invitations come from the Chairman of the All England Club, taking into account suggestions from members of The Championships’ Organising Committee, The Lawn Tennis Association and other relevant sources. Guests are invited to the Clubhouse for lunch, tea and drinks at the end of the day.”
The information does however state rules around the dress code as the protocol is to “dress is smart, suits/jacket and tie, etc” and that “ladies are asked not to wear hats, as they tend to obscure the vision of those seated behind them”.
The Wimbledon's website also states children of all ages are welcome to watch the highly anticipated matches, however babies and children under five are not allowed into Show Courts.
Meanwhile, children over the age of five and under the age of 16 are allowed into all courts as long as they are accompanied by an adult.
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