Royal traditions in London

     On 20 July, 2009 H.M. Queen Elizabeth II, as "Seigneur of the Swans," attended the Swan Upping ceremony  for the first time in her reign, and the first time that a monarch has watched the ceremony in centuries.

   The skiffs surround the swans so that they can be more easily caught. A similar process is performed on the Rideau Canal in Ottawa, another capital city of the Queen's. 
 

     2.6 Kissing hands 
 

      To kiss hands is a constitutional term used in the United Kingdom to refer to the formal installation of Crown-appointed British government ministers to their office.

     In the past, it referred to the requirement that the office-holder actually kiss the hands of the Sovereign as a symbol of personal fealty and loyalty to the Sovereign, that fealty and loyalty being a requirement to serve in the King's or Queen's government.

     In modern times, office holders are not expected physically to kiss the hands of the Sovereign (although some have quite unexpectedly done so). Simply being received by the Queen is taken to validate the appointment, with this meeting being described as "kissing hands".

     The invitation issued to a party leader to form a government is sometimes still described as "an invitation to Kiss Hands" [18].

     When appointing a Secretary of State (top rank in HM Government), the protocol also involves the delivery by the Sovereign of the seals of office into the hands of the appointee. This is also valid for other officers who are keepers of seals, such as the Lord Privy Seal or the Lord Chancellor, who is also keeper of the Great Seal of the United Kingdom. 
 

      2.7 The Queen’s Telegram 
 

      This custom is not very old, but it's for very old people. On his or her one hundredth birthday, a British person gets a telegram from the Queen.

      The Birthday Honours List and The Year’s Honours List

      Twice a year at Buckingham Palace, the Queen gives titles or"honours", once in January and once in June. There are a lot of different honours. Here are a few:

      C.B.E. - Companion of the British Empire

      O.B.E. - Order of the British Empire

      M.B.E. - Member of the British Empire

      (These honours began in the nineteenth century. Then Britain Had an empire.)

      Knighthood - a knight has "Sir" before his name. A new knight kneels in front of the Queen. She touches first his right shoulder, then his left shoulder with a sword. Then she says "Arise, Sir... [His first name]", and the knight stands.

      Peerage - a pee~ is a lord. Peers sit in the House of Lords. That's one part of the Houses of Parliament. The other part is the House of Commons. Peers call the House of Commons "another place".

      Dame/Baroness - these are two of the highest honours for a woman. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

      CONCLUSION 

    In this work we have studied different royal ceremonies, events and traditions, their origin and procedure. According to the objectives of the work we’ve explored various resources and material on the theme of royal traditions in London.

      We cannot really imagine Britain without all its traditions, this integral feature of social and private life of the people living on the British Isles that has always been an important part of their life and work. English traditions can classified into several groups: traditions concerning the Englishmen’s private life (child’s birth, wedding, marriage, wedding anniversary); which are connected with families incomes; state traditions; national holidays, religious holidays, public festival, traditional ceremonies. There are numerous royal traditions in Britain, some are ancient, others are modern. Working on this topic I have to conclusion that British people are very conservative. They are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up. It was interesting to know that foreigners coming to England are stuck at once by quite a number of customs and peculiarities.

    The results of this research are:

1. the main traditions of the Royal family have been studied;
2. the main royal ceremonies  have been described;
3. the main sources that mention the major events and ceremonies of the royal family have been studied.

    So after this research we can say that British people are the nation with rich history, customs and traditions. All of them are carefully and respectfully observed day by day. To know the history of them is extremely important for understanding national way of life.

      Each Royal tradition in Britain has its own history full of symbols and inner meaning.  That’s why Royal events and ceremonies hold a powerful fascination.

This work has great significance for studying Great Britain and can be useful for every person studying English and for tourists who are interested in visiting different countries.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

BIBLIOGRAPHY: 
 

1. Голицынский Ю. Б. Great Britain / Ю. Б. Голицынский. -  С.-Петербург: Карог, 1999г. – 304 с.
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10 50 facts about the Coronation. Buckingham Palace press releases, 2003-05-23.

11 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/derbyshire/8598225.stm18. www.usa.gov

12  http://www.changing-the-guard.com/

13 Cox, N. The Coronation and Parliamentary Robes of the British Peerage / N. Cox.  - Arma 5 (1), 1999. - p. 289–293.

14  http://www.royal.gov.uk

15  http://www.webhistoryofengland.com/

16  http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/

17  http://www.parliament.uk/

18 http://www.mapsofworld.com/cities/uk/london/traditions.html 
 
 
 
 
 
 

      
 
 

     Appendix A 

 

    The bridal dress, designed by English designer Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, was made of satin and featured a lace applique bodice and skirt. The lace bodice design was hand-made using a technique that originated in Ireland in the 1820s called Carrickmacross, which involved cutting out the detailings of roses, thistles, daffodils and shamrocks and applying them to the ivory silk tulle individually. These lace appliques were hand-made by the Royal School of Needlework, based at Hampton Court Palace. The veil was held in place by a Cartier Scroll Tiara, made in 1936 and lent to her by the Queen. It was purchased by the Queen's father, the Duke of York (subsequently King George VI) for his Duchess (later Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mother) three weeks before succeeding his brother Edward VIII (Duke of Windsor) as King. Princess Elizabeth (now the Queen) received the tiara from her mother on her 18th birthday. In order to avoid her tiara falling off, as had happened for Lady Diana Spencer during her 1981 wedding to the Prince of Wales, Catherine's stylists "backcombed the top [of her hair] to create a foundation for the tiara to sit around, then did a tiny plait in the middle and sewed it on."

    Appendix B 
 
 

 

    The Colour (flag) is marched in front of the Coldstream Guards, during the Trooping the Colour ceremony on Horse Guards Parade in Whitehall, June 2006. During the ceremony, The Queen is greeted by a Royal salute and carries out an inspection of the troops. This military ceremony dates back to the early eighteenth century or earlier, when the colours (flags) of the battalion were carried (or 'trooped') down the ranks so that they could be seen and recognized by the soldiers. Since 1748, this parade has also marked the Sovereign's official birthday. From the reign of Edward VII onwards, the Sovereign has taken the salute in person at Trooping the Colour, which is held on a Saturday in June. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

    Appendix C 
 

 

    The Queen's Guard in London changes in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace at 11:30am every day in the summer and every other day in the winter.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

    Appendix D 
 

 

     Wearing the Imperial State Crown and dressed in her parliamentary robe, The Queen delivers The Queen's Speech at the State Opening of Parliament in December 2008. The State Opening of Parliament is the most colourful event of the Parliamentary year. It is also the most important, because it brings together the three elements of the legislature (the House of Commons, the House of Lords and The Queen). The ceremony therefore represents the Crown in Parliament. As Head of State, it is the duty of The Queen formally to open each new session of Parliament. The Queen's Speech is written by the Government of the day, and outlines the legislation which the Government plans to introduce into Parliament in the coming session. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

    Appendix E 
 

 

    Every Easter The Queen hands out special 'Maundy money' to elderly people in recognition of service to their community and their church. The presentation takes place on Maundy Thursday at a different British cathedral every year and the selection is co-ordinated by the diocese (regional Church of England authority) hosting Royal Maundy that year. The number of recipients is related to the Sovereign's age: in 2008, there were 82 male and 82 female recipients at the service in St. Patrick's Church of Ireland Cathedral in Armagh. The Queen has distributed Maundy on all but four occasions since coming to the throne in 1952. Here, Her Majesty hands out Maundy money as part of the Maundy Service at Gloucester Cathedral in April 2003. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

      Appendix F 
 

 
 

    The annual Swan Upping ceremony gets underway on the River Thames, July 2004. Swan Upping is the annual census of the swan population on stretches of the Thames in the counties of Middlesex, Surrey, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire. The historic ceremony dates from the twelfth century, when the Crown claimed ownership of all mute swans. Today, the Crown retains the right to ownership of all unmarked mute swans in open water, but The Queen only exercises her ownership on certain stretches of the Thames and its surrounding tributaries. This ownership is shared with the Vintners' and Dyers' Companies, who were granted rights of ownership by the Crown in the fifteenth century. In the Swan Upping ceremony, The Queen's Swan Marker and the Swan Uppers of the Vinters' and Dyers' livery companies use six traditional Thames rowing skiffs in their five-day journey up-river.