Did Prince George and Prince William break royal protocol?
A photo of Prince William driving into Buckingham Palace for a Christmas lunch with the extended royal family shows the second-in-line to the throne breaking one important protocol.
Although, the Royal Family are known to take some traditions and rules more seriously than others, the Cambridge clan were spotted breaking one security protocol.
Prince William was photographed driving his family to the festive lunch, with Duchess Kate sitting next to him in the passenger seat of the Range Rover, and Prince George and Princess Charlotte sitting in the back.
However, since Prince William and Prince George are heirs to the throne, they’re not supposed to travel together in case an accident occurs.
Although the security measure is more strictly applied to air travel, there is still a risk when they use other modes of transport.
Royal etiquette expert Alexandra Messervy from The English Manner told InStyle that the royals still need to consider the Queen’s permission for car travel together.
"Nowadays, it would appear that [traveling together] by car doesn’t carry the same issue [as by plane], but they will of course have security police protection," she explained.
"But I suppose they believe that things are relatively safe now.”
According to Business Insider, when heirs to the throne are only children, the rule is relaxed.
When the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge flew to Australia with Prince George, he was allowed to travel in the same plane as his father.
However, once Prince George turns 12 it is believed that he will have to travel separately from his father or get permission from his grandmother.