PASSED down for centuries, the British Royal Family has some of the most elaborate and richest traditions in the world.

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the world's gaze has been on the family as they follow strict sets of rules and protocols during the mourning period.

These range from certain members not being able to travel together to nail polish women are not allowed to wear.

In the lead up to Her Majesty's funeral, etiquette and protocol consultant William Hanson reveals some of the lesser-known rules The Firm have to abide by.

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Travel restrictions

As a general rule, two members in close proximity to each other in the line of succession are not allowed to travel together.

"We never saw the late Queen and Prince Charles as he was then travel together because if something happened to the car, the aeroplane, or the ship, you would have a problem because the number one and two would be gone," William says.

"From a security and succession point of view, they must always travel separately, which is the same in America with the president and the vice president who are never in the same car.

"Generally, an exception is made for infants and young children, which is why we have seen photographs of William and Catherine with all three children going on the same aeroplane – that will change when George becomes a teenager."

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How to bow

As the monarch approaches, everyone is expected to show respect -women are expected to curtsy and men must bow.

William says: "Men will bow from the neck and not from the waist so sometimes it just looks like a nod.

"A royal bow is not like a stage bow which is done from the waist."

PDAs

Public displays of affection are something for each member of the Royal Family to decide for themselves.

During William, Kate, Harry, and Meghan's appearance outside Windsor Castle, over the weekend, several people pointed to the fact that the Sussexes were holding hands but the Prince and Princess of Wales were not.

William clarifies: "William and Catherine are very secure in their relationship and do not need the reassurance of each other.

"Also during the walkabout, they were splitting up so it wasn't practical for them to hold hands, and it's a personal preference."

Nail polish

Although the women of the Royal Family are allowed to wear nail polish, they have to follow strict rules.

"It needs to be skin coloured so hot red and bright pink, for example, are not correct, especially for official occasions and particularly during mourning," William says.

"So it's either translucent or dusky pink – so that would basically be the colour of your nails so it looks natural."

Walking order

You may have noticed that the consort typically walks a few steps behind the monarch.

William explains: "This is because they are the ones that married into the family. Just like the Duke of Edinburgh, who would always walk a few paces behind the Queen.

"He was not the blood royal – it's the same with Catherine, Meghan and Sophie, Countess of Wessex.

"Looking at Princess Anne and her husband Timothy Laurence, he is always behind the Princess Royal. It's because the royals represent The Crown and The Crown represents us."

Armband rule

We have seen the King and his siblings, with the exception of Prince Andrew, wearing military regalia while following behind Her Majesty's coffin.

"That's the dress uniform of whatever military regiment they are representing – each branch of the military has their practical uniform and a dress uniform which you obviously can't do combat in," according to William.

"Those are there for ceremonial occasions including funerals and four mourning."

We will see clergymen like the Archbishop of Canterbury wearing black armbands over their vestments as he did during the proclamation of King Charles.

"You will only wear a black armband to signify you're in mourning if you weren't in civilian dress.

"Looking at that Accession Council, with the Prince of Wales, and the Queen Consort Camilla, they were just in black civilian dress and didn't need armbands."

The 'Duchess slant'

Despite many reports in the past about how royal women are supposed to sit, William says there is actually no rule in relation to this.

"That is what we call etiquette and general common sense. Generally, ladies wearing skirts, whether long or short, would keep their knees and ankles together," he says.

"Some ladies like the late Queen will tuck one uncle behind the other. The Princess of Wales does something known as the Duchess slant, where the knees point one way and the ankles point the other to create a line.

"For a funeral, you are going to be sitting at the back of a chair so keeping the knees and ankle together in a straight line or perhaps one ankle crossed behind the other is more practical."

Men in the centre?

During the Fab Four's walkabout in Windsor, many pointed to the fact that the men were in the middle and wondered whether this was a protocol.

But William says: "There is no protocol behind William and Harry being at the centre during the walk down Windsor. They are brothers and it was nice to see the brothers together.

"Whether they thought that out or not, whether that was conscious or not, that's just how it ended up.

"We don't know that but it was nice to see William and Harry next to each other after everything that has gone on."

Order of entrance

As the Royals make their way in for any official ceremony, there will be an order of entrance.

William tells us: "The appropriate order for entering a room is what we call by order of precedence set by the ascending order so the more important you are, the later you arrive.

"So the coffin will arrive last but in terms of living people, the King will be the last to arrive."

Watch with eyes, not phones

As a general show of etiquette, William believes mourners should not be too eager to film the Queen's procession.

He says: "To the public, it's best to watch with your eyes and not on your phone if you happen to see the procession and as the coffin goes past.

"You've got every lens under the sun via the international media taking much better photographs than our phones.

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"The Queen must be remembered in our hearts, and not on our iPhones. Just take it in. When we saw the coffin arrive in Edinburgh yesterday, there was a ripple of applause as she moved through Edinburgh to Holyrood Palace.

"But it would and should have been a much larger applause if people had their hands free and were not intent on filming it."

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