Q: Q: Timothy - Essex
Do pages and footmen still wear the old fashioned uniforms all the time?
 
The male domestic staff in the royal palaces wear a uniform which dates from 1967. This replaced the battledress-type uniform for everyday wear which King George VI introduced in 1940 to replace the earlier livery.
 
For Footmen and Under-Butlers normal daily dress is black tail coat and trousers worn with a soft white shirt with turn-down collar, black tie (not bow) and scarlet waistcoat trimmed with very narrow gold braid.

On semi-State occasions such as Royal Ascot week, important dinner parties and carriage duties, which do not merit the wearing of full State livery, footmen wear a scarlet tail coat, white stiff shirt and bow tie and black trousers.

On special State occasions such as State banquets, footmen wear scarlet livery decorated with gold braid, scarlet plush knee breeches, pink stockings and black buckle shoes.
 
For Pages, normal daily dress consists of blue Household coat and black trousers, worn with a soft white shirt with turn-down collar, black tie (not bow) and blue waistcoat with gilt buttons.

On semi-State occasions pages wear the same dress as for a normal day, except that a starched shirt with winged collar, white bow tie and white waistcoat are worn.

On special State occasions such as State banquets and evening receptions for the Diplomatic Corps, pages wear a very dark blue livery with gold braid, together with fine white wool cloth breeches, stockings and black pumps with buckles.

Q: Sonia Soto - U.S.A.
When one is introduced to royalty, should one wait to be spoken to before speaking? Where did the curtsey/bow tradition come from?

Contrary to popular and media belief, there are no firm rules in these areas - only guidance if people ask.  On introduction to a member of the Royal Family a bow (from the head only) or curtsey is made - but bows and curtseys are optional.  In speaking to The Queen, it is correct to use the title Your Majesty, and subsequently in conversation Ma'am (to rhyme with lamb).

For male members of the Royal Family, the same rules apply, with the title used in the first instance being Your Royal Highness, and subsequently Sir.

Royal Princesses, whether married or unmarried, should be addressed first as Your Royal Highness and thereafter as Ma'am.

Some people prefer to wait before being spoken to, others initiate conversation; this is a matter of personal choice.

For some years, protocol has become less rigid, as members of the Royal Family prefer that people should above all feel comfortable when meeting them.

Q: Jürg - Switzerland
I will visit London in August 2005 and would like to see the Crown Jewels. Could you advise as to where I can see the Crown of Queen Adelaide, the Crown of Queen Mary of Modena and the Crown of Queen Alexandra?

All three crowns are on display at the Tower of London, either as part of the Crown Jewels exhibition in the case of the State Crown of Mary of Modena, or as part of 'The Crowns and Diamonds: The Making of the Crown Jewels' exhibition in the Martin Tower in the case of the Crown of Queen Adelaide and the Crown of Queen Alexandra.

Q: Michelle - South Carolina, USA
Could you tell me what is the Family Order and who is given the Order?

The Family Order is a badge worn by female members of the Royal Family, which is personally bestowed by The Queen.
 
Royal Family Orders in England date from the reign of George IV and have been instituted in one form or another by Queen Victoria, King Edward VII, King George V, King George VI and The Queen.

The badge normally features a portrait of the Sovereign, surrounded by diamonds, and is suspended from a silk bow (of different colours for each Sovereign). Family Orders are worn pinned to the left shoulder at formal evening occasions when other orders and decorations are worn.
 
The Queen herself wears the Family Orders of her father King George VI and her grandfather King George V.

The Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II depicts The Queen in evening dress wearing the riband and star of the Order of the Garter, pearl earrings and a diamond necklace received as a wedding present from the Nizam of Hyderabad.

The miniature, painted on ivory, is bordered by diamonds and surmounted by a Tudor crown in diamonds and red enamel. The reverse, in silver-gilt, is patterned with rays and depicts the royal cypher and St Edwards Crown in gold and enamel. The watered silk ribbon is chartreuse yellow and formed into a bow. The badges of The Queen's Family Order are made by Garrard & Co.
 
Q: Joe - Washington, D.C., USA
If only Princesses of Royal birth are allowed to be styled with their Christian name rather than that of their husband, then why was the case different for Princesses Alice, Marina and Diana? Were they given the title of Princess of the United Kingdom at some point? Since Wales is a part of the United Kingdom, and Lady Diana was The Princess of Wales, was she automatically considered to be a Princess of the United Kingdom?

Princesses of Royal birth use their given name in their title. For example, The Queen's daughter was known as Princess Anne before being made Princess Royal.

However, Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester was, before she was widowed, The Duchess of Gloucester. When The Duke of Gloucester died, she became Princess Alice to avoid confusion with the new Duchess of Gloucester.

Princess Marina, like Prince Philip, was a member of the Greek Royal Family and therefore a princess in her own right. She was known as The Duchess of Kent whilst The Duke of Kent was still alive. After The Duke of Kent died and their son married the new Duchess of Kent, she became known as Princess Marina, again, to avoid confusion.

When Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles in 1981, as the wife of the heir to the British throne, she automatically became a princess of the United Kingdom and thus was known as The Princess of Wales. She was never officially 'Princess Diana', though this was how she was often unofficially referred to in the press.