Some of the information on this page may be out of date following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. We are in the process of reviewing and updating this content.
Contacting members of The Royal Family
Due to the sheer numbers of people who wish to contact the Royal Family, correspondence is only possible via letter. Members of the Royal Family cannot be contacted directly via email or telephone.
There is no strict protocol about how a letter should be written, though some people wish to observe the traditional forms.
In which case, people may write to The King with the formal opening "Sir" and close the letter with the form "I have the honour to be, Sir, Your Majesty’s humble and obedient servant."
For other members of the Royal Family the formal opening is "Sir" or "Madam". Other people prefer to opentheir letter with "Your Majesty" or "Your Royal Highness" and end it with "Yours sincerely."
Addressing members of the Royal Family
For female members of The Royal Family who hold the title Her Royal Highness: "Your Royal Highness" on the first occasion, and then "Ma'am."
For male members of The Royal Family who hold the title His Royal Highness: "Your Royal Highness" on thefirst occasion and "Sir" thereafter.
Contacting members of the Royal Family
You can write to members of the Royal family at the following addresses:
The King
Buckingham Palace
London
SW1A 1AA
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall
Clarence House
London
SW1A 1BA
His Royal Highness The Duke of York
Buckingham Palace
London
SW1A 1AA
Their Royal Highnesses The Earl and Countess of Wessex
Bagshot Park
Bagshot
Surrey
GU19 5PL
Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal
Buckingham Palace
London
SW1A 1AA
Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester
Kensington Palace
London W8 4PU
His Royal Highness The Duke of Kent
St. James’s Palace
London
SW1A 1BQ
Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Kent
Wren House
Palace Green
London
W8 4PY
How to request a Royal visit
The Lord-Lieutenant is responsible for making all the arrangements for a Royal visit to Nottinghamshire by amember of the Royal Family. The Officer to the Lieutenancy makes all the necessary planning arrangementsdirect with the Royal Household, the host organisation and the Police to ensure the visit is a success and isenjoyed by everyone involved.
A Royal Visit is a memorable occasion which honours the work and achievements of an organisation orcommunity. It is an opportunity to celebrate and acknowledge the different ways in which people have beeninvolved in either a special piece of work or occasion.
These visits are an important part of the RoyalFamily’s role and are much valued by those organisations that are fortunate enough to receive such a visit.Many of the visits are connected to charities and other organisations with which members of the RoyalFamily are associated.
For further information about Members of the Royal Family and the charities ororganisations they support please go to the British Monarchy website.
Extending an invitation
Invitations to members of the Royal Family may be made in a number of ways.
Invitations may be extended through the Lord-Lieutenant and may be submitted to specific members of theRoyal Family on an organisation’s behalf. If in doubt the Officer will advise as to who may be the mostappropriate member of the Royal Family to approach and it is advisable to consult the Officer at the earliestopportunity if unsure.
Alternatively, invitations can be extended direct to the relevant Royal Household, via the Private Secretary. When using this route, it would be much appreciated if a copy of the invitation could be sent to the Lord-Lieutenant for his information. Include as much information as possible but try to keep it concise. The sortof information that will be needed will vary according to the type of invitation and the Officer can advise onwhat is best to send.
If the invitation involves a visit to a new or refurbished building, it is vital that the work is fully completed andthe people in place and the project up and running before the Member of the Royal Family visits. Suchinvitations need to be put forward for a date well after completion to ensure that everything is in place. Thissometimes means that the Royal visit does not take place until sometime after the building or project hasopened but that is quite usual.
When to make the invitation
All invitations received are very carefully considered. If you wish to invite a member of the Royal Family to anevent taking place in Nottinghamshire you should invite them at least six months in advance. However, if youwant a Royal visit for a special occasion on a particular day then you will need to extend your invitation abouta year beforehand. If in doubt please contact the Officer who will be happy to advise on timings.
An invitation refused
The King and other members of the royal family make at least 3,000 visits every year, with around 1,000 invitations sent to The King alone each year. If your invitation is refused – as many sadly must be – it will not be sent on automatically to another Member of the Royal Family. You may extend it yourself to another Member, even if the second invitee is more senior than the first, although discretion should be exercised in extending subsequent invitations and you may find it helpful to consult the Officer if you are considering this course of action.
An invitation accepted
Once an invitation has been accepted, the appropriate Royal Household will inform the Lord-Lieutenant andthe organisation to advise on a date when the member of the Royal Family wishes to visit.At this early stage of the proceedings, all details relating to the venue and the visit are STRICTLYCONFIDENTIAL and no details should be given to anyone that is not involved in the visit.
The Officer to the Lieutenancy will make contact with the organisation and will arrange to meet with the hoststo work on a draft programme for submission to the Royal Household. Detailed information on how to helpwith the arrangements of a Royal Visit can be found in the Royal Visit Guide on page 6.Once the Royal Visit is confirmed and all arrangements are in place, the details of the visit will be includedon the official British Monarchy website. Approximately one week before a member of the Royal Family isdue to visit Nottinghamshire, details will be added to the Nottinghamshire Lieutenancy website for generalinformation.
Duplication of an invitation
Occasionally, organisations issue an invitation for a member of The Royal Family to visit, only to find anothermember of that organisation has already issued, and had accepted, an invitation to a third party. This cancause considerable embarrassment. It is strongly advised that when a Royal invitation is being planned,everyone in management of the event is aware of the intention to issue an invitation to a member of theRoyal Family, to prevent embarrassment to all concerned.
Garden parties
The Lieutenancy assists Buckingham Palace in identifying local people who through their work or voluntary commitment have done something extra.
As they are identified, the Lieutenancy submits names as a possible guest to one of the three annual Royal Garden parties at Buckingham Palace.