Bizarre royal tradition that sees Member of Parliament taken hostage
Topics: Royal Family, Politics, King Charles III
Mia Williams
Featured Image Credit: Chris Jackson - WPA Pool/Getty Images/Jonathan Brady - WPA Pool/Getty Images
Topics: Royal Family, Politics, King Charles III
The royals have a bizarre tradition which involves kidnapping an MP during The State Opening of Parliament.
It seems as though the royals have a lot traditions which us normal folk just don't really understand - but this one has to be the most outlandish.
The State Opening of Parliament happens on the first day of a new parliamentary session or shortly after a general election, which happened to be quite recently.
And there's an extremely strange ritual that comes with it.
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The Head of State, which is currently King Charles, is always the person to do it.
The monarch will give a speech, which gives notice of his forthcoming state visits, before setting out the government's plans for the new parliamentary session.
Despite being read out by the King, it's actually written by the government.
The length depends on the number of proposed laws, but usually lasts about 10 minutes.
Laws that the Labour government announced at this years State Opening included bills on workers' rights, the re-nationalisation of the railways, illegal immigration, housing and planning and House of Lords reform.
However, before the King arrives at parliament, the Royal Household have an extremely strange job to do.
It's their duty to take a Member of Parliament as a hostage for the duration of the opening ceremony.
This ritual started as a way to ensure the sovereign’s safety during their visit, especially in previous times when the monarch and Parliament were in conflict. The hostage usually stays at Buckingham Palace until the King returns.
I bet that's an awkward conversation...
And the strange traditions don't end there!
For more than 300 years, precisely six ravens have been required to live in the Tower of London.
Why, you ask?
King Charles II insisted on protecting the Tower’s birds, who he believed would protect both the nation and its monarchy.
And according to superstition: "If the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it.”
And whilst there isn't an ounce of truth to this, I get why he doesn't really want to take the risk.
It seems as though the royals take superstitions really seriously, as it also applies to their coronation ceremonies.
According to tradition, any mishaps would predict an unsuccessful reign.
Which is probably why the rehearsal process is so rigorous.