Prince William broke royal protocol in Kenya for the sweetest reason—and yes, there’s a picture
As the future King of England, Prince William is expected to abide by all of Queen Elizabeth II’s rules. More often than not, he’s a perfectly well-behaved member of the royal family. But every now and then, the Duke of Cambridge breaks one rule in particular: no hugging with members of the public.
ET Online reports that Prince William took a three-country tour of Africa over the weekend. On Sunday, September 30th, after visiting Namibia and Tanzania, he traveled to the Kenyan town of Kinambra. There, he met with the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK). He also presented a local soccer team with Aston Villa FC jerseys.
During his visit to Kenya, Prince William met someone very special: a soccer player named William, after him. Naturally, the prince ditched royal protocol and gave him a big hug.
“William meets Prince William—The Duke of Cambridge met his namesake at Kinamba, before presenting him with an @AVFCOfficial shirt #PartOfThePride,” Kensington Palace tweeted.
Here are the two Williams embracing:
William meets Prince William — The Duke of Cambridge met his namesake at Kinamba, before presenting him with an @AVFCOfficial shirt #PartOfThePride pic.twitter.com/FW3VgWtHgn
— The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) September 30, 2018
Historically, it’s understood that the public can’t touch members of the royal family aside from a formal handshake.
But the father of three just couldn’t resist showing young William some love. Though the royal family is no stranger to breaking protocol these days, this isn’t the first time Prince William has broken this specific rule.
Who can forget the time he hugged Chewbacca? Or when he hugged a grieving victim of the horrific London Fire? The embrace showed a compassionate Prince William disregarding typical royal protocol in the face of devastation and heartbreak—which is just another characteristic he inherited from his late mother, Princess Diana.
Sometimes, breaking the rules is for the best.
