Here’s how to get invited to a garden party at Buckingham Palace

After two years of forced suspension due to Covid, Garden parties are back at Buckingham Palacethe famous festivals with the royal gardens open to thousands of people (see gallery under). This year without the Queen ElizabethDue to mobility problems, the ninety-six-year-old monarch, who had skipped appointments only for pregnancies, will be replaced by other senior members of the Windsor household. To the first post-pandemic garden party, which took place in the rain on 12 Maythere were the prince Charlesthe royal princess Anna and the Duchess Camilla of Cornwall. Who, as per protocol, greeted and chatted with the guests from all over the UK. About 8000 people, as they did know from Palazzo. Even if the sun did not shine, everything went smoothly: as usual thousands of cups of tea and as many sandwiches and slices of cake were served while the Royal Marines Band and the Royal Air Force Music took care of themusical accompaniment.

More garden parties are scheduled at Buckingham Palace today (May 18) and May 25, while the June 29 the event will be staged a Holyroodhouse, in Scotland. But how do you get an invitation to the event that allows mere mortals to mingle with members of the royal family? The Garden Party tradition dates back to the Victorian age. It was right there Queen Victoria to be the first to open the gardens of Buckingham Palace for super exclusive parties to which at the beginning only members of high society were invited. But gradually the parties turned into an occasion for to celebrate the subjects who have distinguished themselves for their services to the community.

To be invited, therefore, it is first of all necessary to have rendered a service for the good of all. And then you have to be a British citizen residing in the UK. Those who are eligible and want to participate in the parties, however, cannot go directly to Buckingham Palace. It is the Palazzo that distributes the invitations «through a network of sponsors longtime”. Including government departments, local governments, and various associations, including religious ones. They are the ones who suggest to court who deserves the prestigious invitation. And it is therefore with them that you must get in touch if you dream of having tea with the Windsors in the royal gardens.

Garden parties, however, are not only attended by British citizens. Every year numerous invitations are awarded to countries within the Commonwealth, including Australia and New Zealand. A New Zealand citizen, for example, can apply for an invitation to the Queen’s Garden Party through the New Zealand High Commission. To be invited, however, you must meet other strict requirements: you must be over 18 and have never attended a garden party before. If you manage to get the longed-for invitation, a dilemma remains: how to dress? The royal dress code is clear: men must wear a day suitwomen day dresses with hats or fascinators, the bon-ton headdresses so loved by English royalty.

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