Monaco’s Prince Albert attended the same school as mum Grace Kelly – 6 royals educated at ‘normal’ schools including Prince Philippe of Belgium and Japan’s Prince Hisahito

Feb 1 , 2021

From left, Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway, Prince Hisahito of Japan, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, three royals who attended regular, rather than elite schools. Photos: @royalfashionblogofficial/Instagram; AP; AFP via Getty Images

Norway’s Princess Ingrid Alexandra is going to a modest school, as did her grandfather King Harald V, and the Netherlands’ King Willem-Alexander – despite a US$3 billion family holding in Shell and Philips

Even more so than entertainment celebrities, royalty can choose to live a cocooned life. Although it is entirely possible to marry into the world’s few royal families –as the likes of Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle did –more often, you are born a royal.

Education is one area where that cocoon is often reinforced. With their wealth and – perhaps more importantly – elevated status (something not even Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos’ billions can buy) royalty is often educated away from the masses, to ensure both a particular kind of education and a measure of privacy.

The British royal family are famous for sending its progeny to Eton College. Princes William, Duke of Cambridge; Harry, Duke of Sussex; Edward, Duke of Kent and Prince Michael of Kent are all alumni of the famous Berkshire school. In extreme circumstances certain royal families ensure that education takes place within the confines of the royal palace itself. Both Mohammed VI of Morocco and Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, King of Saudi Arabia, were taught at schools within their respective families’ palaces.

However, it is not always the case that royalty remains aloof. Some royal families are happy with a more common touch, and have been willing to educate their young in less gilded environs. Here are five such examples.

Albert II, Prince of Monaco

Monaco’s Prince Albert II. Photo: EPA-EFE

Despite being the sovereign prince of Monaco, a state where it is estimated that more than 30 per cent of the resident population are millionaires, Prince Albert had a surprisingly modest education. Born in the Prince’s Palace of Monaco, which dates back to 1191, Albert attended Monaco’s prestigious public school Lycée Albert Premier, founded in 1910 by his namesake. As well as its royal connections, the school has also experienced some Hollywood stardust in the form of Grace Kelly, mother to Prince Albert, who inaugurated the school’s library. Today the prince is married to Princess Charlene, a South African former Olympic swimmer.

King Philippe of Belgium

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x