Other British Royals and Relations

[tiggertoo]

My friend went to an English boarding school for a year, while her parents were in Saudi Arabia. She would have been about 14 at the time. I think she enjoyed it. I’ll have to ask her about it next time I see her.

[Auroranorth]

Apr 15, 2024 17:21:05 GMT -4 OnyxRose said:

Apr 15, 2024 13:58:05 GMT -4 Ginger said:

Where the kids go and at what age they go are crucial. Charles Spencer went at age 8, which is too young, and went to a place where he was abused. Tom Hiddleston went off to boarding school at age 6, and not surprisingly, says that scarred him for life.

Kids who go when they are teenagers to a place they like have a different experience. I believe Princess Eugenie said she loved boarding school.

Kate herself reportedly had a bad experience at Downe House, but transferred to Marlborough College and loved it there (all speculation since I don't think she's talked about it herself).

Harry really had no business going to Eton. I think he would have done well at Gordonstoun like Zara; Charles should have went to Eton, he was made for it.

I agree about Charles, but Prince Philip insisted on Gordonstoun because he went there. It really wasn't a good choice for Charles, though Anne would likely have thrived.

[hellsbells]

Apr 15, 2024 2:57:39 GMT -4 lea1977 said:

I think William and Kate will wait until their children are teens or may even give them the choice of whether they want to go or not. Apparently Kate isn’t a fan of single sex boarding schools like Elton which is William’s alma mater.

Knowingly sending your kids into one of those dens of abuse is a parenting choice.

(Tradition/Manhood/etc. will most likely be upheld, but I wouldn't send my kid.)

[Mlle]

www.bss-support.org.uk/resources/bbc-the-making-of-them-1994/

I watched this a while ago, look at how little these poor boys are, boarding school at 7 or 8 seems so cruel.

"Anybody who knows a 7 year old, an 8 year old knows that they are attached to their parents, the places they live, and that there is nothing wrong with that, it's human. And to grow up in an environment where you think that as a failure, of course that has an impact on your life. You grow up after 10 years of that experience, deeply feeling that it is a failure to have feelings about being attached to another adult that you love." (17:39)

One more:
"Perhaps the most fundamental issue you hear about boarding is that no matter how well meaning the boarding schools are, no matter how committed the staff are, they do not give the children in their care love. So when you put a child in boarding school you are talking about putting a child in an environment without love for maybe 3/4 of the year at an age in which love is so important to that child." (34:37)

I am assuming we are all on the same page about boarding schools, but this little documentary is a good glimpse.

[phillipa]

Starting at junior high or high school age (12 and up or so) seems reasonable. It's fictional obviously but I think that's about when Hogwarts started?

Preteens and teenagers are naturally starting to become more independent, and it doesn't seem like a terrible idea to give them time away from their parents where they have to cope with being on their own, but in a protected environment. It could help with developing maturity. I had a lot of trouble transitioning to college because it was the first time I had been away from home for an extended period of time, and looking back, 18 seems like an age where I shouldn't have fallen apart the way that I did.

6 or 7 though, no way. That's way too young. And to add in corporal punishment is just sadistic.

[tabby]

Nov 14, 2022 12:55:00 GMT -4 phillipa said:

It's fictional obviously but I think that's about when Hogwarts started?

Young witches and wizards start at Hogwarts at age 11.

I heard an interview with Charles Spencer about the book on NPR, and Maidwell sounds like it was a hellhole. If you're interested, the interview is on their website.

[Mlle]

Apr 16, 2024 13:23:11 GMT -4 tabby said:

Nov 14, 2022 12:55:00 GMT -4 phillipa said:

It's fictional obviously but I think that's about when Hogwarts started?

Young witches and wizards start at Hogwarts at age 11.

I heard an interview with Charles Spencer about the book on NPR, and Maidwell sounds like it was a hellhole. If you're interested, the interview is on their website.

Oh interesting! The documentary I posted included Maidwell Hall. Hmm, they talked about how it's improved (in 1993) but I guess that is after Charles Spencer's time.

I wish my library had the audiobook, it seems like it would be a great listen, more than a read for me (though I am on hold for the book)

[seat6]

I have the Libby app and got the audiobook that way.

I’m not really sure how it works! Maybe my home library has to have the audiobook for me to access it?

I finished the book. It just got worse and worse for him at that school.

It’s a tough read. He’s a good writer, though. It’s really sad to think of all the lost potential those children represent. What would their lives had been like if they had been in a nurturing environment? How much more could they have accomplished? How much happier would they have been?

[hellsbells]

So, if William & Kate's kids do not go to boarding school, would they be the first in the line of ascension who didn't?

[Auroranorth]

Apr 18, 2024 5:29:31 GMT -4 hellsbells said:

So, if William & Kate's kids do not go to boarding school, would they be the first in the line of ascension who didn't?

Not at all. Charles was actually the first one sent off to boarding school. Before him, young royals had tutors/governesses. Charles was the first one in the direct line of succession to get a university degree, as well.