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British Values: A Listicle of Royal Traditions Changing With the Times

© AP Photo / Leslie Priest, FileThis is a June. 2, 1953 file photo of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, as they wave to supporters from the balcony at Buckingham Palace, following her coronation at Westminster Abbey. London
This is a June. 2, 1953 file photo of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, as they wave to supporters from the balcony at Buckingham Palace, following her coronation at Westminster Abbey. London - Sputnik International
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Queen Elizabeth put an untimely end to one of Britain's most niche traditions after she spent the past five weeks at her residence in Barmoral.

The 92-year-old monarch forced Pipe Major Scott Methven to immediately stop his royal bagpiping duties due to personal reasons, Hello! Magazine reported.

Scott's departure marked the 15th piper to leave the position, which was introduced by Queen Elizabeth's great-great grandmother Queen Victoria. 

READ MORE: Queen Elizabeth Revealed to Have Fake Hand for Waving to Crowds — Report 

Pipers normally serenade the Queen at 9am for 15 minutes by her window while she stays at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Balmoral or Holyroodhouse. They also play among a group of 12 as State banquet attendees enter and leave the premises, and at the Queen's dinner table. 

While some could blame the 'sacked' bagpiper on the Queen's age, other changes in contemporary society have prompted some royal traditions to come to a halt or be reconsidered with time. 

Royal Guard Bearskin Hats 

Animal activists such as PETA and Stella McCartney have slammed the Royal Guard tradition of wearing poofy bearskin hats in recent years, threatening the 17th century practice. 

Despite this and decreasing British troop numbers, sales of the iconic bearskin Busby hats soared 500 percent since 2008, the Mirror reported in 2016. The findings infuriated activists, who called upon the Ministry of Defence to stop buying the fur caps. 

READ MORE: Canadian Gov't Starts Deer Cull in Quebec Regions — Reports 

In 2008, 35 bearskin caps costed £31,000. However, the cost of bearskins skyrocketed to £149,379 or £1,224 in 2015, with taxpayers footing the bill for 122 of the caps.  

"The British public will be horrified that Canadian black bears are being slaughtered, often indiscriminately, to provide fur headgear for British soldiers," shadow environment minister Alex Cunningham said, who unearthed the figures. 

Cunningham also stated that the government had spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on bearskins despite rising costs and animal rights protests, but did not plan to research alternatives. 

The British royalty normally buy bearskins from Canada, which culls black bear populations every year, with British authorities taking 100 of the bearskins for themselves. 

Royal National Anthem and Christmastime Speech 

A survey of 1,000 people conducted by Mecca Bingo in May 2017 stated that 70 percent of Brits were sad to see some British traditions dying out, blaming modern distractions for their decline, the Express reported

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The poll discovered that less than 69 percent of Brits did not know the lyrics to God Save the Queen, which originated in 1745. As of 2017, 20 million fewer people watch the Queen's Christmastime speech, with viewership down to 8 million from 28 million in 1987. 

'Unorthodox' Royal Habits 

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex once broke royal protocol after closing her own car door, prompting both praise and ridicule from social media. 

READ MORE: From Selfie to Death Warrant: Muslim Women Use Social Media Despite Threats 

"Usually, if you are a member of the royal family or a dignitary, you have a member of staff to open and close a car door for you," etiquette expert William Hanson told the BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat. 

​M: awwwww shheeeeiiittt Twitter is gonna explode 

 

 

Los-Angeles native Meghan Markle, 37, has closed her own door on numerous occasions, prompting concerns on her unorthodox behavior. However, she is still not allowed to indulge in other casual activities.

"Now that Meghan is a member of the royal family, there's no more selfies, no more autographs, she can't vote and all public social media has to be deleted," Hanson said.

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