All Royal Family members use monikers to allow for more privacy, but senior Royals get given unique codenames by members of their security teams.
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Daphne and Danny, Davina and David
Being born into Royalty gives access to privilege and luxury many can only dream of, but Royal Family members could also become the target of those with bad intentions.
To avoid tragedy, senior Royal Family members have dedicated security details that ensure their safety everywhere, whether at home or out and about. Security was a big point of discord when Prince Harry and Meghan stepped down as senior royals in 2020. Rightly so, as in 1979, Queen Elizabeth II's cousin, the Earl of Mountbatten, was assassinated when the IRA bombed his fishing boat.
As security is a number one priority, Prince William and Kate Middleton have alter-egos that allow for a certain amount of anonymity and protection. They are used when the couple is on holiday or Royal tours.
Their names are said to be inspired by their titles, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Kate Middleton goes by the alias Daphne Clarke, and Prince William is also known as Danny Collins. Both the titles and the monikers have the initials DC.
Whilst working as senior Royals, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex also benefited from such codenames. With the initials DS, Meghan Markle was called Davina Scott, and Prince Harry was David Stevens.
A Royal source explainedthat codenames changed regularly for obvious reasons, per Mail Online.
Sharon and Unicorn
If the Cambridges and the Sussexes codenames sound like cheesy spy names, then the Queen's moniker was a little more discreet. Compared to handles given to US Presidents, it is somewhat anticlimactic.
President Obama was known as Renegade. Donald Trump was Mogul. According to a royal aide, Queen Elizabeth went by the name Sharon.
It is thought that picking such a familiar name would deter anyone attempting to hack radio waves looking for information about Her Majesty's whereabouts.
However, the late Queen's bodyguards sometimes referred to Elizabeth as 'S'. When asked about the claims, Royal historian Hugo Vickers admitted it was a 'highly likely' scenario.
The historian suggested that 'S' might also stand for Sovereign. This would suit how the Cambridges and the Sussexes code names were invented.
Prince Charles has probably had many codenames since his birth. But one of his more unusual handles came when he 'crossed the pond' in 1971. During his visit to the United States, the then heir to the throne was given the codename 'Unicorn'. No one knows why the then Prince Charles was given such a whimsical codename.
Sources used:
- My London: 'Royal Family: The bizarre codename Kate Middleton and Prince William's security teams use for them'
- Express: 'Royal Family codenames in full - from the Queen to Prince Harry'
- Mail Online: 'The Queen's code name revealed: Monarch is referred to as 'Sharon' by bodyguards when she is on public engagements, royal aide claims'
Read more:
⋙ King Charles: Rare bats, beer and other quirky things he inherited from the Queen
⋙ Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip allegedly believed in Bigfoot
⋙ The bizarre Christmas tradition the Queen insists on perpetuating
