Why Prince William’s Estonia trip matters

It is a requirement of the Royal Family that they should remain politically neutral. They are, after all, the only family in the United Kingdom who are constitutionally not allowed to vote. However, this does not stop its various members from having opinions and expressing them, sometimes in embarrassing and distinctly un-regal fashions. Whether it’s the Queen Mother’s lady-in-waiting Helen Hardinge writing in her diary that her employer was a ‘diehard Tory’, the late Queen’s open and clear affection for the Labour PM Harold Wilson or, more recently, Prince Harry’s equally open and clear contempt for Donald Trump, the old royal adage of ‘never complain, never explain’ has been tested to its limits when it comes to politics, both domestic and international.

This has been shown to be particularly true when it comes to Prince William’s recent visit to Estonia, ostensibly to see the British troops who are stationed out there at Tapa Camp.