Princess Anne wears gloves for royal engagements for practical reason

Whether it’s scorching sunshine or raining hard, Princess Anne regularly wears a pair of gloves when attending a public engagement. 

The Princess Royal’s fashion is usually very practical, and as one of the busiest working royals in the family, she attends hundreds of engagements throughout the year. 

Earlier this month, Princess Anne attended an engagement for Carers Support in North East Lincolnshire. It was another hot day, and she had dressed for the weather in a white and blue summer dress with a light navy cardigan over the top, but fans were confused by her accessories – a pair of gloves. 

Someone commented online: “Just an observation, but the gloves seem a bit over the top for daytime. Is it a hygiene thing…?” 

The suggested reason for Princess Anne choosing the wear gloves is because she is constantly shaking hands with people she’s introduced to. 

To combat any potential hygiene issues, the Princess reportedly chooses to wear gloves to avoid any direct contact with the people she is shaking hands with. 

Creative Director of luxury glovemaker Cornelia James, Genevieve James, said that wearing gloves is something the late Queen Elizabeth chose to do too.

Genevieve said Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was rarely seen without her gloves on for two main reasons. 

In a conversation with Good Housekeeping, Genevieve explained: “Number one: [they’re] stylish. Number two: practical. They’re necessary because if you’re the Queen, you’re shaking a lot of hands, so they protect her hands as well.” 

The Queen wearing gloves had “always been part of her style” and they were integral to her image. “The mind’s eye picture of the Queen is the white-gloved hand waving,” the glove expert said. 

While Princess Anne chooses to wear gloves, Kate, Princess of Wales and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh don’t, and Queen Camilla occasionally wears a pair. 

Princess Diana “abandoned the royal protocol of wearing gloves because she liked to hold hands when visiting people or shake hands and have direct contact”, Eleri Lynn, curator of the Kensington Palace exhibit Diana: Her Fashion Story, previously told People.