Hippie Hogwarts? The British schools and colleges proving a big hit with European Royalty

Cambridge, Oxford, the London School of Economics and other leading British Unversities are well known for attracting students from the European elite.  

But some lesser-known schools and colleges have also proved remarkably popular.

From the academic heights of Oxford and Cambridge to a school dubbed the ‘Hippy Hogwarts’ on the Pembrokeshire Coast, Atlantic College, The Mail’s new Royals section looks at the institutes attracting future monarchs from around the world.  

UWC Atlantic College

UWC Atlantic College, housed in 12th century St Donat’s Castle in the Vale of Glamorgan

Princess Leonor, 17-year-old heir to the Spanish throne, has just completed her studies at Atlantic College. Here, in red, she is pictured celebrating with Queen Letizia, King Felipe and younger sister Sofia, who is also studying there

Seventeen-year-old Princess Alexia of the Netherlands has also graduated from Atlantic College this week, seen here with King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima

MailOnline looks at the variety of British school and universities attended by the world’s royals

Set in the grandeur of St Donat’s Castle on the Welsh coast, UWC Atlantic College is a boarding school whose martial exterior belies a civilising mission which has proved a major hit with European royals. 

Writing in The Times, one former student, Louise Callaghan, said: ‘There are no matrons or cold baths or housemasters. Instead there are vegans and houseparents. The aim, broadly, is world peace.’

The school was founded by Kurt Hahn, who also established Gordonstoun – which educated Prince Philip and (more contentiously) Prince Charles. 

Khan hoped Atlantic College would bring together young people from around the world to nurture mutual understanding in the throes of Cold War conflict. 

It is in this regal setting, dramatically perched within walking distance of the seafront and hidden in 122 acres of farmland and woodland, that royals around the world come for a progressive education.

Seventeen-year-old Princess Alexia of the Netherlands graduated from Atlantic College this week.

Her father, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands studied at there from 1983 to 1985.   

Also graduating was Princess Leonor, heir to the Spanish throne.  Leanor will now embark upon military training.

He sister, Infanta Sofia of Spain, still studies at Atlantic College, the so-called Hippie Hogwarts, which takes 16-19-year-olds from over 150 countries every year.

Atlantic College has been labelled the ‘Hippie Hogwarts’ for its humanistic outlook

The school  offers calisthenics – pictured here – a form of fitness which uses gravity and bodyweight to improve your fitness

Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, the daughter of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde, enrolled in 2018 but had to cut her time at the college short due to the Covid-19 pandemic. She continued her studies online before going to study History and Politics at Oxford.

Princess Raiyah of Jordan, the daughter of King Hussein of Jordan and Queen Noor also attended the institution as a teen before studying Japanese as an undergraduate at the University of Edinburgh.

North Foreland Lodge

North Foreland Lodge, a boarding school in Hampshire, was closed in 2003

Queen Margrethe of Denmark spent a year at the school and opened a new music wing in 1981

After leaving school in Copenhagen in 1959, Queen Margrethe of Denmark spent a year at North Foreland Lodge, a former girls boarding school in Hampshire.

She went on to study archaeology at Cambridge.

The school was closed in 2003, shortly after operations had been taken over by Gordonstoun, which educated Prince Philip and King Charles.

A spokeswoman for Gordonstoun Schools told the Southern Daily Echo at the time: ‘We have been working very hard to keep North Foreland Lodge going.

‘When we took over NFL, it was already in tremendous debt. The numbers have now fallen to fewer than 60 and the building and staff are actually costing us in excess of £40,000 a week.’

Queen Margrethe had returned to North Foreland Lodge in 1981 to open its new music wing.

St Edmund’s School, Surrey

Set in 40 acres of countryside, St Edmund’s is a boarding school in Surrey accepting children from nursery age

King Abdullah II of Jordan (pictured) and his younger brother Prince Faisal bin Hussein attended the school

St Edmund’s is a boarding school in Surrey which accepts children from nursery to age 16.

Set in 40 acres of countryside, the school boasts a handful of notable alumni, including King Abdullah II of Jordan, who ascended to the throne in 1999, and his younger brother Prince Faisal bin Hussein.

St Edmund’s once received a visit from King Hussein of Jordan, whose sons and nephews had been students at the school, after his donation was used to finance the laying of a proper tarmac drive to the school.

The king opened the new drive in person, accompanied by Queen Noor, arriving in a helicopter, which he had piloted himself.

During the visit, Queen Noor made a casual remark to one of the boys asking about his favourite food.

After the student had replied that he enjoyed Chinese food, the Queen surprised the students the following day with a Chinese meal for lunch, paid for by the queen and sent from a Chinese restaurant in nearby Grayshott.

Sherborne School

Sherborne International is part of Sherborne School (pictured with Sherborne Abbey) and was set up as the UK’s first international study centre

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the current Emir of Qatar, was previously a student at the International College

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the current Emir of Qatar, was previously a student at the International College founded by Sherborne School in Dorset.

Sherborne’s history as a place of education dates back to 12th century and the school first taught pupils as part of the monastery.

The school set up the international college in 1977 as the UK’s first international study centre and accepts students for boarding.

It aims to help students with their English language skills and prepare them for entering a public school in the UK, introducing them to the education system as well as British culture.

The classes at the school are small with around eight students each and the pupils have access to the facilities available at Sherborne School.

Sherborne School has since established its first overseas school, setting up Sherborne Qatar in 2009 to provide British education in Doha.

The vision was to establish the best English language school in Qatar alongside Sherborne’s vision for education. 

Harrow School

All boys boarding school Harrow is famed for its extensive list of prominent old boys

The late King Hussein of Jordan (pictured) was a pupil at Harrow, where he reportedly became good friends with his second cousin Faisal II, the former king of Iraq

King Hussein of Jordan is pictured here in his Harrow School uniform, aged 16, in 1951

Harrow, an all boys boarding school in Harrow on the Hill, has an extensive list of prominent old boys.

One of its royal Old Harrovians is the current Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who sat his A Levels at the school before he headed to Sandhurst military academy.

The former student of the prestigious public school was seen shaking hands with the Queen at Windsor Castle during a visit to the UK last year.

The late King Hussein of Jordan was also a pupil at the school, where he reportedly became good friends with his second cousin Faisal II, the former king of Iraq.

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst

Military personnel from around the world are trained at Sandhurst military academy as well as officers for the British Army

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, graduated in the 1970s

Officers for the British Army are trained at Sandhurst military academy, however many other nations also send their personnel there.

Overseas monarchs trained at Sandhurst include King Abdullah II of Jordan, who followed in the footsteps of his father, King Hussein.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, and Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai also attended.

In 2020, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, watched his son Sheikh Zayed bin Mohamed graduate from the academy in 2020, decades after his own graduation from the academy in the 1970s.

Sheikh Mohemed was seen giving his son a hug at the graduation ceremony.

 University of Edinburgh 

After graduating from Atlantic College, Princess Raiyah of Jordan, daughter of King Hussein and Queen Noor, studied Japanese at the University of Edinburgh (pictured)

Princess Raiyah, pictured here on a visit to Tokyo in 2009

After graduating from Atlantic College, Princess Raiyah of Jordan, daughter of King Hussein and Queen Noor, studied Japanese at University of Edinburgh.

The princess went on to obtain a Master’s degree in Japanese Literature from Columbia University and is now working towards a PhD at UCLA.

Princess Raiyah went on to marry Roald Dahl’s grandson Ned Donovan in 2020.

Ned, a former journalist with the Mail on Sunday, is also son to author Tessa Dahl, daughter of Roald and American actress Patricia Neal.

Tessa Dahl married actor Julian Holloway and had children Clover and Luke with him, before going on to marry businessman Patrick Donovan, son of an Australian academic and diplomat, whom she welcomed son Ned with.

Ned is a former journalist, working for the Mail on Sunday and The Times as well as working as a freelance foreign correspondent.

According to his website, his particular interests lie in Asia, specifically the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent.

University of Oxford

The Radcliffe Camera and All Souls College at Oxford 

Princess Elisabeth of Belgium began her History and Politics degree at Lincoln College, Oxford in October 2021

The graduates from Oxford University include a number of overseas monarchs.

Emperor Naruhito of Japan completed postgraduate research at Merton College from 1983-1985 and wrote a memoir of his time at the university entitled The Thames and I: A Memoir of Two Years at Oxford.

King Abdullah II of Jordan spent a year at Pembroke College studying Middle Eastern Affairs and Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al Said of Oman completed the Foreign Service Programme at the university.

King Harald of Norway followed in his father’s footsteps by taking up a place at Balliol College. The monarch studied political science, history and economics and was a keen rower while at Oxford.

King Philippe of Belgium also studied at the university and his daughter Princess Elisabeth, heir to the throne, also began studying History and Politics at Lincoln College in 2021. 

University of Cambridge

Queen Sofia of Spain is one of the overseas royals who studied at Cambridge

Sofia, Queen of Spain from 1975 to 2014, was at Fitzwilliam College

Queen Margrethe II of Denmark studied prehistoric archaeology at Girton College, Cambridge (pictured arriving in London on her way to Cambridge in 1960)

Overseas monarchs who have attended Cambridge University include Queen Sofia of Spain. 

The wife of former King Juan Carlos I, who acted as Queen of Spain from 1975 to 2014, studied at Fitzwilliam College.

Sofia was born in Athens in 1938 and was the first child of King Paul I and Queen Federica of Greece.

She spent part of her childhood in Egypt and South Africa because her family was exiled during the Second World War and she later attended  the Schloss Salem boarding school in Germany. 

Queen Margrethe II of Denmark was also educated at Cambridge University, studying prehistoric archaeology at Girton College from 1960-1961.

Prior to attending the university, she would go on excavation holidays in Italy in the late 1950s with her grandfather, the Swedish King Gustav VI Adolf.

The Queen is also a talented artist and created illustrations for Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings while she was studying as a princess in England.

London School of Economics

In 1965, Queen Margrethe was an ‘occasional student’ at the London School of Economics

Crown Prince Haakon of Norway completed a Master’s in Development Studies at LSE

In 1965, Queen Margrethe was an ‘occasional student’ at the London School of Economics.

Her time at the university followed a year at Cambridge University, Aarhus University and the Sorbonne.

The monarch ascended to the throne in 1972 after the death of her father King Frederik IX.

At the age of 13, she was given the right to succeed her father after the 1953 Act of Succession was introduced which gave women the right of succession to the Danish Throne.

The Act was amended further in 2009 to give the eldest child the right to inherit the throne regardless of gender.

Crown Prince Haakon of Norway was also a student at the university, completing a Master’s in Development Studies at LSE in 2003, specialising in International Trade and Africa.

School of Oriental and African Studies, London University

The School of Oriental and African Studies, part of London University, is a world leading institute specialising in global studies

Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway studied at the University of Oslo before later earning a degree in Social Anthropology from SOAS in 2002-2003 

Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway studied at the University of Oslo before later earning a degree in Social Anthropology from the SOAS in 2002-2003.

The Crown Princess, a former waitress, met her future husband Crown Prince Haakon at a music festival in the 1990s when she was a single mother and the pair were married in 2001. 

At the time of her wedding Mette-Marit was a single parent to a four-year-old son, Marius Borg Høiby.

She went on to have two more children with Crown Prince Haakon – Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus.

Mette-Marit has become widely respected for her charity work and has been a special representative for UNAIDS, a branch of the UN that focuses on dealing with HIV and AIDS.

She also joined the Norwegian aid agency NORAD as an intern, and is a patron of several Norwegian charities, including the Oslo International Church Music Festival and the Norwegian Scouting Association.

University of Exeter

Infanta Elena of Spain, the eldest child of King Juan Carlos I, studied for a Master’s in Sociology and Education at the University of Exeter (pictured) in 1990

Elena’s (pictured) time studying at Exeter followed a qualification in teaching from the ESCUNI University School where she specialised in English before she became an English teacher

Infanta Elena of Spain, the eldest child of King Juan Carlos I, studied for a Master’s in Sociology and Education at the University of Exeter in 1990.

Her time studying at Exeter followed a qualification in teaching from the ESCUNI University School where she specialised in English before she became an English teacher at her alma mater, Santa Maria del Camino School.

Infanta Elena was made the Duchess of Lugo after her marriage to Jaime de Marichalar in 1995 but the pair later divorced in 2009, making Elena the first child of a reigning Spanish monarch to divorce.

When King Juan Carlos I abdicated in 2014, Felipe, Elena’s younger brother, took his place as monarch and Elena was no longer a working member of the family.

Elena has still retained her titles unlike her younger sister, Infanta Cristina, who lost her title as Duchess of Palma de Mallorca when her then husband Iñaki Urdangarin was sentenced to five years in prison for embezzlement and money laundering through his non-profit organisation, the Noos Institute.

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