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Prince William Broke with Royal Tradition to Attend Eton

prince william's first day at eton
Photos of Prince William at EtonAnwar Hussein - Getty Images

When Prince William enrolled at Eton College in 1995, he became the first senior royal to enroll in the school in Berkshire, England. His father, Prince Charles, and grandfather, Prince Philip, both went to a boarding school in Scotland, Gordonstoun, but Princess Diana's brother and father had both attended Eton. (Additionally, while Queen Elizabeth was not a student, she did lessons at Eton in constitutional history.)

During his time at the all boys' school, Prince William was largely protected from the press. The chairman of the Press Complaints Commission, John Wakeham, said of the agreement, "Prince William is not an institution; nor a soap star; nor a football hero. He is a boy: in the next few years, perhaps the most important and sometimes painful part of his life, he will grow up and become a man." Therefore, there are limited photos of William at Eton—the bulk of the pictures of the young prince come from his first day of school in 1995, which was also depicted in season five of The Crown and from his last year (1999-2000) which features in the show's final season.

Here, see the best photos of Prince William during his time as a student at Eton College:

Arriving at Eton

Prince William's family—his parents Princess Diana and Prince Charles, and brother Prince Harry—accompanied him for a photocall at Eton before his first day of school.

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Stefan Rousseau - PA Images - Getty Images

Prince William was 13 years old when he started at Eton; the school is located right near Windsor Castle.

william eton
Tim Graham - Getty Images

Prince William was the most senior member of the royal family to go to Eton, but not the first royal—other royals who attended the school include Queen Elizabeth's first cousins Prince Edward, Duke of Kent; Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester; and Prince Michael of Kent.

prince william's first day at eton
Anwar Hussein - Getty Images

Prince Harry held his mom Princess Diana's hand as they dropped Prince William off at school. Harry would follow his older brother to Eton three years later, in 1998.

royal family at eton
Princess Diana Archive - Getty Images

One Eton tradition is that all new students sign a book before starting at the school; season five of The Crown recreated this moment.

royal family at eton
Princess Diana Archive - Getty Images

Eton's history dates back to 1440, when King Henry VI founded the school. It has always been a boys-only boarding school.

PRINCE WILLIAM AT ETON
Tim Graham - Getty Images

Andrew Gailey, Prince William's house master, greets the royal family. Prince William lived in Manor House.

prince william eton
Stefan Rousseau - PA Images - Getty Images

Gailey pictured with the two princes. Prince Harry would also board at Manor House when he started at Eton.

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Tim Graham - Getty Images

A portrait of the young prince as he started Eton.

prince william's first day at eton
Tom Wargacki - Getty Images

First full day

The Eton uniform consists of a tail-coat, waistcoat, and pin-striped trousers.

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Tim Graham - Getty Images

Prince William smiled for the cameras on his first day as a student.

william eton
Tim Graham - Getty Images

These would be the only photographs permitted of the young prince during his first year at Eton.

anwar hussein collection
Anwar Hussein - Getty Images

Eton Tea Party (1996)

Each year, students from Eton attend the Eton Boys Tea Party at Guards Polo Club in Windsor Great Park—so while these photos are not at Eton, they are from Prince William's time as a student at Eton (and feature him in the school's uniform).

william in eton uniform
Tim Graham - Getty Images

Prince William stares at the photographers during the Eton Tea Party.

prince william attends the annual eton tea party at smith's lawn, windsor
Antony Jones - Getty Images

Eton Tea Party (1999)

A few years later, another glimpse of Prince William with his classmates at the Eton Tea Party in Windsor.

prince william and eton friends
Tim Graham - Getty Images

Prince William, whose fingers were taped due to injury, checked his watch.

william tea party
Tim Graham - Getty Images

Senior Year

Prince William posed for this portrait for his 18th birthday, wearing a Union Jack vest with the words "Groovy Baby" across the bottom.

See more photos of Prince William through the years

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Ken Goff - Getty Images

For his senior year, Prince William took a series of staged photographs of his life at Eton, including this one at a computer.

prince william eton
Ken Goff - Getty Images

The shoot included William making chicken paella for a cooking class.

prince william eton
Ken Goff - Getty Images

He wore an apron over his uniform.

prince william eton
Tim Graham - Getty Images

William, deep in thought, at school. The prince studied geography, biology, and history of art.

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Pool/Tim Graham Picture Library - Getty Images

During his senior year, he was one of Eton's 21 elected prefects.

prince william eton
Ken Goff - Getty Images

The prince also played water polo.

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Ken Goff - Getty Images

And he participated in Eton Field Game, a cross between soccer and rugby.

prince william eton
Tim Graham - Getty Images

In addition, William played rugby; actor Eddie Redmayne was his teammate.

"I always felt a bit sorry for him because basically any school you played, all they wanted to do was tackle Prince William and they could say, 'I tackled Prince William,'" Redmayne later said. "So if you were standing next to Prince William, like I was, it was actually quite easy and quite fun."

PRINCE WILLIAM'S 18th BIRTHDAY.
Tim Graham - Getty Images

After graduating from Eton in 2000, Prince William took a gap year before enrolling at the University of St Andrews in Scotland.

william at eton
Pool/Tim Graham Picture Library - Getty Images

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