King Charles broke one Royal Family tradition as a parent, while his sister, Princess Anne did not.

The monarch was the first heir to the throne to attend school with other pupils when he enrolled at Cheam Preparatory School in Hampshire in 1958, unlike royal children before him who were privately educated at home.

In 1962, Charles followed his father’s, Prince Phillip’s footsteps and attended Gordonstoun School in Moray, Scotland.

The royal stayed there for five years and resided in the Windmill Lodge, which is now a boarding house for female pupils.

Charles reportedly did not enjoy the regime, which he later characterised as “Colditz in kilts”.

He later praised the school, stating it had taught him “a great deal about myself and my own abilities and disabilities”.

He said in a 1975 interview he was “glad” he had attended Gordonstoun and that the “toughness of the place” was “much exaggerated”.

The King said: “Gordonstoun developed my willpower and self-control and helped me discipline myself, but I think that discipline, not in the sense of making your bath in cold water, but in giving shape and form and tidiness to your life.”

But when he became a father to Princes William and Harry, Charles did not follow royal tradition and sent his boys to the prestigious Eton College instead.

His brothers, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward later attended Gordonstoun themselves, however as at the time it was a boys’ school, Princess Anne could not attend with her brothers and was sent to Benenden School in Kent.

However, the Princess Royal decided to follow Prince Phillip’s footsteps and sent both her children, Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall to the Scottish school.

Zara and Peter have both spoken about the positive experiences they shared there.

Zara said in 2018: “I loved school, I loved sport and being with my mates all the time.

“I don’t know how much work I did. You do get homesick, but I had so much fun, and Pete was very protective. All his friends were too. They kept me out of trouble.

“After Dorset, I joined him at Gordonstoun. He hung out with a group of lads who liked to have fun, but he always knew how to get away with stuff. When he was made Head Boy, I thought, ‘How did you manage that?’”