Going into certain social situations, you know you need to be prepared. You dress for the setting, make sure your breath is fresh, and have a backup plan in place in case you want to split early.

You see, every now and again, you want to extract yourself from a conversation, a bad date that needs to end, or some other awkward situation. And since more than likely you don’t want to appear to be a jerk (or worse), you have a self-extraction plan in place.

Most of us can relate to that. We politely excuse ourselves, receive a fake “emergency call”, or suddenly feel ill. Do you know who else has a plan like that? The Queen of England. No joke. Don’t you think she needs one?

Hers involves some clandestine signals and high fashion, but once you learn how she does it, you might want to copy her moves. The signature handbag Queen Elizabeth II always carries is loaded with code for her staff.

According to Hugo Vickers, a royal historian, she normally wears it in the crook of her arm when things are fine and dandy. When she shifts the bag to the other arm, however, that’s a signal that she is ready to move along. Typically, her ladies-in-waiting will swoop in and politely help to excuse her.

When she is not happy about a conversation or situation, she indicates that by placing her bag on the floor. That means the Queen has had enough. It’s done so subtly that you may not even notice the gesture.

If she places her handbag on the table while at dinner or other event, that’s a cue for her staff that it should wind up in the next five minutes. Not every discreet signal is known, but these few are enough to help you understand what’s going on should you ever meet the Queen.

Do you wonder what she has tucked away in her Launer purse? It’s usually the basics: compact mirror, lipstick, a neatly folded bill for church donations, and a pair of reading glasses. Different sources speculate that she also keeps family photos, some mints, and small mementos from her grandchildren in her bag, too.

One thing that most royal handbag watchers agree on is that the Queen keeps a small hook in her bag. For what? It is equipped with a tiny suction cup so she can attach her purse to the underside of a table during meals. It cuts down on the confusion of its placement on the table or on the floor.

Click on the video below from Town and Country to see if you can spot the arm that normally holds her bag. You’ll also learn about one more of Her Royal Highness’s slick moves, so you can borrow that one, too!

In addition to taking notes on her secret escape cues, we can also take notes on how to downsize the clutter load in our purses. When was the last time you had less than ten items in your handbag? Yeah, I can’t remember either.

What do you think of Queen Elizabeth’s handbag signal system? Do you have a similar plan in place for social situations?

Sources:

People
The Telegraph