Charles' 'brutal' school days - 'ears pulled by bullies and punched in rugby'
They say your school days are often among the best days of your life - but that might not exactly be the case for King Charles.
His Majesty attended Gordonstoun, a boarding school in Scotland, from the age of 13, following in the footsteps of his father the late Prince Philip. But it appears the school may not have always been plain sailing for the monarch, with reports suggesting Charles found his school days difficult and claims he famously described the school as "Colditz in kilts".
On Thursday, he gave his approval for his sister Princess Anne, who sent her own children Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall to the school, to unveil a plaque naming the classroom hub The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms, in honour of their mother late Queen.
Charles with his father Prince Philip on his first day at Gordonstoun in 1962 (PA)
The late Queen visits Charles at Gordonstoun on his last day at the school (Mirrorpix via Getty Images)But it comes after one former pupil of the school, who was a contemporary of the monarch, revealed how he was often targeted by other boys, who blamed him for the strict rules there. In an ITV documentary called Charles: Our New King, John Stonborough, claimed he saw boys wanting to take it out on Charles by attacking and punching him.
He told the programme: "One of the mistakes that was made when Charles arrived at Gordonstoun was that we were all told he was just to be treated like everybody else. But he wasn't everybody else, was he? He was going to be King of England. He had a private detective, we didn't have private detectives. And when he came, they strengthened all of the rules and it became a stricter school and I think that some people took it out on him.
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"I actually witnessed one straight attack on Prince Charles during a rugby game when he was in the scrum and one guy pulled his ear and another guy punched him - right in the scrum. And there was a little bit of pride that somehow these people managed to clock the future King of England."
Princess Anne officially opens new classrooms at Gordonstoun School named in honour of the late Queen (PA)Mr Stonborough recalled how the King - then Prince Charles - had few friends at the school, but said His Majesty never complained and just "put up with it". He added: "He found it difficult to make friends, partly because people found it difficult to make friends with him because they got teased if they tried to be his friend.
"And in fact, they would make slurping noises - you know sort of sucking up and being the King's friend. "But you know, he was the most remarkably stoic person. He never complained, he never whinged about it all - certainly not that we were ever aware of. He just put up with it, he got on with it - and I think that Gordonstoun probably put a little bit of steel in his backbone."
After Charles left the school, his younger brothers Prince Andrew and Prince Edward both attended with Andrew said to have had a very different experience. By the time he attended, the rooms were centrally heated and carpeted - and the showers were hot.
But despite reports about his miserable time there, Charles has since defended his time at the school - and says he was lucky to be able to attend and learn about himself. During a House of Lord's speech, which he made in the mid-1970s, he said: "I am always astonished by the amount of rot talked about Gordonstoun and the careless use of ancient clichés used to describe it.
"It was only tough in the sense that it demanded more of you as an individual than most other schools did - mentally or physically. I am lucky in that I believe it taught me a great deal about myself and my own abilities and disabilities. It taught me to accept challenges and take the initiative."
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