Could school the King called 'Colditz in Kilts' have been the making of him? How at Gordonstoun Prince Charles weathered bullies and a broken nose in rugby, acted in Shakespeare plays and became head boy
He allegedly described his experience at Gordonstoun as 'Colditz in kilts' and once wrote to his mother the Queen expressing his desire to 'come home'.
But the King's decision to accept a prestigious patronage at his former school in May hinted that his experience was not all bad - and the recollections of his former classmates give credence to that theory.
In her recent book My Mother and I: The Inside Story of the King and Our Late Queen, royal author Ingrid Seward quotes Charles's former classmate, Ross Benson, who revealed the future monarch's stoicism in the face of bullying – even when he got his nose broken in a rugby match.
He said: 'I remember one boy telling me: "I tackled Charles good and hard today. It was right in the middle of a muddy patch and I pushed his nose right into the muck'."
'But if his tough treatment upset Charles, he never showed it openly and never complained at the personal attention he received.
'Even when he broke his nose in a particularly rough game he never "squealed", nor did he make any sort of protest.'
Charles continued to play rugby right up until he left Gordonstoun. Ms Seward said he 'never hesitated' or showed 'signs of fear'.
And in his final year, the Prince was chosen to portray the Pirate King in a performance of Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera the Kings of Penzance, having also acted in Shakespeare's Macbeth.
His Majesty also took part in the mock elections, where he took on the position of a vociferous supporter of the Scottish Nationalists and was heard shouting 'Scotland forever' while wearing a kilt.
Prince Charles allegedly described his experience at Gordonstoun as 'Colditz in kilts' and once wrote to his mother the Queen expressing his desire to 'come home'. Above: Charles, with his father the Duke of Edinburgh (left) and Captain Iain Tennant, Chairman of the Gordonstoun Board of Governors, arriving at Gordonstoun for his first day in 1962
Charles seen at Gordonstoun in 1967, his final year at the prestigious Scottish boarding school
Charles arrived at Gordonstoun in April 1962 after spending four years at Cheam School in Hampshire.
He stayed until 1967 and left as House Captain and Guardian (Head Boy) with five O-levels.
He was the first future British monarch to be educated at school rather than tutored at home.
A spokesman for Gordonstoun previously said that it has never been independently verified that the King used the phrase 'Colditz in kilts' and added that it 'misrepresents student life at the school during this period.'
Ms Seward appeared to back up this view. She said in her book: 'The Gordonstoun of Charles' time was not as tough as some legend suggests.
'The cold showers of the '60s were never more than a quick run-through and were always preceded by much longer, hotter ones.
'The early morning run was no more than a 45-yard jog up the road, and then only if it was not raining...'
The Queen came to see Charles perform in Pirates of Penzance and then, with Prince Philip, to watch a production of Shakespeare's Macbeth.
She 'smiled with delight' when she heard Charles say in his role in Pirates of Penzance: 'We yield at once, with humbled mien, because, with all our faults, we love our Queen.'
At one point during the performance of Macbeth – in which Charles 'did not falter once', according to Ms Seward - Prince Philip burst out laughing.
Charles explained to a group of actors in 2002: 'All I could hear was my father and, "Ha, ha, ha."
'I went up to him at the end and said: "Why did you laugh?" and he said: "It sounds like The Goons."
A general view of Gordonstoun School, in Moray, Scotland. it was founded in 1934 by German educator Kurt Hahn
The Queen visiting Prince Charles at Gordonstoun School on his last day, July 31, 1967
Prince Charles seen aged 13 during his first term at Gordonstoun, August 1962
Charles also joined the school's debating club.
Ross Benson said in Ms Seward's book: 'Politeness and a complete lack of aggression are the principal impressions Charles left at the school.
‘But when he got up to speak in a debate, all the shyness and reserve dropped from Charles like a cloak, and he was one of the best debaters in the Sophists.
'His views, if sometimes rather illogical, were always well put.
'He would sit down with the notes on his knee, or he would stand with his hands behind his back, and the moment he spoke, authority would creep into his voice and his bearing.
My Mother and I: The Inside Story of the King and Our Late Queen, by Ingrid Seward
'The subjects were "Are we becoming too materialistic as a society?", or "Are computers dehumanizing us?"
However, the Prince was less open to attending social functions than he was to acting.
On one occasion, after a group of 25 girls were invited to a dance, Charles decided to spend the weekend with his grandmother, the Queen Mother, at Birkhall, her home on the Balmoral estate.
Charles even rebuffed his friends, including Mr Benson. He said: 'Charles could have had as many girlfriends as he wanted, and even the school maids would stare and giggle amongst themselves if they saw him.
'They also had a penchant for purloining his underwear, and after the disappearance of some of his clothes sent for washing, there were special precautions taken to ensure that nothing marked with his name would ever get "lost" again.'
On one occasion, his fellow pupils recorded Charles snoring through the open window of his dormitory.
However, the future King's housemaster heard the recording and confiscated the tape.
But Ms Seward added: 'However, one boy swore he had made a second tape recording, taken from the original on his own machine.
'If so, someone today, somewhere, has a tape recording of King Charles snoring.'
Despite his success on the rugby field and in school productions, Charles did at one point write home to his mother to complain.
He said: 'I hardly get any sleep in the House because I snore and I get hit on the head all the time. It's absolute hell.'
Charles seen in costume while acting in a production of Shakespeare's Macbeth
Prince Charles seen arriving at Elgin Station as he prepares to start a new term at Gordonstoun, 1963
The Queen walks alongside Prince Charles at Gordonstoun as she visits on his final day, July 1967
Prince Charles meets two of Gordonstoun's top students, head boy Peter Paice (centre) and Dougal McKenzie, the lead pupil of Windmill Lodge, May 1962
Prince Charles seen with his mother the Queen as she visits Gordonstoun on his final day there
Prince Charles seen wearing a duffel coat as he shows visitors around Gordonstoun, 1966
He added in another letter: 'The people in my dormitory are foul.
'They throw slippers all night long or hit me with pillows… Last night was hell, literal hell. I wish I could come home.'
The King's new role at the Gordonstoun Association, the alumni body which strengthens links between the school and former pupils and staff, was previously held by Prince Philip.
Philip attended Gordonstoun in the 1930s and greatly enjoyed his time there.
The school's principal Lisa Kerr said after Charles’ patron role was announced in May: 'As our most prominent former student, His Majesty exemplifies so many of the qualities we seek to instil in our students, notably a lifelong commitment to service.'
