Is Kate Middleton Safe While London Burns?

Riots are spreading across England, but Clarence House is silent on the location of the royal couple at this hour

Have Prince William and Duchess Kate gone into hiding in the wake of the violence in England?
—Two to One, via the inbox

It's an understandable question, given that London has announced plans to flood its streets with 16,000 bobbies, just to stem the rioting that is spreading across the country.

But, remember, these are the royals we're talking about. It's not like they were out in Tottenham grabbing a bap when the violence erupted:

I did ring up Clarence House, the official contact for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. For the record, they were a wee tad swamped and not immediately available for comment. However, it's unlikely that any royal is in immediate danger.

For one, Will and Kate underwent security training at an army base just this past weekend, according to several newspaper reports.The couple reportedly participated in mock hostage rescue scenarios and met with soldiers, who used live ammo during their exercises.

The Evening Standard quoted a source thusly: "The training is designed to show VIPs exactly what to expect if they are taken hostage and how to behave so that they do not interfere with the rescue. These soldiers do this day in and day out so there would be no risk to William and Kate, but it could be a little scary."

If the reporting is true, then the couple participated in a tradition for any new members of the royal family; Diana underwent the same drills.

The royal family also has access to exclusive escape routes.

For example, in the recently published book The Secret State, historian Peter Hennessy revealed a Cold War-era plan to whisk the Queen away to a "floating bunker" in Scotland in the event of a nuclear crisis.

And, while the duke and duchess have an official London residence at Kensington Palace, royal security has a history of planning evacuations to country estates in the event of disaster. (A man named Geoffrey Devereux has alleged that he was recruited during World War II to aid in protecting the young Elizabeth II. The plan, he said, involved whisking the kid away to one Madresfield Court in Malvern.)

As for exactly where Kate and William are at this hour, it's unclear. The couple has been lying mostly low for the past few days, with William reportedly participating in Royal Air Force drills in Wales.

Per the publication Woman's Day: "It is their wish to stay out the limelight during the coming months. William is back in the cockpit at RAF Valley while Kate is settling into military life."

If the couple has been lost in the scrum, it's currently not public knowledge. And besides, once she married into the royal family, Kate got something much more valuable than a tea set or a blender:

She got her own set of personal bodyguards.