Here's the One Thing You Should Do If You Want to Marry an Aristocrat

Royal romances ain't what they used to be. Gone are the days when members of the British royal family wed to forge political alliances or kept marriages strictly between aristocrats. Commoners like Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle have bravely paved the way for ordinary women everywhere hoping to one day marry their literal Prince Charming.

And let's not forget that our very own Julie Montagu is also living out every woman's fantasy. The Sugar Grove, Illinois native literally found her Prince Charming after she was introduced to her now-husband, Luke Montagu, by mutual friends while visiting London. It was only after Julie got a peek at the name on Luke's credit card three months into their courtship that she realized he was the heir to the Earl of Sandwich title.

Unsurprisingly, Julie said that people go to her all the time asking her to reveal how they too can meet a viscount. "I've got to be honest, I do get asked this all of the time, does my husband have any eligible lord friends. And I'm like, 'Really? Are you really asking me that?'" she told The Daily Dish. "I'm like, 'OMG, you are not my friend anymore. You are vacuous. Get away from me.'" 

After Julie revealed that she was just joking, we couldn't help but ask the master how other women might also find the English aristocrat of their dreams. We were asking for a friend, of course. "The advice is to pretend like you're not looking for the title and then when he tells you that he has the title, you need to act completely stupid and say, 'I didn't even know those existed anymore.' Exactly what I did. It clearly won him over," she explained. "I actually was dumb when he was telling me that, so it clearly worked. I had no clue. So as long as you just don't have a clue, you'll find him. Or he'll find you. They like that." 

But Julie still can't believe that this is her life. "It's crazy. I think what makes it even more crazy is that I did grow up in Illinois cornfields, and I never even thought I'd leave my hometown. I was very happy working at the Dairy Queen," she said. "I just never thought I'd leave where I came from. And then the next thing I know, I've weirdly been plucked over to London."

These days, Julie has been settling into her position as Lady of the Manor quite brilliantly as she runs the Montagu family estate, Mapperton, with Luke. Watch Julie rock her new role, below. Duchess Kate, eat your heart out.

Kate Middleton's Got Nothing on Julie Montagu