The Duke of Edinburgh, The Queen and Prince William at the games

They were among 17,000 people who travelled to the Aberdeenshire village for the gathering.

The royal party made the trip from nearby Balmoral, arriving in a burgundy Bentley at about 1500 BST on Saturday.

They met the Lord Lieutenant of Aberdeenshire, Angus Farquharson, and 10-year-old Catriona Walker presented The Queen with a heather posy.

The royals applauded as they watched the games, which included tossing the caber, the tug-of-war and Highland dancing.

They were also entertained by the Pipes and Drums of the 1st Battalion The Highlanders and the Gordon Highlanders Regimental Association.

'Lovely day'

The bands were followed by the Old Comrades and Veterans of the five original Highland units - the Seaforths, Camerons, Gordons, Queen's Own and The Highlanders.

During the games, The Queen put on her glasses while the Duke of Edinburgh got a closer look at the competition with a pair of binoculars.

The Duke of Edinburgh had a plaster on his right ear

The Duke of Edinburgh had a plaster on his right ear and when the games' secretary Willie Meston was asked if he knew what had happened, he said: "He probably cut it shaving, like I do."

The games, which were first held in 1832, were subject to strict security this year, with bag searches at the gates and about 100 officers from Grampian Police patrolling the area.

Chief Inspector Tom Forrester, of Grampian Police, said there had been no major incidents.

Mr Meston said: "It was a lovely day and it was a really nice surprise to see Prince William, because we didn't know he was coming."