When icing a cake, why is the term actually called 'Royal' icing?

Royal icing is a type of icing. It's called that but it is much thicker than regular icing. It hardens really fast and is pretty hard to work with if you don't have any experience with it. It is usually used to make display cakes, and to make cakes with lots of detail.

Here is the best I could find for as to why it's called Royal:

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_do_royal_icing_calle...

It was used on a queen's wedding cake.

first icing were usually a boiled composition of the finest available sugar, egg whites and [sometimes] flavorings. This icing was poured on the cake. The cake was then returned to the oven for a while. When removed the icing cooled quickly to form a hard, glossy [ice-like] covering.

Early 1700s this was used for wedding cakes for Royalty,hense the name Royal Icing...

oyal icing is a hard white icing, made from softly beaten egg whites, icing sugar (powdered sugar), and sometimes lemon or lime juice. It is used on Christmas cakes, wedding cakes, gingerbread houses and many other cakes and biscuits, either as a smooth covering like marzipan, or in sharp peaks. Glycerine is occasionally added to prevent the icing from setting too hard.

As well as coating cakes and biscuits, royal icing is usually considered a decorative icing since it can be used to create many decorative effects, such as flowers and figures. Royal icing is often piped into shapes which are allowed to harden on a non-stick surface. These can then be arranged to create edible decorative effects on a variety of sweet foods.

Royal icing gets its name from having been the traditional icing for fruitcake -- which was the wedding cake of choice among English royalty, and then among the general English population. Along with marzipan, fondant, and other rolled or formed icings, it has the advantage of sealing in freshness so that the cake in question could be made days in advance and still be tasty and moist upon serving. If a wedding cake needs to be made more than a few days in advance, royal icing is frequently used in tandem with fondant, which is cut and formed to fit exactly the particular dimensions of the cake.

Although royal icing has traditionally been prepared with fresh egg whites, many people substitute meringue powder, given the risk of salmonella that using raw egg whites presents. Alternatively, ready-to-use, pasteurized, refrigerated egg whites can be purchased in most grocery stores which should also provide a safe alternative to fresh egg whites.

Why the name?

None of our sources divulge this information. Our survey of historic American newspapers (Historic Newspapers/ProQuest, Americas Historic Newspapers/Readex) and cookbooks confirm the popularity of Royal Icing surged in the dawning decades of the 20th century. Curiously? We find no references to Royal Icing in the Times [London] historic database. Possibly this is an American appellation?

www.foodtimeline.org

'Royal' icing was the decoration of choice for rich fruit cakes which were preferred by royalty (actually we plebbs couldn't afford the rich fruit cake or the sugar for the icing).

I believe it was invented for Queen Victorias wedding cake.

UK

Royal icing is a type of icing. you can have Glace icing, royal icing, butter icing...