Wedding bells are ringing
As your resident royal wedding expert, I've gone ahead and put together a list of royal weddings to gear you up for this weekend. Enjoy!
1. Prince Albert, Duke of York and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (the future King George VI and Queen Elizabeth- the current Queen Elizabeth II’s parents)
The date: April 26, 1923
The venue: Westminster Abbey
The dress: Elizabeth used the same dressmaker as Queen Mary and wore what has been called the “simplest ever made for a Royal Wedding.” She also borrowed a veil from Queen Mary, and had the dress dyed ivory to match the veil. The lace on her TWO trains purposely came from the Nottingham Lace industry, which at the time was in decline. Rather than wearing a tiara, Elizabeth held her veil on with a wreath of myrtle, which was historically used by Royal brides as a symbol of love and constancy.
The ring: Elizabeth originally accepted a sapphire, diamond, and Welsh gold engagement ring, but in the 1950s she switched it out for a large pearl ring surrounded by diamonds (because…..she could?)
Fun facts: Elizabeth had turned down TWO marriage proposals from Albert before she finally accepted the third one!
2. Elizabeth II and Philip of Greece (Future Queen Elizabeth II and Duke of Edinburgh)
The date: November 20, 1947
The venue: Westminster Abbey
The dress: Because of post-WWII rationing, Queen Elizabeth had to save up clothing coupons for her dress (but luckily she was granted 200 extra coupons). People tried to donate their clothing coupons to her, but they were non-transferrable, so they were unable to be accepted. The dress, with its floral details, was inspired by “Primavera,” a painting by Botticelli, and was meant to symbolize “growth and rebirth” after WWII. The designer, Norman Hartnell, thought it was “the most beautiful dress” he had made so far.
The ring: Philip proposed with a 3-carat round diamond ring (with 10 smaller pave diamonds) that he designed himself using stones that from a tiara that used to belong to his mother, Princess Alice of Battenburg.
Fun facts: The couple are distant cousins- both great-great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria. They met when the 13 year old future Queen and her family toured the Royal Naval Academy, and 18 year old Philip of Greece showed them around. After that, they wrote letters back and forth until 1946, when he proposed. They faced scrutiny as a couple from the Royal Family during WWII, especially when it was revealed that Philip had Nazi relatives. Philip became a British citizen, took the last name Mountbatten, and was named Duke of Edinburgh upon marriage.
3. Princess Margaret and Antony “Tony” Armstrong-Jones
The date: May 6, 1960
The venue: Westminster Abbey
The dress: Margaret’s dress was designed by the Norman Hartnell, who had previously designed Queen Elizabeth’s wedding dress. The dress has been called “the simplest Royal Wedding gown in history,” but it was jazzed up with the addition of the Polimore Tiara, originally owned by Lady Polimore of the House of Garrards but purchased by Princess Margaret at an auction before the wedding.
The ring: Tony designed the ruby and diamond ring himself to look like a rosebud, which some believe is a nod to her middle name, Rose.
Fun facts: Theirs was the first Royal Wedding to be broadcast on television, and about 300 million people watched. The couple’s love story was laid out in season 2 of The Crown, if you want to know more about her relationship with the fashion photographer (read: Commoner).
4. Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer
The date: July 29, 1981
The venue: St. Paul’s Cathedral
The dress: Diana’s dress had the longest train in history: 25 ft long. It was designed by David and Elizabeth Emmanuel for Alexander McQueen and was covered in over 10,000 pearls. She wore the “Spencer Tiara,” a family heirloom that was gifted to her grandmother on her wedding day.
The ring: We all know this gorgeous 12-carat sapphire ring, surrounded by 14 solitaire diamonds. Diana actually chose the ring herself from a jewelry catalogue-- it is one of few royal wedding rings to NOT be custom-designed. Some believe she chose it because it reminded her of her mother’s ring.
Fun facts: Charles and Diana met when Diana was a teenager and Charles was dating her older sister. In some upsetting foreshadowing, Charles cried the night before the wedding because he still had feelings for his ex girlfriend (and now-wife) Camilla Parker-Bowles (#RedFlag).
5. Prince William and Catherine “Kate” Middleton
The date: April 29, 2011
The venue: Westminster Abbey
The dress: The dress was designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen. Her Cartier Halo tiara was borrowed from Queen Elizabeth II, who received it as a gift from her mother on her 18th birthday. She wore diamond earrings gifted to her by her parents that contained a diamond acorn, part of the coat of arms granted to the Middleton family shortly before the wedding.
The ring: William proposed to Kate in Kenya with his late mother’s sapphire engagement ring. After Diana’s death, Will and Harry each got to choose a piece of her jewelry to remember her by. Even though Harry had selected her engagement ring as his own keepsake, the two of them made a pact that whichever one got engaged first would get to use it. So, Harry made a very sweet sacrifice for his brother.
Fun facts: As many already know, Will and Kate met in college at St Andrew’s University in Scotland- but they were best friends for a few years before William beat the friend zone and they started dating. In other news, Kate took private makeup lessons by a Bobbi Brown makeup artist for weeks before their wedding so she would be able to do her own makeup for the wedding!
BONUS: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle-- WHAT WE KNOW!
The date: May 19, 2018 (12:00 noon (and waaaay earlier for us in the US-- be on livestream or be square!)
The venue: St. George’s Chapel (where Harry was Christened!)
The ring: Harry proposed to Meghan with a ring he designed himself (GOALS). The band is yellow gold Meghan’s favorite, the center diamonds was sourced in Botswana, a country the two have traveled to together and is an “important” place to them, and the two smaller diamonds came from Diana’s collection (CUE THE TEARS).
Fun facts: Harry and Meghan actually met on a blind date, set up by a mutual friend. They went on two back-to-back dates, and just a few weeks later traveled to Botswana together. They dated long distance for about a year while she was filming Suits in Canada, but made it work IN THE NAME OF LOVE.
What else we know: Their cake will be Lemon Elderflower flavored, and will be baked by Claire Ptak of London’s Violet Bakery. Their floral designer, Phillippa Craddock, has announced that their flowers will be white garden roses, foxgloves, and peonies. Meghan and Harry have asked Bishop Michael Curry, an American ( the first African-American to preside over the Episcopal church and one of the first to allow same-sex marriages in North Carolina churches), to preside over the service. Meghan is the first biracial Royal, and this in tandem with hiring Bishop Curry shows a big step in the Royal Family representing modern England. HOW COOL ARE THEY?
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