A Royal Wedding – Harry and Meghan Say “I Do”
By: Hope Wilkos, Writer
The date is drawing ever closer with all the preparation already well underway. Prince Harry, the wild stallion of the Royal Family, is getting ready to settle down in just over two months on Saturday, May 19, 2018, with the love of his life, his partner for eternity, the lovely Meghan Markle. Unlike William and Kate’s wedding, held on April 29, 2011, the last highly anticipated ceremony to take place in Westminster Abbey, this union of two star-crossed lovers will be held on a smaller scale at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. The chapel holds 800 guests as compared to over 2000 guests at the Abbey, but, there is no doubt that the majority of guests invited will be of celebrity stature. Prince Harry is favoring one particular guest, his 96-year-old grandfather, Prince Philip, retired Duke of Edinburgh.
Harry’s father, Prince Charles was married at the same chapel when he wed his current bride, Camilla, in 2005, so you could say that the young prince is following in his father’s footsteps. The reception will be held directly following the ceremony at St. George’s Hall.
Plenty of personalized planning is going into this wedding. The morning will be bright, promising and joyful and the exchange of vows is sure to be emotional on all accounts. As the engagement photos were shared with the public, they seemed to come alive with a true sense of commitment and contentment, love and eternal bliss. It is a wedding that will be seen all across the world.
The engagement ring holds very deep meaning for Prince Harry as he chose a trilogy ring, with a gorgeous center cut stone from Botswana which was encapsulated by two outside diamonds from the late Princess Diana’s personal collection. Botswana holds a bit of significance too since Harry and Meghan shared many memories there before Harry decided to pop the question. Harry picked out a yellow gold band because that is Meghan’s favorite. The ring was made by Cleave & Company, the Court Jewellers. If the couple decide to follow in tradition, the actual wedding bands will be made of Welsh gold.
Since everything seems to be falling into place, the main mystery of the occasion is Meghan’s wedding dress. What will it look like? Who is the designer? There is rumor that it might be unique in its own sense of the word, certainly not the normal wedding white. The designers have been narrowed down to Erdem, Roland Mouret, Inbal Dror, Jenny Packham and everyone’s favorite, Alexander McQueen. When interviewed by Glamour in the past, Markle hinted at her personal style for a wedding gown as being “whimsical or subtly romantic” and “something simple, classy and very elegant,”, perhaps with a low ballerina-inspired neckline. The headpiece will most likely be the conventional borrowed tiara, worn by most of the royal brides in the past. Meghan is working closely with good friend and confidant, bridal stylist Jessica Mulroney, who will also be part of the wedding party. Harry has made himself scarce as the fittings are already in the works for the big day.
Markle herself is opting to give the reception speech, paying tribute to her new husband and thanking the Queen for her enormous support. Don’t look for the customary wedding cake either. Straying from tradition, the plan is to have the first banana-flavored royal wedding cake, a strong fruit favorite of Prince Harry. There has even been some talk that Ed Sheeran may be performing the wedding song and the Spice Girls will be present as well.
The wedding bouquet will be selected by Markle, with myrtle being the center of attention. Since royal weddings, dating back to 1840, myrtle has symbolized love and marriage and been carried down the aisle by most of the royal brides.
Little Prince George and his sister, Princess Charlotte will surely have a role in the wedding procession, both as an adorable ring bearer and the other tossing flower petals. Actress Priyanka Chopra, may be asked to be a bridesmaid. We are still waiting to learn if Prince Harry will be the Best Man.
Everything is falling into place nicely and the excitement is building all over the world. The year 2018 will bring with it another fairytale Royal Wedding and a new addition to the Royal family of Prince William and Kate Middleton, baby number three.
