The world witnessed admiringly as they exchanged vows. A much awaited union has finally been sealed with the sacred words, the golden rings and a joyous kiss. Prince Harry wedded Megan Markel on a sunlit morning, last Saturday, 19.
Upon his wedding, Prince Harry was handed the title Duke of Sussex by Queen Elizabeth II, making his bride the Duchess of Sussex.
Harry’s and Meghan’s wedding was the most diverse major event in the Queen’s 66-year reign with heavy influences from the US and Meghan’s mixed-race background, the Daily Mail notes. The story of Harry and Meghan has become a metaphor for the state of multicultural Britain itself. For some black Brits, there’s a sense of pride that a woman of colour is joining the royal family, writes the Time. Megan Markel and Prince Harry are carrying on Princess Diana’s legacy of service and humanitarian work, the head of the Diana Award Tessy Ojo has told the UK Express adding that Meghan is “redefining what a princess means.”
The wedding
Around 7 a.m. on the big day, as the crowds watched excitedly, Megan arrived at the sun-washed Windsor Castle, probably impatient to stand by her groom.
Dressed in a pure white work of art and wearing a diamond bandeau on her veiled head, the beautiful bride is walked down the aisle by the groom’s father, Prince Charles.
The declarations are made, Harry and Meghan declare their love and faithfulness, and an address by the Most Reverend Michael Curry is made. Bishop Curry is the first African American to preside over the Episcopal Church.
Adding a real strain of Americaness, of the African American experience, to this service, “Stand by Me,” by Ben E. King is sung by Karen Gibson and The Kingdom Choir.
The vows are exchanged, the couple is pronounced husband and wife and after the English National Anthem is sung, they walk through the floral arch, pause and exchange a kiss as their admirers gently cheers.
The rings they exchanged, according to Kensington Palace, were made by `Cleave and Company’. Markle’s ring ‘has been fashioned from a piece of Welsh Gold, gifted by Her Majesty The Queen. Prince Harry’s ring is a Platinum Band with a textured finish.”
They board the Ascot Landau carriage and the father-and-son Windsor Grey horses began to pull them out into the town on the much awaited procession to appear before the public as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
The wedding dress
Meghan Markle’s wedding dress was designed by British designer Clare Waight Keller, the first female artistic director at the French fashion house Givenchy.The fashion house tweeted that the dress was “inspired by all 12 signs of the Zodiac, the Zodiac Signs collection features artisanally carved rings and earrings to convey the wearer’s character.” What was most noticeable [about the dress] were all the things that the dress was not. It was not a Hollywood red carpet statement. It was not a Disney princess fantasy. It was not a mountain of camouflaging tulle and chiffon. The dress was free of extravagant embellishments. It was not covered in yards of delicate lace. It did not have a single ruffle — no pearls or crystals. Its beauty was in its architectural lines and its confident restraint. It was a romantic dress, but one that suggested a clear-eyed understanding that a real-life romance is not the stuff of fairy tales. The dress was a backdrop; it was in service to the woman,” wrote Washington Post fashion critic Robin Givhan.
Bridesmaids
Meghan Markle chose not to have a maid of honor in her bridal party, so as not to have to choose between her best girlfriends, says Harper’s Bazaar. The bridesmaids and page boys, aged between two and seven included the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s two older children, Prince George, four, and Princess Charlotte, three.
A star-lit occasion
Among the famous guests were Oprah Winfrey, Sir Elton John, Tennis star Serena Williams, American actor George Clooney and wife, David and Victoria Bekham, Abigail Spencer and Priyanka Chopra.
Breaking the tradition
Born to an African-American mother Doria Ragland and a white father Thomas, Meghan is “the first mixed race person to marry into a family that for generations has been almost entirely white European,” according to The Mirror’s royal correspondent.
Journalist Constance Grady wrote on Vox.com that the address of Bishop Michael Curry –a black American Episcopal from Chicago – during the wedding “was a break with royal wedding tradition. Markle may be the new English Duchess of Sussex, but her black American heritage was central to the royal wedding.”
Humble beginnings
Rosie Fitzmaurice of Business Insider UK writes that the fact that Meghan is“from humble beginnings” “smashes traditional royal stereotypes.”
“Markle’s LA upbringing was far humbler than Harry’s,” she writes. “Her mother is a yoga teacher and social worker, and her father a former lighting director. Although Markle did attend private school from a young age, it’s still a far cry from Harry’s Etonian education.”
Encouraging Charity
“Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are incredibly grateful for the goodwill they have received since their engagement,” a representative of royal residence Kensington Palace said on Twitter prior to the wedding. They “have asked that anyone who might wish to mark the occasion of their wedding considers giving to charity, instead of sending a gift. The couple have personally chosen seven charities which represent a range of issues they are passionate about,” the palace said.
Specifically, those charities are: Street Games, a sports-focused charity aimed at helping those in disadvantaged communities; The Myna Mahila Foundation, a charity that provides personal and professional support for women in the poorest parts of Mumbai; Surfers Against Sewage, a national marine conservation and campaigning charity; The Wilderness Foundation UK, which aims to preserve wild spaces and promotes the benefits and enjoyment of nature; Crisis, a program that offers education, employment, housing and other services for the homeless; The Children’s HIV Association, which offers support to young people living with HIV across the U.K. and Ireland; and Scotty’s Little Soldiers, a charity for children who have lost a parent serving in the British Armed Forces.
An elegant end of a sweet beginning - and now, it’s their happily-ever-after. A royal love story – still being written – and a humble love, all too human, binding their worlds together.
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