7 British royal wedding rules – and how the protocols have been followed and broken: from Meghan Markle’s wedding gown to Prince Harry’s rogue ring

Aug 23 , 2021

Check out which special protocol famous UK royals have to follow their wedding. Photos: AFP, EPA, AFP

Who doesn’t love a royal wedding? From Prince William and Kate Middleton, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, to more recently Princess Beatrice of York’s nuptials to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, there’s a part of us that gets butterflies from watching princes and princesses walk down the aisle. Like most royal activities, their weddings are steeped in tradition. Here are some protocols royal weddings usually observe.

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The queen’s approval

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, walk down the west steps of St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, in Windsor, after their wedding ceremony. Photo: AFP

Most grooms-to-be will traditionally ask the bride’s father for his blessing on their marriage, however, according to the Royal Marriages Act of 1772, royals must ask the monarch for approval. Queen Elizabeth has given her royal consent recently to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice of York.

Famously, as seen on The Crown, she did not approve of her sister Princess Margaret’s request to marry Peter Townsend. She instead finally married Anthony Armstrong Jones, which ended in separation in 1978 and marked the first British royal divorce in 400 years.

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Dress British

The wedding dress of Britain’s Princess Diana is displayed during a media preview for the “Royal Style in the Making” exhibition at Kensington Palace in London, June 2021. Photo: AP

Apart from getting the queen’s approval on the wedding dress – which she has never reportedly disapproved of one yet – it is also tradition that royal brides wear British-designed dresses for their wedding.

Princess Diana’s dress was by her favourite couture designers David and Elizabeth Emanuel from Emanuel Salon in Mayfair. Kate Middleton’s dress was designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. Meghan Markle partly toed the line on this one, opting for British designer Clare Waight Keller under French fashion house Givenchy.

The bridal entourage

Bridesmaids and page boys during the wedding ceremony of Britain’s Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, May 2018. Photo: AP

There are always little bridesmaids and pageboys at a royal wedding, but traditionally it’s the children from the royal side of the family who walk down the aisle. Even as recently as Kate Middleton’s wedding to Prince William, in 2011, the bridal party was connected to William with figures such as his goddaughter Grace van Cutsem and Camilla’s granddaughter Eliza Lopes, Prince Edward’s daughter Lady Louise Windsor and William’s second cousin Margarita Armstrong-Jones. However, at Prince Harry and Meghan’s wedding, the bridal procession of six bridesmaids and four pageboys were split with children from both sides, including super cute siblings Princess Charlotte and Prince George.

Maid of honour

There usually isn’t a maid of honour at a royal wedding, but Kate Middleton broke this protocol by having her sister Pippa fill that role.

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The balcony kiss

Prince Charles and his new wife, Lady Diana, kiss on the balcony of Buckingham Palace before a huge crowd in 1981. Photo: AFP

The famous balcony kiss tradition is one that many royal wedding fans hold dear to their hearts. Prince Charles and Princess Diana were the first to kiss on the balcony at Buckingham Palace, in front of cheering crowds after their wedding in 1981. Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson followed suit a few years later, and then William and Kate in 2011. Prince Harry and Meghan were married at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, so they did not follow in this more recent tradition.

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The bouquet

Princess Diana on her wedding day. Photo: @theprincesschronicle/Instagram

When Queen Victoria married Prince Albert in 1840, she chose the herb of love, fertility and innocents, myrtle to adorn her wedding bouquet. She planted a myrtle shrub in the garden of her home in the Isle of Wight, Osborne House, and every British royal since has pick a sprig from the same shrub for their wedding bouquet.

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The wedding rings

A close up from the ring exchanging ceremony at Harry and Meghan’s wedding. Photo: The Royal Family Channel/YouTube

Royal men have traditionally chosen not to wear a wedding ring. While this is more preference than protocol, Prince Philip, Andrew and William all chose to opt out of having a ring. Prince Charles stacks his wedding ring to Camilla on top of his signet ring on his pinkie finger, rather than the ring finger. Prince Harry and Meghan however chose to have an exchange of the rings section in their wedding ceremony, and the prince now wears his ring proudly.

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Meghan Markle

Tradition dictates royal brides wear locally designed gowns, but Meghan Markle toed the line by choosing a British designer under French fashion house Givenchy
Prince Philip, Andrew and William opted out of rings – Prince Harry is the first royal husband in three generations to wear a wedding band on his ring finger