The Princess of Wales looked dazzling in pink as she and Prince William were among the surprise guests at one of the year's most glamourous and eagerly-anticipated royal weddings.
The couple made an under the radar trip to Jordan to be at the lavish nuptials of Crown Prince Hussein, who is marrying his architect fiancée Rajwa Al Saif at the Zahran Palace in Amman today, before a huge reception for 1,700 people at the Al-Husseiniya Palace later.
It was only announced this morning that William and Kate would be at the wedding after they were spotted at a hotel in Amman and it is the first time they have attended a major royal international event together.
At the marriage ceremony at Zahran Palace this afternoon, Kate wore a flowing dusky pink dress by the designer Elie Saab, while William looked smart in a suit.
They were greeted by the groom's parents King Abdullah and Queen Rania with Kate curtseying to them and they had a lengthy chat before they headed to watch Hussein, 28, who wore military uniform, marry 29-year-old Rajwa, whose bridal gown was also by Elie Saab.
The couple wed in an Islamic marriage ceremony known as a “katb ktab” held in a gazebo in the garden of the Zahran Palace and it was conducted by the Royal Hashemite Court Imam Dr Ahmed Al Khalaileh
Also attending the nuptials was William's cousin Princess Beatrice, who was seen arriving in a blue Needle and Thread gown alongside her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
After the ceremony, several women performed Zaghrata – ululation – a joyous sound commonly used to express happiness at Jordanian and Arab celebrations, and the newly-weds greeted their guests.
On leaving, the British royals were all seen greeting the newlywed couple with hugs and kisses on the cheeks. It was then announced that Rajwa had been bestowed with a HRH title and will be known as Princess Rajwa.
Hussein is known to have a close bond with Beatrice as well as William. In 2018, during a solo trip to Jordan, the Prince of Wales was hosted by Hussein and stopped by his then-swanky bachelor pad at the King's residence of Beit al Urdun to watch a football match.
William had missed out on watching England's emphatic victory over Panama in that year's World Cup while travelling to the country - so the Crown Prince recorded it for him.
Kensington Palace later shared a picture of William watching the rerun on a huge screen alongside Hussein as they reclined on a huge grey corner sofa.
In addition, Hussein's mum Queen Rania is a member of William's Earthshot Prize Council.
Meanwhile, the country of Jordan is a special place for Kate, who lived there for three years as a young child.
It came when her dad Michael Middleton was relocated there while working for British Airways - and Kate and sister Pippa attended a nursery there.
A sweet picture of the young girls shows them with their dad at an archaeological site in the country.
And in 2021, the couple took their children to Jordan for a private holiday, with a family snap at the ancient city of Petra from that getaway featured on their Christmas card that year. It came after William promised to take his family to Jordan following his 2018 visit there.
William and Kate's current trip to Jordan was not announced in advance, with their arrival confirmed by Jordanian state media just a few hours before the start of the palace ceremony.
Hussein, a graduate of the UK's Sandhurst Military Academy, and Rajwa's engagement was announced last August with a ceremony to mark it taking place in the bride's home city of Riyadh.
Two weeks ago, Queen Rania threw a traditional henna party for her Saudi Arabian-born daughter-in-law-to-be and later shared special behind-the-scenes footage of the emotional event.
The wedding comes after a difficult period for Jordan’s monarchy, including a public rift between the king and his half-brother, with some commentators interpreting the national celebrations as a way of shoring up public support at a time of persistent economic difficulties.
Designed to convey a sense of continuity, the event is expected to include features from previous royal weddings, including a motorcade of red Land Rovers escorting the newlywed couple through the streets of Amman after the ceremony.
William and Kate are in good company as other guests at the wedding include royalty from across the world such as Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark and his Australian-born wife Crown Princess Mary as well as the heir to the Swedish throne Crown Princess Victoria and husband Prince Daniel.
The King and Queen of the Netherlands are also there as well as the King of Belgium and his young heir Princess Elisabeth. The US is being represented by its First Lady Jill Biden.
