There’s a more "American tradition" the Princess of Wales had at her wedding in 2011 that Meghan Markle decided against having at hers.
The Prince and Princess of Wales will be celebrating their 12th anniversary this year and their wedding remains one of the most iconic royal occasions in recent history. The now-Princess of Wales upheld plenty of royal traditions on the big day, including with her symbolic bouquet that included a sprig of the royal favourite, myrtle. However, with some details she went entirely her own way.
For those wondering who Kate’s bridesmaids were, Pippa Middleton wasn’t technically one of them and the Princess of Wales’s decision to have a Maid of Honour was something quite unusual - and not repeated by Meghan Markle in 2018.
Wedding expert Lavinia Stewart-Brown, founder and director of Lavinia Stewart-Brown events, previously expressed her belief to Express.co.uk that having a Maid of Honour was more of an American tradition. Typically, the Royal Family only have bridesmaids and they are usually all children, with no adult bridesmaids.
"It’s becoming more and more popular to stray from traditional wedding conventions, with a number of couples choosing to break the rules to make their big day their own," she claimed. "The Princess of Wales, for example, chose to break royal convention by introducing an American tradition by having her sister, Pippa Middleton, as her maid of honour."
Nowadays it’s more popular in the UK to have a Maid of Honour and Lavinia’s remarks could suggest that Kate is something of a trend-setter by departing from British tradition. Seven years later Princess Eugenie made her sister Princess Beatrice her Maid of Honour, mirroring Kate’s choice. However, despite Lavinia suggesting that Maid of Honours are more of an "American tradition", California-born Meghan Markle didn’t follow in Kate’s footsteps.
When she tied the knot with Prince Harry in May 2018, Meghan only had bridesmaids and none were adults, in-keeping with royal custom. In this way it seems like the Duchess of Sussex favoured the more British tradition of not having a Maid of Honour, rather than one of her close friends or relatives fulfilling this role.
Like Kate, though, she also had myrtle in her bouquet which is a royal tradition that can be traced back to Queen Victoria's reign. Prince Harry and Meghan also travelled in the same Landau Carriage that had taken Prince William and Kate back to Buckingham Palace after their ceremony.
However, whilst the Duchess of Sussex stuck with royal tradition with her choice to have only bridesmaids she did switch things up a little too. Typically it's often the groom, father of the bride and best man who deliver speeches at weddings rather than the bride, but Meghan decided to break this tradition and give a speech herself.
This wedding speech was read out by the Duchess in her and Prince Harry’s Harry & Meghan Netflix series and saw her describe their love story as a "modern fairytale".
"I appreciate, respect and honour you, my treasure, for the family we will create. And our love story that will last forever," she declared at the end. "So I ask you to raise a glass to the astounding assurance that now life begins. And the everlasting knowing that, above all, love wins."
This year the Sussexes will celebrate six years of marriage and just like Prince William and Kate’s wedding, theirs is a magical occasion few royal fans will ever forget.
