Royalweddings of past and present continue to enchant the nation.
Across the world, 200 million people tuned in to listen to the marriage of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten. Certainly it was a massive event, and one that is still talked about in relation to the royal marriages of today.
As homageto the Queen, we thought we would take a nostalgic look back at the iconicwedding dress Queen Elizabeth II wore in 1947.
The Lead-up
WhenPrincess Elizabeth walked up the aisle at Westminster Abbey on 20thNovember, her dress was not just a fashion statement; she personified the new-bornhopes of a nation that had only just seen the end of the Second World War. Infact, the princess even bought the fabric for her wedding dress using rationcoupons. This was due to the austere effects of the war, and to pay respect tothe public.
Despite this, the dress was nothing short of elaborate and opulent. Royal dressmaker Norman Hartnell was chosen to design the masterpiece. He decorated the gown with garlands of spring flowers, influenced by the famous late 15th century painting Primavera by Sandro Botticelli.
Thepainting is heavily abundant in floral motifs and flowers, documenting around500 individual plant species. In addition, the painting itself was believed tohave been created for the marriage of Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco in May 1482.Therefore, love and marriage is at the heart of its symbolism, a fittinginfluence for Elizabeth’s dress.
The Bodice
As istraditional in the Royal Family, Elizabeth’s dress featured delicate floralembroidery, taken from the Botticelli masterpiece. Her ivory duch*esse satingown featured a soft sweetheart neckline in a simple cut, with a fitted bodiceand a floor-length panelled skirt.
Thebodice is appliquéd with satin flowers, each one painstakingly sewed on. Theseare lush and abundant around the zig-zag neckline and fade as they reach thebust of the dress. Perfectly symmetrical wheat (which symbolises fertility) andflowers are sewn in diamante and pearls to the upper body of the bodice.
Duringthis time long sleeves were typical, even though more ration coupons wereneeded for the fabric! Nonetheless, sleeves were befitting for the futurequeen. Hers were naked silk at the shoulder and bejewelled at the cuff with ascalloped edge.
Finally, thebodice ends in a low v waist with a line of five-petalled star lilies.
The Skirt
The dresswas heavily embellished with crystals and over 10,000 seed pearls which wereimported from America. Overall, this created a shining and resplendent gown fitfor the future queen.
Most ofthese pearls lay in the skirt of the dress. The duch*esse satin was bought from theWinterther Silk Factory in Dunfermline, Scotland. In fact, there is now amuseum where the factory once stood which commemorates the hours of labour woveninto the princess’s dress.
The embroideredflowers and ears of wheat weaved down the skirt. Similarly to the bodice,everything is perfectly symmetrical and the curves of decoration almostresemble tinsel around a Christmas tree.
The Train
The trainwas 15-foot long and created using silk produced at Lullingstone Castle, nearLondon. Typically Italian or Japanese silkworms would be used for the task.However, as the war was so recent, Chinese silkworms were imported instead.
Thiselaborate train was attached at the shoulders and cascaded down the dress andthe aisle of Westminster Abbey. It was arranged to delicately float down the Abbeysteps like a waterfall. All of the 350 women working under Hartnell were askedto stitch at least one flower so they could remember taking part in a piece of history.
Theflowers on the train include jasmine, smilax, lilacs and white rose, all intransparent applique tulle embroidery. Above all, orange blossoms were featuredon the train; there are lines of the flowers around the borders. Queen Victoriastarted the royal tradition of orange blossom flowers, which in itself is apopular wedding flower. In fact, the bloom is a symbol of chastity.
The Accessories
Myrtlewas another feature of Queen Victoria’s wedding in her bouquet. Subsequentlyall royal weddings have included a sprig of this plant in their bridalbouquets. Victoria’s myrtle bush was a gift from her grandmother-in-law, whichshe planted at her home on the Isle of Wight. After that, when her daughterVictoria got married in 1858, the queen took a cutting from the bush for herbouquet.
WhenElizabeth married Philip, she also took a cutting from this same bush. Sincethis, she has grown her own plant from that same myrtle bush, and this is theone that royals take from to this day.
Alongside the myrtle, which is a symbol of Aphrodite and therefore love, the princess’ wedding bouquet included cascading white orchids. Designer Martin Longman used three different varieties. However, the queen mislaid her flowers partway through the day and photographs in the Throne Room show her empty handed.
Furthermore,the princess chose to accessorise the gown with duch*esse satin heeled open toedsandals by Edward Rayne. The buckles of these were decorated with silver andyet more seed pearls.
She heldher veil in place with a stunning tiara from the royal collection, the QueenMary Fringe Tiara. This was borrowed from her mother. However in an emergency justhours before the wedding the frame snapped, but the royal jewellery managed to avertdisaster.
The thenPrincess Elizabeth wore a short pearl necklace called the ‘Queen Anne’. Inaddition, she wore the longer ‘Queen Caroline’; both were wedding gifts fromher father.
Finally,the future queen applied her own makeup before the wedding. We can assume that this was due to the austere measures of the time, yet this also presents a humbling view of the Royal Family.
To conclude: some more facts about the wedding
Westminster Abbey
Many royal weddings have taken place in this historic building. Firstly, King Henry I married Matilda of Scotland in 1100. Likewise, the Queen Mother married King George VI here in 1923. In fact, Queen Elizabeth II queen was the tenth royal to marry in this elaborate and iconic church.
The Dress Tour
Following the wedding, the dress was displayed at the St James Palace.After that it underwent a tour of exhibitions across the country: Glasgow,Liverpool, Bristol, Preston, Leicester, Nottingham, Manchester, Bradford, Leeds and Huddersfield.
Presents
In a rather touching gesture of loyalty, women from all over Britain also saved up their coupons and sent them on to Buckingham Palace. However as the transfer of ration coupons were illegal, the Royal Family returned the coupons with a note appreciating their gesture. The queen received over 2,500 wedding presents from all over the world.
Anniversaries
In 2007,The Queen became the first British Monarch to celebrate a diamond weddinganniversary. And, in 2017, Philip and Elizabeth achieved their platinum weddinganniversary. To commemorate this, the royal family released official portraitsof the Queen and Prince Philip together against a platinum backdrop.
To summarise, the wedding dress of Queen Elizabeth II was a masterpiece. The design was perfect for the first royal celebration since the end of the Second World War. In short, it was a dress that the whole world was going to be watching.
