royal wedding Archives

In Weddings

Japan’s former princess chooses the heart over the crown

October 29, 2021 No Comments

Some will consider former Japanese Princess Mako and her ‘peasant’ husband Kei Komuro the stuff of fairy tales. Upper echelon circles have considered it dishonourable. Either way, for those who may have thought that the kind of love worth sacrificing everything for is dead, it’s a story worth knowing.

The daughter of the Japanese emperor’s kin has made headlines for breaking the shackles of royal tradition in the name of not only love but also her independence – being the first female Japanese royal to do so.

Four years ago, the former princess and her college sweetheart, a non-royal, brought a real-life fairy tale into the world’s gaze. Many swooned over the kind of love so powerful it would cause Mako to willingly take on the harsh consequences of marrying a commoner. As the BBC writes, their smiles won over a country.

But the consequences were brutal as those within Mako’s social class frowned upon the former Princess’s decision. It would mean losing her royal status, forfeiting millions, and facing intense scrutiny at the sacrifice of her mental health – for years.

But to Mako, Kei Komuro was the sun, famously mentioning that his smile was as warm as the burning star.

The couple had met at a meeting of students planning to go abroad in 2012 and had become close as university students over five years, even when studying in different countries. Mako’s university journey was also largely her first symbol of abandoning tradition as it marked her leaving the traditional institution of study for royal Japanese family members.

While it may have seemed as though Mako was taking all the heat for a story films will no doubt be made about, Komuro too had signed up for mass public scrutiny. As VICE reports, intense questioning regarding whether Kumuro would cause Mako to struggle financially in the future came about in the past after an alleged money dispute to do with the young lawyer’s mother and her former fiance.

However, despite it all, the young lovers have stood by each other through and through and tied the knot yesterday, October 26.

In a highly anticipated live TV appearance, the former princess defended her marriage decision expressing that:

“Kei is irreplaceable for me,” she said. “For us, marriage is a necessary choice to live while cherishing our hearts.”

Mr Komuro also made vows to his love, stating the words that will be quoted by hopeless romantics all over the world:

“I want to spend the only life I have with the one I love.”

Originally posted on Cape {town} Etc

Picture: EPA

In Weddings

Royal wedding traditions

November 7, 2019 No Comments

If you thought planning your own wedding was tough, imagine throwing a royal one! The British royal family is all about tradition and their weddings are no different. From Queen Victoria to Harry and Meghan, these royal customs have stood the test of time.

Proposal approval:

Royals must be incredibly selective with who they choose to marry. The Royal Marriages Act of 1772 stipulated that all royal descendants had to seek blessing from the sovereign before proposing. The act was created to prevent unsuitable marriages that could diminish the status of the royal house. This drew much criticism over the years, and was repealed in 2011. The 2013 Succession to the Crown Act now orders that the first six people in the line of succession must receive permission from the sovereign to marry.

To take things even further, the 1701 Act of Settlement was passed to settle the succession to the English and Irish crowns on Protestants only. This Act also stipulated that no Roman Catholic, nor anyone married to a Roman Catholic, could hold the Crown. Essentially, royals could not marry anyone of the Roman Catholic faith if they wanted to keep their place in line for the throne. Luckily, this provision was changed in 2015.

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Wedding rings of Welsh Gold:

Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, and Princess Diana’s wedding rings were all fashioned from the same nugget of Welsh gold which came from a Welsh mine, Clogau St David’s at Bontddu. This gold is more valuable than gold from Australia or South Africa.

While there is only a sliver of the original gold left over, the Queen owns a large nugget of 21 carat Welsh gold which is held by the Crown Jewellers to be used for the royal wedding rings of today. Sarah, Duchess of York, Duchess Kate, and Duchess Meghan Markle all sport wedding bands made from this nugget.

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A sprig of myrtle

From Her Majesty The Queen to The Duchess of Cambridge and The Duchess of Sussex, a sprig of myrtle has featured in multiple royal bouquets over the decades. Myrtle represents love, fertility and innocence, and first appeared in the bouquet of Queen Victoria back in 1840.

Following her wedding, Queen Victoria planted a myrtle shrub in her garden at the Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. Since then, every British royal bride has plucked a sprig from this very bush to place in her bridal bouquet.

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Laying the bouquet at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior:

This tradition was started by Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, almost a century ago. As she entered Westminster Abbey on the day of her wedding, the Queen Mother stopped to lay her floral bouquet at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in a gesture of remembrance for her late brother, who died at the Battle of Loos in 1915. She also did this to honour the millions of others killed and injured in World War I. She then continued to walk down the aisle sans bouquet.

Since this day, many other royal brides have followed in her footsteps. The only difference is that they lay their bouquets down after the ceremony, not before. Most recently, Duchess of Sussex Meghan laid her flowers on the tomb as she left the church.

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Orange blossom:

Queen Victoria was truly influential in shaping modern royal weddings. For her 1840 marriage to Price Albert she chose to wear a wreath of orange blossoms in lieu of a tiara. The orange blossoms were meant to symbolise chastity.

Many royal brides have since followed suit and incorporated the star-shaped orange blossom into their bridal attire, including Princess Victoria, Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Beatrice.

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Official photographs:

Official portraits have been a long standing tradition for the British monarchy. Following the introduction of photography, King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra were the first to test out this new technology after their 1863 ceremony. Many royal couples would also share their wedding portraits as postcards for members of the public to purchase.

Since then, we have seen numerous official wedding portraits from famous British royalty such as Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

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The wedding and reception:

Royal weddings are often star-studded events. Fellow royals, foreign leaders, church officials, diplomats, and celebrities are often spotted at these occasions.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, however, went against tradition and did not invite any foreign leaders to remain neutral.

British royal weddings are typically held at noon, followed by a post-reception luncheon, which is essentially just a seated brunch hosted by the Queen. Both Prince William and Kate and Prince Harry and Meghan had two receptions: the luncheon and a private dinner/party.

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Image: Instagram / Kensington Royal

In Celebs

How Queen Victoria shaped modern weddings

October 15, 2019 No Comments

Weddings have been happening since time immemorial. From the ancient Romans and Greeks to today’s millennials, weddings have stood the test of time as the ultimate symbol of love and commitment for many.

Many wedding traditions have been around for centuries, and have shaped how we get married. But have you ever wondered where they come from? Turns out, we have Queen Victoria to thank for many modern wedding traditions we use today.

Queen Victoria has gone down in history as one of the most iconic royal monarchs, and for good reason. She has survived multiple assassination attempts, she proposed to her husband, and is the second longest reigning British monarch after Queen Elizabeth II.

Her wedding to Prince Albert took place on February 10, 1840, in the Chapel Royal of St. James’s Palace in London. This day became one that would shape modern weddings for a number of reasons.

A wedding spectacle:

Royal weddings were traditionally small and private night-time events. However, Queen Victoria had other ideas. She wanted her wedding to be a moment. She had her bridal procession drive through the streets to St. James palace so that thousands of members of the public could see her. This has become a tradition for many betrothed royals since, with their weddings becoming public events observed the world over. No other royal monarch weddings have been held in the evening since. She also had many more wedding guests than the norm, making her wedding a massive event.

The white wedding dress:

Up until this wedding, brides traditionally wore coloured wedding gowns. This was mainly for practicality, as they could rewear the dresses and because white is notoriously difficult to keep clean. Royal brides typically had elaborate wedding dresses made in gold or silver fabrics and were highly embellished to show their wealthy status. However, Queen Victoria wanted to be different on her wedding day. She refused the crimson velvet robes of state in favour of a white, lacy gown with an 18ft (5.5m) train. She chose white to enhance the finely detailed Honiton lace on her gown. She also chose this colour to stand out from the crowd and be more visible during the bridal procession, as well as to enhance her purity and innocence. She had the pattern for her dress destroyed after her wedding so that no one else would copy it.

And thus, the white wedding dress tradition was born. Her wedding gown was reported on all over the world, and spurred on international wedding trends. Initially, wealthier brides emulated her look, but by the 20th century most brides were donning pure white for their wedding day.

The veil and floral headdress:

Queen Victoria completed her wedding ensemble with a veil and floral headdress decorated with orange blossoms and myrtle. Orange blossoms were a wedding tradition as they represent fertility and purity. Until her wedding, wedding veils has largely gone out of style in favour of caps and bonnets. However, her decision to don a veil revived the trend for decades to come.

No guests to wear white:

Because Queen Victoria wanted her look to stand out, she banned all of her wedding guests from wearing white on the big day. This tradition has since been an unspoken rule at weddings. Today, wearing white to a wedding is considered incredibly disrespectful to the bride.

The cake:

Queen Victoria’s wedding cake was a sight. At 300lbs (136kg), 9ft (2.7m) circumference and 16 inches ( 40.6cm) in height, this baked wonder required four men to carry it in. It was decorated with a figure of Britannia, and flanked by cupids, one of which held a book bearing displaying their wedding date. This took the wedding cake to new heights. Today, the look of your wedding cake is just as important as any other aspect of the wedding. Many couples spend a large chunk of their wedding budget on crafting an elaborate wedding cake that makes a statement.

Picture: Roger Fenton / Getty Images