Date: 10 February 1840
Place: Chapel Royal, St. James Palace, London
Event: Wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert
Victoria became queen less than a month after turning 18 years old in 1837. As long as she remained unmarried, she was obliged to live with her mother with whom she had a strained relationship. So, it was two and a half years after her ascension that she married her German first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duke of Saxony.
Queen Victoria's wedding is most notable for setting a trend in wedding dresses; specifically, she chose to wear white and it sparked a craze that remains today. Before, most wedding dresses were expected to be practical and worn again, thus white was an unlikely choice because it was difficult to keep clean. You can bet your boots that Kate Middleton will be wearing white on Friday, and she can thank Victoria for that.
Victoria's dress was made of yards of satin and complemented by a veil made of ornate Honiton lace. Honiton lace was also used to trim her neckline and sleeves. The English town of Honiton had been known as a center of lace-making since the middle ages. Additionally, she wore a massive diamond necklace and earrings. Nestled at the center of her bosom was a sapphire brooch gifted to her by Prince Albert.
It is not known exactly who created her dress, but her shoes were created by Gundry and Sons, a London-based cobbler.
Around her head, Victoria wore a crown of orange blossoms as dramatized here in the film The Young Victoria (2009; quite a visually and dramatically worthy film if you are interested in this time period). It is said that Albert also chose the orange blossoms for his bride.
Stay tuned to Fashionably Royal for more wedding fashions in celebration of the big wedding tomorrow!
I want a replica of this dress. It's gorgeous!
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