The Honeymoon of Elizabeth, Duchess of York

88 years ago and a plethora of photos!  Let's look back at the honeymoon of the future King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.

Date:  April - May 1923
Place:  England and Scotland
Event:  Honeymoon of the Duke and Duchess of York (Elizabeth and Albert, later King George VI)

Elizabeth's honeymoon wardrobe was very much in the style of wedding dress--baggy and very ill-suited for her womanly figure.  Here, the newlyweds prepare to depart London for the first leg of their honeymoon at Broadlands.

Elizabeth's hat and outfit looks quite different from opposite angles--but it is the same outfit!

Once at Broadlands, the newlyweds posed for photographs playing golf and enjoying the grounds.

How sweet do the newlyweds look here?

In the next photo, the couple are seen leaving a church service at Bookham while on their honeymoon.

In the next photo, the Duke seems to be wearing identical clothes.  Indeed, Elizabeth's outfits appear at first glance to be the same but there are slight differences:  different handbags, different waistlines, a large front pleat in one skirt and not the other, and most noticeably quite different hats--the first being rather wide-brimmed and the second a smaller, cloche hat.  The second photo is believed to have been snapped at Glamis Castle, Elizabeth's home in Scotland, where she "unromantically" caught whooping cough.

As we will explore eventually here at Fashionably Royal, Elizabeth's style certainly evolved over time.  She eventually dumped the baggy, formless dresses seen in these early photos for much more becoming outfits.

Stay tuned to Fashionably Royal for more honeymoon fashions and the evolution of the Queen Mother's style!

Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon's Wedding Day

One last look back before we turn our attention to our televisions for William and Kate Middleton's wedding.  This time, the wedding day of Elizabeth and Albert, better known as the Queen Mother and King George VI.

Date:  26 April 1923
Place:  Westminster Abbey, London
Event:  Wedding of Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon and Prince Albert (later King George VI)

Elizabeth's dress was designed by Madame Handley Seymour and is often looked back upon as dowdy and unfashionable. However, the dress was quite fashionable for the time but simply did not suit the bride's figure.

The dress was made of silk, ivory moire with a drop-waist and square-neck. Elizabeth wore a veil made of Flanders lace, borrowed from her mother-in-law and worn low over the brow in imitation of cloche hats that were en vogue.

The wedding was held in Westminster Abbey--the first royal wedding to happen in the Abbey in over 500 years. Elizabeth spontaneously laid her bouquet at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in the Abbey as she walked down the aisle. Thus, in the official portraits afterward, she is holding no bouquet. We may see Kate Middleton lay her bouquet at the tomb tomorrow.

With the recent success of The King's Speech, interest has been high in Elizabeth. Her wedding dress never seems to inspire any kind sentiments. By the late 1930s, when she became Queen, she had found a style that suited her much better with the creations of Norman Hartnell (who eventually created both of her daughters' wedding dresses).

Now--stay tuned to Fashionably Royal for a look at the fashions from Kate and William's wedding!