| Wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh | |
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| Participants | Princess Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh |
| Location | Westminster Abbey, London, England |
| Date | 20 November 1947, 11:30 GMT |
The wedding of Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II), and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh took place on 20 November 1947 at Westminster Abbey in London.
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Elizabeth and Philip are second cousins once removed (by descent from Christian IX of Denmark and Luise of Hesse-Kassel) and third cousins (by descent from Queen Victoria and Prince Albert). Elizabeth met Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, in 1934 at the wedding of Philip's cousin, Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, and later in 1937.[1] After another meeting at the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth in July 1939, Elizabeth – though only 13 years old – fell in love with Philip, and they began to exchange letters.[2] They became secretly engaged in 1946 when Philip asked the King for his daughter's hand in marriage. The King granted his request providing any formal engagement was delayed until Elizabeth's twenty-first birthday the following April.[3] Their engagement was officially announced on July 9, 1947.[4]
Before the marriage, Philip renounced his Greek and Danish titles, converted from Greek Orthodoxy to Anglicanism, and adopted the style Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten, taking the surname of his mother's British family.[5] The day preceding his wedding, King George VI bestowed the style His Royal Highness, and on the morning of the wedding, 20 November 1947, he was made the Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth, and Baron Greenwich of Greenwich in the County of London.[6]
Princess Elizabeth and Philip were married at 11:30 GMT on 20 November 1947 at Westminster Abbey.[7]
On the morning of her wedding, as Princess Elizabeth was getting dressed at Buckingham Palace before leaving for Westminster Abbey when her tiara snapped. Luckily the court jeweller was standing by in case of emergency. The jeweller was rushed to his work room by a police escort. Queen Elizabeth reassured her daughter that it would be fixed in time, and it was. For her wedding dress she still required ration coupons to buy the material for her gown, designed by Norman Hartnell.[8]
Princess Elizabeth was attended by eight bridesmaids: HRH The Princess Margaret (her younger sister), HRH Princess Alexandra of Kent (her first cousin), Lady Caroline Montagu-Douglas-Scott (daughter of the Duke of Buccleuch), Lady Mary Cambridge (her second cousin), Lady Elizabeth Lambart (daughter of the Earl of Cavan), The Hon. Pamela Mountbatten (Philip's first cousin), The Hon. Margaret Elphinstone (her first cousin) and The Hon. Diana Bowes-Lyon (her first cousin).[7] Her cousins Prince William of Gloucester and Prince Michael of Kent served as page boys.[7]
The royal parties were brought in large carriage processions, the first with The Queen and Princess Margaret and later a procession with Queen Mary.[9] At Kensington Palace, Philip departed with his best man, the Marquess of Milford Haven.[9] Princess Elizabeth arrived at the Abbey with her father, George VI, in the Irish State Coach.[7]
The wedding ceremony was officiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher and the Archbishop of York, Cyril Garbett.
The ceremony was recorded and broadcast by BBC radio to 200 million people around the world.[10]
Elizabeth and Philip then proceeded to Buckingham Palace, where a breakfast was held at the Ball Supper-room.[7]
The couple received over 2,500 wedding presents from around the world and around 10,000 telegrams of congratulations.[7]
Upon their marriage, Elizabeth took the title of her husband and became Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh. They departed for their honeymoon in Broadlands in Hampshire, home of Philip's uncle, Earl Mountbatten.[11]
Elizabeth's family
Philip's family
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