Royal Wedding Etiquette: Can The Bride Smile?

A wedding day is one of the most important days in a person's life. It is a day filled with joy and celebration, where two people devote themselves to each other forever. While it is a happy occasion, it can also be a stressful one, with a lot of things on the couple's mind – from hair and makeup to flowers and unpredictable guests. This can make smiling challenging for some people, even on their wedding day.

Royal weddings are no exception, and while royals are typically reserved about showing PDA, their wedding day is an opportunity to publicly express their love. Official photographs are a long-standing tradition at royal weddings, capturing the joy of the occasion. However, some royal brides have been criticised for not smiling in front of the cameras, such as Victoria Beckham, who maintained an intense gaze throughout the event.

So, can the bride smile at a royal wedding? The answer is yes! Smiling for the wedding pictures is a great way to convey the happiness and joy of the occasion. While it can be difficult for some, there are techniques to help achieve a beautiful smile, such as imagining what makes you happy, laughing, and practising in front of a mirror.

Royal brides carrying a sprig of myrtle in their bouquets

Since the mid-1800s, British royal brides have carried myrtle in their bridal bouquets. The tradition began with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert's wedding in 1840, when Queen Victoria carried myrtle, known as the herb of love, at her nuptials. Following the ceremony, Victoria planted a myrtle shrub in her garden at the Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. The myrtle for royal bridal bouquets comes from the bush grown from the myrtle originally given to Queen Victoria.

The first known use of Osborne myrtle in a royal bouquet was at the wedding of Queen Victoria and Albert's eldest daughter, also called Victoria, in 1858. Since then, flowers grown from the same plant have featured in the bouquets of several generations of royal brides, including Queen Elizabeth II, Diana, the Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine Middleton, and most recently, the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle.

Myrtle has represented love, fertility, and innocence for thousands of years. It was used in Roman wedding rituals, a tradition that originated in ancient Greece. The Victorians also connected myrtle with love and romance through the language of flowers, known as floriography. According to floriographies, orange blossom, which is often paired with myrtle in bridal bouquets, stands for eternal love and purity.

The tradition of royal brides carrying myrtle in their bouquets has continued into the 21st century. Meghan Markle's bouquet, for example, included a sprig of myrtle from Kensington Palace, alongside scented sweet peas, lily of the valley, astilbe, jasmine, astrantia, and forget-me-nots, Princess Diana's favourite flowers.

Royal brides wearing a wreath of orange blossom

The tradition of royal brides wearing a wreath of orange blossom was started by Queen Victoria when she married Prince Albert on 10 April 1840. Instead of a tiara, she wore a wreath of orange blossom flowers on her head, which symbolised chastity.

Queen Victoria's love for orange blossom influenced generations of royal brides into the 20th century, including Queen Elizabeth, who all incorporated orange blossom into their wedding dress designs. When Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (later the Queen Mother) married the future King George VI, she wore an orange blossom wreath. Similarly, Queen Elizabeth II’s Norman Hartnell wedding dress featured an orange blossom border around the hem.

The tradition of wearing orange blossom at weddings dates back to ancient China, where the white blossoms represented purity, chastity, innocence, and fertility. During the Crusades, the custom was brought to Spain, France, and England. By the early 1800s, legends had spread throughout the continent of maidens entwining fresh orange blossoms into bridal wreaths for their hair. The influence was so strong that the phrase "to gather orange blossoms" took on the meaning of "to seek a wife."

In addition to its symbolic meaning, the orange blossom also provided a sweet and fragrant scent for the bridal party. Its popularity was further enhanced by its use in other wedding elements, such as crowns, headpieces, bouquets, and wedding favours.

Royal brides and grooms laying flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior

Almost a century ago, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, later known as Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, established a long-held tradition for royal brides and grooms. As she entered Westminster Abbey on her wedding day, she stopped to lay her flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior. This gesture was to remember her brother, Fergus, who died at the Battle of Loos in 1915, and to pay tribute to the millions of others killed and injured in World War I.

Since then, many royal brides and grooms have adapted this tradition, choosing to lay their flowers on the tomb as they leave the church instead of when they enter. This allows them to walk down the aisle with their bouquet, unlike Queen Elizabeth, who was the only royal bride to walk without her bouquet.

This tradition is a reminder of the sacrifices made by those who fought in World War I and a way to honour their memory. It is a solemn moment in the midst of the joyous celebration of a royal wedding, demonstrating the respect and gratitude of the royal family for those who have served their country.

Royal wedding rings made from Welsh gold

While there is no definitive rule on whether a bride can smile at a royal wedding, it is a tradition for royal wedding rings to be made from Welsh gold. This tradition was started by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, then Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, at her marriage to the Duke of York, later King George VI, in 1923.

Welsh gold is particularly rare and originates from the Clogau St David gold mine in Dolgellau, Gwynedd, in North Wales. The mine is no longer operational, but the gold is still considered one of the most expensive metals in the world due to its limited supply and royal association. The presence of Welsh gold in jewellery can be identified by the Welsh dragon stamp.

Since 1923, every major royal wedding has featured Welsh gold wedding rings, including those of Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, Princess Diana, Duchess of Cornwall, Duchess of Cambridge, and Duchess of Sussex. The most recent royal wedding to feature Welsh gold rings was that of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018.

The tradition of using Welsh gold in royal wedding rings is expected to continue, with the managing director of Clogau, Ben Roberts, expressing his hope that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle would choose to use Welsh gold in their wedding bands.

Royal wedding photography

Royal weddings are steeped in tradition, from the wedding rings to the bouquets. But what about the royal wedding photography?

Official photographs have been a part of royal weddings since the marriage of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra, then the Prince and Princess of Wales. This was the first royal wedding since the invention of photography as a reliable recording medium, and the couple were captured in numerous photographs. Since then, royal weddings have been photographed and shared with the public through postcards and now, in the digital age, via social media.

Royal brides are expected to smile for the camera, but this can be a challenge for some. Nerves can get in the way, and it can be difficult to smile naturally or to avoid a forced grin. There are some tricks to help, such as picturing your loved one behind the camera or saying "money" instead of "cheese" to capture a more natural smile.

Some royal brides have chosen not to smile, such as Victoria Beckham, who received criticism for her lack of smile at a royal wedding. However, she later explained that her serious expression was to prevent wild fan encounters, as people tend to shy away from her in public, assuming she will be unfriendly.

So, while there is no official rule about smiling in royal wedding photographs, it is certainly expected, and photographers and couples will want to capture the joy of the occasion.

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