Deborah Chan
The wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten (later Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh) took place on 20 November 1947 at Westminster Abbey in London. The wedding was a grand affair, with eight bridesmaids, including Princess Margaret, the bride's younger sister, and Lady Pamela Mountbatten, the groom's first cousin. The service started with a specially composed fanfare by Arnold Bax and finished with Felix Mendelssohn's Wedding March. The couple's wedding rings were made from Welsh gold, and the bride's going-away outfit was designed by Hartnell. The ceremony was followed by a honeymoon at the home of the Duke of Edinburgh's uncle in Broadlands, Hampshire.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of Wedding | 20 November 1947 |
| Location | Westminster Abbey, London, United Kingdom |
| Bride | Princess Elizabeth, elder daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, heir presumptive to the British throne |
| Groom | Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh |
| Wedding Rings | Made from a nugget of Welsh gold from the Clogau St David's mine |
| Music | Directed by William Neil McKie, the Australian organist and Master of the Choristers at the abbey |
| Honeymoon Location | Birkhall on the Balmoral Estate |
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What You'll Learn
- Princess Elizabeth's wedding band was made from Welsh gold
- The wedding dress and going-away outfit were designed by Hartnell
- The wedding party included eight bridesmaids and two page boys
- Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip's honeymoon was in Hampshire and Scotland
- The wedding ceremony included a choir and specially composed music
Princess Elizabeth's wedding band was made from Welsh gold
Princess Elizabeth, now Queen Elizabeth II, wore a wedding band made from Welsh gold when she married Philip Mountbatten, later Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, on 20 November 1947. The wedding took place at Westminster Abbey in London, United Kingdom. The bride was the elder daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, later the Queen Mother, and the heir presumptive to the British throne.
The ring was crafted from a nugget of Welsh gold from the Clogau St David's mine, located near Bontddu in northwest Wales. The Royals started receiving gold from this mine in 1923, and it is considered some of the most exclusive jewellery in the world. The gold from this mine was also used for the wedding rings of three generations of royals, including the Queen Mother, the Queen, Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, and Diana, Princess of Wales.
The tradition of using Welsh gold for royal wedding rings began in 1923 with the Queen Mother, then Elizabeth Bowes Lyon, who used Welsh gold to form her wedding band when she married the future King George VI. Princess Elizabeth's mother, the then-Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, was gifted the nugget of Welsh gold that was used for her wedding ring and subsequently for the wedding rings of her daughters, Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret.
The tradition of using Welsh gold for royal wedding rings has continued since. In 2018, Meghan Markle's wedding band was made from a piece of Welsh gold given to her by Queen Elizabeth II. The gold for Markle's ring came from the same Clogau St. David mine as Princess Elizabeth's ring.
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The wedding dress and going-away outfit were designed by Hartnell
Norman Hartnell was a leading British fashion designer, best known for his work for the ladies of the royal family. Hartnell gained the Royal Warrant as Dressmaker to Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) in 1940 and Royal Warrant as Dressmaker to Queen Elizabeth II in 1957. Hartnell's success ensured international press coverage, and he was considered a good London alternative to Parisian or older London dress houses. He was also known for his work with silver screen stars and high-society ladies.
Hartnell designed the wedding dress of Princess Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) in 1947 for her marriage to Prince Philip. The dress had a fashionable sweetheart neckline and a full skirt, and was embroidered with some 10,000 seed pearls and thousands of white beads. Hartnell also designed the going-away outfit and her trousseau, becoming her main designer.
Hartnell's design for Princess Margaret's wedding dress in 1960 was the last full State occasion for which he designed an impressive tableau of dresses. The Princess wore a multi-layered white princess-line dress, totally unadorned, utilising many layers of fine silk. Hartnell also designed Princess Beatrice's wedding dress in 2020, a slightly modified version of a dress he designed for the Queen.
Hartnell's designs were often intricate and always glamorous, exemplifying a certain mid-century opulence. He specialised in expensive and lavish embroidery, utilising this skill to prevent exact ready-to-wear copies of his clothing. The originality and intricacy of Hartnell's embroideries were frequently described in the press, especially in reports of the original wedding dresses he designed for socially prominent young women during the 1920s and 1930s.
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The wedding party included eight bridesmaids and two page boys
The wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten (later Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh) took place on 20 November 1947 at Westminster Abbey in London. The wedding party included eight bridesmaids and two page boys.
The eight bridesmaids who attended Princess Elizabeth were: her younger sister, Princess Margaret; her first cousin, Princess Alexandra of Kent; Lady Caroline Montagu-Douglas-Scott, daughter of the Duke of Buccleuch; her second cousin, Lady Mary Cambridge; Lady Elizabeth Lambart, daughter of the Earl of Cavan; Philip's first cousin, Lady Pamela Mountbatten; Margaret Elphinstone, her first cousin; and Diana Bowes-Lyon, her first cousin. The bridesmaids wore wreaths of miniature white sheaves, lilies, and London Pride, modelled in white satin and silver lame.
The two page boys were Princess Elizabeth's cousins, Prince William of Gloucester and Prince Michael of Kent. They wore Royal Stewart tartan kilts.
The best man was the Marquess of Milford Haven, the groom's maternal first cousin and great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria.
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Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip's honeymoon was in Hampshire and Scotland
Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip's honeymoon was spent in Hampshire and Scotland. The couple wed in front of 2,000 people at Westminster Abbey in November 1947, five years before Princess Elizabeth became Queen.
Their royal wedding was a national event and a welcome break for the country after the difficult years of World War II. The couple accepted that their wedding day would be public, but their honeymoon was to be just for them. They planned multiple weeks away in different parts of Britain, which would be their first extended period alone together.
The newlyweds spent their wedding night at Broadlands in Romsey, Hampshire. The country house was owned by Philip's uncle and aunt, Louis and Edwina Mountbatten. The couple revisited Broadlands to mark their Diamond Wedding Anniversary in 2007.
From Hampshire, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip travelled to Scotland, staying at Birkhall on the royal family's Balmoral Estate. The secluded getaway was not to last, however, as the couple were joined by the press during their stay. Years later, their son, Prince Charles, spent his wedding night at Broadlands with Princess Diana. They, too, honeymooned at Balmoral, as did Charles later with Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
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The wedding ceremony included a choir and specially composed music
Music played an integral role in the wedding ceremony of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, with the couple's service featuring a choir and specially composed music.
The wedding ceremony included the choirs of Westminster Abbey and the Chapel Royal of St James's Palace, who sang "The Lord's My Shepherd", a hymn that held special significance for the couple. The hymn was inspired by an area near the Queen's beloved Balmoral Castle and was also sung at her funeral in 2022, over 70 years after the wedding.
The choir also performed "This is the day which the Lord hath made", composed by John Rutter, which had been commissioned by Westminster Abbey as a wedding gift for the couple. The anthem was followed by the Motet 'Ubi caritas', composed by Welsh composer Paul Mealor. Mealor's studio is located on the Isle of Anglesey, where the couple lived.
The Signing of the Registers was accompanied by the choirs singing 'Blest pair of Sirens', with words by John Milton and music by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry. A Fanfare called 'Valiant and Brave' by Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs of the Royal Air Force was also performed during the ceremony.
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Frequently asked questions
It is about the fascinating story of the early life of England’s most iconic Queen, Elizabeth Tudor, an orphaned teenager who became embroiled in the political and sexual politics of the English court on her journey to obtain the crown.
Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten got married at Westminster Abbey in London, United Kingdom.
Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten got married on Thursday, November 20, 1947.
Princess Elizabeth had eight bridesmaids: Princess Margaret (her younger sister), 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), Lady Pamela Mountbatten (Philip's first cousin), Margaret Elphinstone (her first cousin), and Diana Bowes-Lyon (her first cousin).
The Arabic subtitle of season 1 of 'Becoming Elizabeth' can be downloaded from the website subdl.com.
