UK: Sussex wedding

HRH The Duke of Sussex, younger son of the Prince of Wales and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, married at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle on 19 May 2018 Rachel Meghan Markle, daugher of Thomas Markle and Doria Ragland. I was away for the weekend, so I could not post my observations before now.

From a constitutional and genealogical point of view, and that is usually what I focus on, there is not much to write about. The engagement was announced on 27 November 2017 and the Queen expressed that she was «delighted» for the couple. The formal declaration of consent was given on 14 March 2018. From the Court Circular of 19 May we learn that «The Marriage of Prince Henry of with Ms. Meghan Markle was solemnized in St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, today».

In the Court Circular the Duke of Sussex was still referred to as Prince Henry of Wales.  Earlier the same day the following announcement was given:

Prince Harry and Ms. Meghan Markle: Announcement of Titles

Published 19 May 2018

The Queen has today been pleased to confer a Dukedom on Prince Henry of Wales.  His titles will be Duke of Sussex, Earl of Dumbarton and Baron Kilkeel.

Prince Harry thus becomes His Royal Highness The Duke of Sussex, and Ms. Meghan Markle on marriage will become Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex.

The title «Duke of Sussex» was for unknown reasons always the favourite of the bookmakers and they got it right this time, just like in 2011 when the Queen conferred on Prince William the title «Duke of Cambridge». Harry's new title was created for the first time in 1801 for Prince Augustus Frederick, the sixth son and ninth child of King George III and Queen Charlotte. The prince married twice in contravention of the Royal Marriages Act (the first time before the title creation), so there never was a Duchess of Sussex. Meghan has thus become the first one. And of course, Prince Harry has become the 2nd Duke (1st Duke of the 2nd creation).
 https://twitter.com/RoyalFamily/status/997736471154122752
So, when the constitutional aspects have been touched upon, as well as basic genealogical facts of the marriage, I could move on to the guest list. But as far as I know such a list has not been released. In the Court Circular we only learn, following the sentence of the solemnization:

The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh, with The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall and other Members of the Royal Family, arrived at St. George's Chapel and were received at the Galilee Porch by the Dean and Chapter of Windsor.

Prince Henry of Wales, with The Duke of Cambridge, was received at the West Door by the Dean and Chapter of Windsor and Their Royal Highnesses were conducted to the Bray Chapel.

Ms. Meghan Markle drove to St. George's Chapel and was received at the West Door by the Dean of Windsor.

The Service was performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, assisted by the Dean of Windsor.

At the conclusion of the Service the Registers were signed in the Ambulatory.

The Bride and Bridegroom drove to Windsor Castle in an Ascot Landau, processed through the town of Windsor and returned to the Castle where The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh gave a Reception in their honour.

And that is not much to go by. Of course I watched the whole broadcast and as far as I know all the members of the British Royal Family were present except for Prince Louis of Cambridge, who was born earlier this year. Prince Philip, who will be 97 next month, had a hip operation earlier this year, but still walked without crutches. Very impressive.

Members of  Prince Harry's mother's side were of course also present. From the bride's family only her mother Doria Ragland was in attendance. Two days before the wedding Kensington Palace confirmed that Meghan's father, Thomas Markle, would not attend, and his health problems was given as an explanation. It had earlier been revealed that he had  had posed for staged photos with a paparazzi photographer and the embarrassment of it all might have made him feel too uncomfortable to attend. One can only feel sorry both for Meghan as well as for her father. She clearly wanted both her parents present for her wedding. Instead of her father, Ms. markle was accompanied to the altar by the Prince of Wales.

It appears that Meghan has had little or no contact with her half-brother Thomas Markle and Samantha Grant and their families for many years. They have created quite a few headlines before and after the engagement was announced, so it is not difficult to understand that they were not invited. That no uncles and aunts or other family members were invited was perhaps more surprising. It might say something about Meghan's priorities regarding family, but then again one should be careful not to jump to conclusions. She surely has her reasons.

The only royals who attended the royal wedding besides the members of the British Royal Family were Prince Seeiso and Princess Mabereng of Lesotho. Prince Harry has known Prince Seeiso, who is the youngest brother of King Letsie III of Lesotho, for many years. In 2006 the two princes founded Sentebale, a charity that «supports the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people affected by HIV in Lesotho and Botswana,» to quote the charity's own website. Prince Harry has had little personal contact with members of the European royal family, which probably explains to some extent why no-one was invited. Of course he is only the younger son of the Prince of Wales and thus not in the direct line to inherit the throne, so his wedding could not be as grand as his brother's was. But I still felt something was missing. We already knew that no politicians would attend, but I still find it strange that the 6th in line of succession did not even invite the prime minister. One former prime minister attended, though – John Major – apparently because he following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales had played the role as guardian to Prince William and Prince Harry, being responsible for legal and administrative matters.

Instead of royals and representatives of the official UK, Harry and Meghan had invited representatives of charities and organisations Harry has endorsed as well as a long and impressive list of celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey, Idris Elba, George Clooney and his wife Amal Alamuddin,  David and Victoria Beckham and Elton John and his husband David Furnish, to mention a few.

It was a great and enjoyable wedding ceremony, though. The couple looked a bit nervous, but very much happy and in love, the weather was great and the church was beautifully decorated. So much could be said about the dresses and the hats. Oh, the hats! But I will leave it at that. The ceremony had many highlights, including the introit, the hymns and the song «Stand by me» performed by Karen Gibson and the Kingdom Choir. Not to mention the address by the American Bishop Michael Curry, the presiding bishop and primate of the Episcopal Church. How he could preach! The full text of his address can be read here, while the order of service is available here.

The service was lead by the Dean of Windsor, David Conner, while the marriage was solemnized by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.

Postscript Tuesday 22 May 2018 at 23.35: When commenting on non-British royals attending the wedding last Saturday, I obviously focused on reigning families. That is why I only mentioned the princely couple of Lesotho. But there were members of former reigning families and/or «Gotha members», including Princess Xenia of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (a grand niece of Prince Philip and thus Prince Harry's second cousin) and Hereditary Prince Franz-Albrecht and Hereditary Princess Cleopatra of Oettingen-Spielberg (others would have to enlighten me concerning the motivation for inviting them – they certainly are not close relatives of Prince Harry, but obviously have learnt to know eachother somehow).

Besides the family members, representatives of charities and organisations and the celebrities – I could have mentioned many more than I did – there were of course also many friends of the couple in attendance, including Meghan's colleagues from the TV series Suits. I decided to give only a few examples. No full guest list has been released, but Netty Leistra and other contributors have assembled a survey in the guestlist section at the forum Nobiliana. Please go there if you want more names and details!

Updated last time on Tuesday 22 May 2018 at 23.35 (postscript added).

UK: The Queen's Declaration of Consent to the marriage between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

It was just a formality, but still a formality that had to take place before the wedding of Prince Harry of Wales and Meghan Markle on 19 May 2018. The website of the Privy Council has published the following declaration:

«At the Court at Buckingham Palace

THE 14th DAY OF MARCH 2018

PRESENT,

THE QUEEN'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY

IN COUNCIL

Her Majesty in Council was this day pleased to make the following Declaration. 

Richard Tilbrook.

MY LORDS,

I decleare My Consent to a Contract of Matrimony between My most Dearly Beloved Grandson Prince Henry Charles Albert David of Wales and Rachel Meghan Markle, which Consent I am causing to be signified under the Great Seal and to be entered in the Books of the Privy Council.»

UK: More details about the royal wedding in May revealed

Kensington Palace published today the following information about the wedding between Prince Henry of Wales and Meghan Markle on 19 May 2018:

An update on the wedding of HRH Prince Henry of Wales and Ms. Meghan Markle

Prince Harry and Ms. Meghan Markle are hugely grateful for the many good wishes they have received since announcing their engagement.

They are very much looking forward to the day and to being able to share their celebrations with the public. They have made the following decisions about their wedding day on Saturday 19th May, 2018:

The Wedding Service will begin at St George's Chapel at 1200. The Dean of Windsor, The Rt Revd. David Conner, will conduct the Service. The Most Revd. and Rt Hon. Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, will officiate as the couple make their marriage vows.

At 1300, the couple, now married, will undertake a Carriage Procession along a route from St George's Chapel, leaving Windsor Castle via Castle Hill and processing along the High Street and through Windsor Town, returning to Windsor Castle along the Long Walk.

They hope this short journey will provide an opportunity for more people to come together around Windsor and to enjoy the atmosphere of this special day.

Following the service, there will be a reception at St George's Hall for the couple and guests from the congregation. The couple will join this on return from the Carriage Procession.

Later that evening, The Prince of Wales will give a private evening reception for the couple and their close friends and family.

We look forward to sharing further details about the wedding day in the weeks and months ahead.

The carriage procession seems to follow more or less the same route as at the wedding of the Earl and Countess of Wessex (Prince Edward and the former Sophie Rhys-Jones) in 1999. In this way the public will get their share of the royal wedding, which is rather nice.

In other news, Daily Mail (yes, I know) claims to know that Prince Henry has invited his uncle the Duke of York's former wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, to the wedding. Well, why not? Anyway, I am sure there will be many speculations in the weeks to come. I will not bother to comment on them all. The Express, on the other hand, seems to think it is appropriate to conduct a poll about whether the Duchess of Cornwall should be invited to the wedding or not. According to the poll, «30% think Harry and Meghan should NOT invite Duchess» (in other words, 70 % think she should be invited). It is of course just nasty «journalism» – clickbaiting of the worst kind – and the tabloid's only motivation is to sell more copies. The Express is of course a newspaper one doesn't really need to buy, or to read at all.

UK: HRH Princess Eugenie of York engaged

Buckingham Palace announced today the engagement between Princess Eugenie of York, youngest daughter of HRH The Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York, and Jack Brooksbank. As has become the tradition recently, the engagement was first made public on Twitter, this time via the Duke of York's account:

«The Duke and Duchess of York are delighted to announce the engagement of Princess Eugenie to Mr Jack Brooksbank.

Her Royal Highness and Mr Brooksbank became engaged in Nicaragua earlier this month. 

The wedding will take place in the Autumn of 2018 at George's Chapel in Windsor, with further details to be announced in due course.»

This will be the second wedding in the British Royal Family this year, as Prince Harry will tie the knot with Meghan Markle on 19 May 2018. As Princess Eugenie is currently no. 8 in the line of succession to the British throne, she will not need to seek the consent from her grandmother Queen Elizabeth, cf. the Succession to the Crown Act 2013 Section 3.

According to the official website, Princess Eugenie, b. 23 March 1990, has got a Combined Honours BA in English Literature, History of Art and Politics at Newcastle University in September, 2009, graduating with a 2:1 degree in 2012, and is currently working «full time in the art world», or to be more precise, she is a director at the contemporary art gallery Hauser and Wirth in London.

Eugenie and Jack has been a couple for seven years. Jack, born in 1986, the eldest child of George Brooksbank and Nicola Brooksbank, née Newton, is working in the hospitality industry. He used to be the manager of the nightclub Mahiki in Mayfair, London, and according to the Daily Express, he is now working as «the Brand Ambassador of Casamigos Tequila, the award winning brand owned by George Clooney, Rande Gerber and Mike Meldman that recently sold to Diageo for $1Billion.»

The Duke of York expressed in a statement released on Twitter later today that «We are overjoyed at the news today that Eugenie and Jack have got engaged. Jack is an absolutely outstanding young man and Eugenie and he have got to know each other over a number of years, and I'm really thrilled for them.» His ex-wife Sarah, Duchess of York made several tweets, first writing just «Total joy!!» as well as posting a photo of the happy couple, then she followed up with «They float with laughter and love .. although a boat helps!» paired with yet another photo of the couple, before signing off with her third tweet, saying «I always say that the river flows well to it’s destiny because of the guidance of a solid rock», with another photo to follow. In another statement, Jack Brooksbank's parents George and Nicola Brooksbank said that they were «'completely over the moon' and 'very excited' for the couple. 'We could not be more delighted with the news of the engagement».

Following the engagement, three photos were released: (1), (2) and (3). The couple later appeared on BBC The One Show for a short talk about their engagement and the private blessings from the Queen.

As for Jack Brooksbank's ancestry, the genealogist and QVD author Marlene Koenig wrote on the subject in a blog article in 2016. The article reveals that Jack has several nobles among his ancestors, including his great-great grandfather the 2nd Earl of Leicester. Editor of the blog Peerage News, Michael Rhodes, wrote today on Twitter that «The groom to be is armigerous, & descends from the Coke Earls of Leicester, as does Eugenie, and that other royal consort the late Sir Angus Ogilvy.» His blog article on the engagement can be viewed here.

Postscript 7 February 2018: It was announced on 2 February 2017 that the wedding will take place on 12 October 2018.

Updated on 7 February 2018 at 14.20 (postscript added).

UK: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding month set

Only one day after the engagement between Prince Harry of Wales and Meghan Markle was announced, Kensington Palace could reveal that the wedding is going to take place in St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in May 2018.

The press release also said that the royal family would pay for the wedding. More details to follow in due course.

St. George's Chapel is, among others, where the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall received their blessings after their civil marriage, and where Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, married Sophie Rhys-Jones in 1999. The christening of Prince Harry also took place in the chapel on 21 December 1984.

Kensington Palace also informed today that Prince Harry and Ms. Markle would undertake their first official engagements together in Nottingham firstcoming Friday, 1 December. They are going to visit a Terrence Higgins Trust charity fair where they will meet representatives of organisations supporting people living with HIV/AIDS. They will also speak to staff and mentors at Nottingham Academy «about the Full Effect programme which is helping prevent young people from turning to violence and crime».

The Telegraph, on the other hand, writes that «Ms Markle, a protestant who went to a Catholic high school, will be both baptised and confirmed ready for the religious ceremony. She also intends to become a British citizen.» The New York Times follows up by telling that «Ms. Markle, a Protestant, was not baptized as a child. She attended a Catholic girls’ school in Los Angeles.» But if she was not baptized as a child, but still referred to as a protestant, one could easily wonder what kind of protestant church her family, or parts thereof, belongs to, and what kind of relationship she has had with it. I suppose more information will appear in due course.

Postscript 29 November 2017 at 21.00: Daily Mail, and surely other newspapers as well, writes today that «Miss Markle, whose father is an Episcopalian, will be baptised and confirmed in the Church of England before the wedding». No word on Meghan's mother's church affilation, if any. I should add that QVD author Marlene Koenig wrote already in August that Thomas Markle was an Episcopalian.

Updated on Tuesday 28 November 2017 at 20.10 (paragraph about baptism and citizenship added), last time on Wednesday 29 November 2017 at 21.00 (postscript added).