With only 8 weeks to go until the wedding of Prince Harry and Ms Meghan Markle, its impossible to ignore the sense of anticipation that is building throughout the country.
It is widely anticipated that this latest Royal Wedding will be perhaps more informal than past events, with the expectation of a celebrity filled audience and rumours abounding that The Spice Girls will be performing at the reception.
No matter how Price Harry and Ms Markle choose to celebrate their wedding, as a nation we are pretty experienced at celebrating a Royal Wedding ourselves – with street parties bringing neighbours and communities together.
So before we get the bunting out and start baking cupcakes, we thought it might be fun to have a look back at some of the most iconic Royal Weddings from the past.
Queen Elizabeth II & Prince Philip
Westminster Abbey
20th November 1947
The marriage of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip took place at Westminster Abbey in 1947 in London and set the precedent for all British royal weddings to follow.
With over 2,000 prestigious guests, the ceremony itself was broadcasted to over 200 million eager listeners worldwide.
The wedding itself prompted all kinds of festivities with various collectable items produced such as porcelain mugs and plates, tapestries, photographs and pamphlets.
Street parties were held up and down the country, made even more special as the country was still coming out of the post war period of rationing.
Prince Charles and Princess Diana
St Paul’s Cathedral
29th July 1981
The Wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer took place in July 1981, with communities from across the British Isles coming together to celebrate the fantastic news.
People gathered in their tens of thousands to celebrate the event, closing roads, hanging bunting and bringing plates of food to get together with family and friends. The estimated audience for the televised event came in at 1 billion people, which at the time, meant that it was the most watched televised event in history.
Taking place on a Wednesday, the day was declared a national holiday with school and road closures in abundance.
King Henry VIII and his 6 wives
Everyone knows the story of ‘divorced, beheaded, died. Divorced, beheaded, survived’ associated with the famous king Henry VIII, and his unfortunate wives.
And it can be said that this account from the middle ages is a world away from the fairy-tale of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, around 500 years later.
King Henry’s wedding to his first wife, Katherine of Aragon, took place in 1509. This particular marriage lasted for 23 years until their divorce and his second marriage to Anne Boleyn in January 1533.
Along the way, after a couple of beheadings, annulments, and untimely deaths, the King was left with three children, two of which were to become two of the most famous Queens in History.
Ultimately, Henry was married to his first wife, twice the length of his other five brides combined. Although street parties wouldn’t have been the done thing back in the 1500’s it is certain that the public would have celebrated with banquets and mead.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Moving with more contemporary times, Prince Harry was to meet his future bride through mutual friends whilst she was visiting London. The Canadian beauty is set to marry Harry, the British prince on May 19th, 2018 at St Georges Chapel, Windsor Castle, where Harry himself was christened.
Will you be having a street party in your community to celebrate this Royal Wedding? In all the excitement of planning, baking and eating, don’t forget a couple of less exciting things – generally, you will need a permit from the council to hold a street party, and many councils have agreed to waive their fees for this.
And most Local Authorities will need you to have a basic level of Public Liability Insurance incase anyone slips or trips at the event.
Event Insurance are the only recommended provider of Street Party Insurance from the government, and with our Street Party policies providing affordable and reliable cover from only £54, you really can celebrate the Royal Wedding.