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Prince & Princess of Wales

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge celebrate four years of marriage

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are marking their fourth wedding anniversary today. And it could be a day of double celebrations with the world still watching and waiting for the arrival of their second child, due any day now quite possibly set to arrive on mum and dad’s anniversary.

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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on their wedding day, April 29th, 2011

The marriage of Prince William Arthur Philip Louis and Catherine Elizabeth Middleton took place on April 29th, 2011 at Westminster Abbey. Joining the couple were around 1,900 guests including representatives of many of Europe’s ruling houses. The couple were married by the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, and the bride was given a ring of Welsh gold following a royal tradition stretching back to 1923.

After a carriage ride back to Buckingham Palace where The Queen hosted a lunch, the newlyweds did what everyone hoped they would do and appeared on the Palace balcony to share not one but two kisses.

However, in some ways the wedding broke with royal tradition. The groom had a best man, his brother Prince Harry, rather than the usual ‘supporters.’ Also the name of the designer of Kate’s wedding gown – one of the most eagerly awaited outfits of the 21st century – was kept under wraps until the big day itself. Her white dress with lace details by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen was hailed as an instant classic and – just like other royal wedding gowns – there were copies on sale within hours.

Ahead of the ceremony, which started at 11am, the second in line to the throne had been created Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus. There had been some debate in the media ahead of the wedding as to what Kate’s title would be after her marriage. She emerged from the Abbey into a cloudy April morning as Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge.

The royal wedding came after almost a decade of romance between the pair who famously first met as students while studying at St. Andrew’s University. They announced their engagement on November 16th, 2010 – Prince William had proposed during a holiday in Kenya in October that year. Their wedding date was confirmed on November 23rd and on December 15th. The Queen declared that the date of the wedding would be a public holiday throughout the UK. And over the next four months every single part of the preparations gained massive public attention.

There has never been a completely definitive set of viewing figures for the wedding itself. The best estimates are that around 36 million people in the UK watched at least part of the celebrations with a peak audience of 26 million. In the United States, it’s thought that around 60 million people viewed the wedding at some point with an average audience of 22 million.

And there was plenty for everyone to enjoy as the party continued through the day. From William driving his new wife back to Clarence House in his dad’s Aston Martin to the newlyweds appearance later ahead of a private party hosted by The Prince of Wales, they made it a day to remember. And across the UK thousands joined the celebrations with street parties.

The four years that have followed have seen the couple establish their royal roles as well as begin a family of their own, welcoming Prince George in July 2013. As they mark this milestone in their lives together, William is preparing for his role as a pilot with the East Anglian Air Ambulance. Catherine, of course, prepares for the birth of baby number two.

Fourth wedding anniversaries are traditionally marked with gifts of fruits and flowers. With their new little prince or princess expected any moment now there might soon be another very special reason the family cherishes the date of April 29th in the years to come.

Photo credit: By Robbie Dale (Flickr: All smiles) [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

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