FeaturesHistory

Royal Wedding Rewind: Tiara trouble for The Queen

A royal wedding just wouldn’t be a royal wedding without a tiara or three. But when the then Princess Elizabeth married the Duke of Edinburgh on November 20th 1947, she almost missed out on wearing the diadem on which she’d set her heart. For just before the bride was set to leave for Westminster Abbey, her tiara snapped in two. The diamond disaster happened as the future Queen was…
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British RoyalsFeaturesHistoryQueen Elizabeth II

To Crown a Queen: the Coronations of England's female monarchs

The Coronation of Elizabeth II on June 2nd 1953 is often spoken of as the moment that a new era began. It was a moment of history and just the sixth time a queen regnant had been crowned in England’s history. As Royal Central marks 65 years since the Queen’s Coronation, here’s a look back at the crowning of England’s other female rulers. Mary I Mary I became the first woman…
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FeaturesHistory

The bells of Westminster Abbey

First and foremost, we think of bells as something we hear and don’t see. The bells of Westminster Abbey now mingle in between the great soundscape of London noise and the busy restlessness of Westminster, blending the secular with the divine, much as they have done for…
British RoyalsFeaturesHistoryInsightPrince & Princess of Wales

The Wedding Cake of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

It’s the cake that keeps on giving. The flower strewn bake that took centre stage at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on April 29th 2011 still makes its presence felt with slices of it popping up at auction with what seems like an almost metronomic regularity. But then there was plenty to go round as this was a whopper of a cake. Standing eight tiers tall and weighing in at over…
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British RoyalsFeaturesInsightPrincess Anne and Family

Royal Wedding Flowers: the Princess Royal

The only daughter of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh is known for her down to earth, no-nonsense approach to life and in many ways, the flowers chosen by Princess Anne for her wedding in 1973 to Captain Mark Phillips were that attitude in petal form. As she became the first royal bride of her generation, the Princess chose a simple selection of flowers that fit perfectly with her classic…
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