What a royal wedding! Relive the day with all the updates here.
The royal family, blessed with fantastic weather and a buoyant public mood at the royal wedding, has thanked people who attended or watched Prince Harry marry Meghan Markle.
The family tweeted its thanks late Saturday night while Harry and his bride were attending a private soiree hosted by Harry’s father, Prince Charles.
“Thank you to everyone who came to Windsor and those who followed from around the UK, the Commonwealth, and the world,” the royals said.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were married Saturday at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, the British royals’ longtime home.
The archbishop of Canterbury declared Prince Harry and Meghan Markle husband and wife.
Justin Welby, the head of the Church of England, made the proclamation after the couple promised to love and cherish one another “’til death us do part,” and exchanged rings.
The British-American pair are now officially known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and the duchess will take her place among senior members of the Royal Family.
The leader of the Episcopal Church quoted civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. on the “redemptive power of love” as he blessed the marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Most Rev. Michael Bruce Curry, who was hand-picked by the couple to deliver a sermon at their wedding, told the bride and groom Saturday that there was “power in love” and that “love can help and heal when nothing else can.”
But Curry, a champion of civil rights causes and outspoken supporter of gay rights, continued, “it’s not just for and about a young couple, who we rejoice with, it’s more than that.”
Invoking the days of slavery in the United States, he said love helped those in captivity persevere.
He told the couple love has “the power to change the world.”
Curry said, “When love is the way, we actually treat each other, well, like we are actual family.”
After the ceremony, the royal newlyweds then took a short trip through Windsor in a horse-drawn carriage, to the delight of thousands of well-wishers.
The crowd roared as Harry and Meghan emerged from St. George’s Chapel and kissed at the top of the steps.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex travelled through Windsor in the Ascot Landau carriage before looping back to Windsor Castle for their reception.
Tens of thousands of people were in Windsor in hopes of catching a glimpse of the couple.
Earlier, Markle, 36, was chaperoned by her mother, Doria Ragland, from Cliveden House Hotel, where they spent the previous night, in a car to the chapel, where they were met by Markle’s bridesmaids and page boys.
Kensington Palace confirmed that Markle’s wedding dress is designed by British designer, Clare Waight Keller, who is the artistic director at the French fashion house Givenchy. Markle’s friend Jessica Mulroney’s two boys, John and Brian Mulroney, carried Markle’s veil as she entered the chapel.
Markle was accompanied part way down the aisle by Prince Charles and 10 young page boys and bridesmaids. The children Prince George, 4, Princess Charlotte, 3, as well as Ben and Jessica Mulroney’s three children, Brian and John, and Ivy.
Harry and best man Prince William wore dark formal military dress, with white gloves and the frock coat uniforms of the Blues and Royals. As Charles and Markle drew close to the altar, Harry said: “Thank you, Pa.”
To Meghan, Harry said: “You look amazing.”
Throngs of royal fans crammed the streets of Windsor to watch wedding guests, not to mention the Royal Family, arrive at the chapel. Oprah Winfrey, actor Idris Elba, singer James Blunt, Amal and George Clooney, David and Victoria Beckham, actor Tom Hardy, tennis champ Serena Williams, Priyanka Chopra, the cast of “Suits,” and more were in attendance.
This morning, Buckingham Palace revealed that Harry and Markle have been granted the titles the Duke and Duchess of Sussex upon their marriage.
The couple were married in front of 600 guests, plus 2,640 members of the public who were invited to watch on the grounds of Windsor Castle, not to mention the thousands on the streets and the probably millions who will be watching them say their “I dos” on their TVs and computer screens.
The church was filled with flowers provided by florist Philippa Craddock and the Crown Estate gardeners, including Princess Diana’s favourites, white garden roses, branches of beech, birch, and hornbeam, as well as peonies and foxgloves.
After the hour-long ceremony, the newlyweds acknowledged the 200 representatives of Prince Harry’s charities gathered in the Cloister.
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As Harry’s communications secretary previously noted, the carriage procession were the royal couple’s “chance to express their gratitude for the goodwill and warm wishes they have received from all quarters in the months since their engagement.”
The duke and duchess, along with their 600 guests, attended a lunchtime reception at St. George’s Hall in Windsor Castle, where they dined on canapes including Scottish langoustines, grilled English asparagus and croquette of confit Windsor lamb.
Guests were also served a selection of bowl food including fricassee of free range chicken with morel mushrooms and young leeks, pea and mint risotto, and ten hour slow roasted Windsor pork belly with apple compote and crackling.
Kensington Palace also revealed that Elton John performed at the reception — after he was asked by Harry — “in recognition of the close connection he has with Prince Harry and his family.”
The wedding cake was also cut at the reception. The multi-layer lemon sponge cake, created by London-based baker Claire Ptak, was drizzled with elderflower syrup, and featured an Amalfi lemon curd and a Swiss meringue buttercream with elderflower.
The Prince of Wales and Prince Harry reportedly made speeches at the reception, whereas the Duke and Duchess of Sussex spoke during the evening reception.
In the evening, Harry and Markle, along with their guests, made their way to Frogmore House, where the couple had their official engagement portraits taken, for the evening reception.
Markle changed into a second wedding dress, designed by Stella McCartney, before she and her new husband took off for Frogmore House in a silver blue Jaguar E-Type Concept Zero.
Kensington Palace did not release details, but photographs showed Markle, now known formally as the Duchess of Sussex, wearing a large, emerald-cut aquamarine ring that had belonged to Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, to the reception.
The prominent display of the ring, which Diana wore often, was one more sign of the royal couple’s desire to honour Harry’s late mother, who died in a Paris car crash in 1997.
Diana’s older sister gave a formal reading during the ceremony and many of her relatives were in attendance despite Diana’s bitter divorce from Prince Charles, Harry’s father.
Harry and Markle spent their first night as a married couple at Windsor Castle. They are breaking with tradition by delaying a honeymoon, and are expected to return to their living quarters at Kensington Palace in central London.
Harry and Markle will fulfil their first royal engagement as a married couple Tuesday when they attend a garden party at Buckingham Palace to honour Prince Charles and his charity work. Charles will mark his 70th birthday later this year.
Before the wedding, Markle said she wanted to take up royal duties immediately. She has long been active in support of a number of causes and charities.
Palace officials have been vague about Harry and Markle’s honeymoon plans, but they are expected to take a honeymoon in the near future.
No destination has been announced, and the couple may choose a place where they can relax without being trailed by photographers.
Harry took Markle on holiday in Botswana when they were dating and it is possible he will choose one of his favourite African locations for the idyll.
Harry and Markle’s engagement was announced in November, and the couple made their first joint appearance as future husband and wife on Nov. 27 in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace. The couple first met in London in July 2016. This will be Markle’s second marriage and Harry’s first.
With files from The Associated Press
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