Most Extravagant Royal Weddings
Published on May 17, 2018. Updated November 20, 2020When it comes to royal weddings, it goes without saying that they are going to be going to be extravagant; however, there are some royal weddings that are definitely more lavish than you’d expect. Here are 12 royal weddings from around the globe that were expensive and more extravagant than most:
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12. King Felipe of Spain and Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano
King Felipe and Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano’s wedding took place on May 22, 2004, at the Santa María la Real de La Almudena Cathedral in Madrid, Spain. Her wedding dress was extravagant. Featuring a 15-foot train, the gown was designed by couturier Manuel Pertegaz and was made from Valencia silk and woven with threads of fine silver. The ceremony was watched by 25 million people in Spain alone.
EPA11. Princess Victoria of Sweden and Daniel Wrestling
On June 19, 2010, Princess Victoria of Sweden and Daniel Wrestling were married in a lavish ceremony at Stockholm Cathedral that cost about 20 million kronor. She wore a white satin dress designed by Swedish designer Pär Engsheden that featured a five-meter-long train. About 1,100 guests were present and the ceremony was followed by a carriage cortege through Stockholm and a boat ride across the city’s bay and a banquet at the royal palace. The guest list included Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, King Harald V of Norway, Japan’s Crown Prince Naruhito, King Albert II of Belgium, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and Prince Edward of the United Kingdom.
Fredrik Sandberg / SCANPIX SWEDEN / kod 1008010. Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson
Prince Andrew – Queen Elizabeth’s third child – married Sarah Ferguson on July 23, 1986, at Westminster Abbey in London, England. She wore an ivory-silk wedding gown designed by Lindka Cierach, which featured a 17-foot train and 20-foot-long veil. Like Princess Diana, she took a glass coach to the church and afterward she and Andrew left the ceremony in an open-top 1902 State Landau. The couple had a 5-and-a-half-foot tall marzipan and rum soaked wedding cake and 30,000 flowers were used to decorate the abbey.
Press Association9. King Abdullah bin Al-Hussein of Jordan and Rania Al-Yassin
King Abdullah bin Al-Hussein and Rania Al-Yassin’s wedding was a glittering affair at the Zahran Palace in Amman, Jordan, back in 1993. She wore two wedding gowns. At the traditional Muslim ceremony, she wore a short-sleeved gown, which featured a voluminous skirt, and was designed by Bruce Oldfield, and then at the reception, she wore a white sleeveless gown with gold embroidery, which was also designed by Oldfield. After the wedding, the couple drove through Amman in an open convertible decorated with flowers and bows, to the delight of the crowds.
8. Prince Albert of Monaco and Charlene Wittstock
Prince Albert of Monaco and South African swimmer Charlene Wittstock’s 2011 nuptials have been described as Monaco’s “biggest party in 55 years.” In total, about 3,500 guests attended the three-day wedding, including royalty and celebrities, and the event itself cost an astounding $55 million. For the church ceremony, she wore a custom Armani gown, and for the civil ceremony, she wore a Karl Lagerfeld pantsuit.
Photo by Charly Gallo/Palais Princier/ABACAPRESS.COM7. Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah of Brunei and Sarah Salleh
Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah of Brunei and Sarah Salleh’s wedding was dubbed the “Asian wedding of the year.” About 2,000 guests were present for the couple’s nuptials at the Nurul Iman Palace in Bandar Seri Begawan, including Japan’s Crown Prince Naruhito, Bahrain’s King Hamad, Prince Bandar of Saudi Arabia, and the Duke of Gloucester. After the wedding ceremony, the newlyweds drove across the capital city in a gold open-topped Rolls Royce while family and guests followed along in more than 100 limousines.
Abaca Press6. Prince Pavlos of Greece and Marie-Chantal Miller
The 1995 wedding of Prince Pavlos of Greece and Marie-Chantal Miller was the largest gathering of royals in London since Queen Elizabeth’s wedding to Prince Philip in 1947. Combined, the wedding ceremony, receptions, and celebrations cost a reported $8 million while the wedding ceremony alone cost $1.5 million. In total, 1,400 people attended the wedding. The bride wore a pearl-encrusted ivory silk wedding dress designed by Valentino that featured a tulip-shaped front and 4.5-meter Chantilly lace train that cost a reported $225,000.
5. Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones
Queen Elizabeth’s sister, Princess Margaret, was married to Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1960 in the first televised royal wedding. An estimated 300 million viewers tuned in to watch the couple’s nuptials while 2,000 guests attended the wedding. The princess, keeping with tradition, traveled from Clarence House to Westminster Abbey in the Glass Coach and, after the ceremony, she and Armstrong-Jones traveled in a carriage procession to Buckingham Palace. Margaret looked absolutely regal that day in a silk organza dress designed by Norman Hartnell, which featured a cathedral length veil.
Everett Collection4. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were married in 1947, right after the end of World War II. At this time, the country was poor and rationing was common, but the country pitched in for Elizabeth and Philip’s wedding. She was granted an extra 200 clothing coupons for her dress, which was designed by Norman Hartnell and was made of ivory silk and thousands of seed pearls. The ceremony was broadcast on BBC radio to 200 million people around the world.
Press Association3. Prince William and Kate Middleton
Prince William and Kate Middleton’s 2011 wedding is definitely the most extravagant of royal weddings of the 21st century. The overall price of the event was reported to be $34 million with $32 million of that going to security. Kate’s stunning Alexander McQueen gown is said to have cost $434,000, and an estimated two billion people watched the event in more than 180 countries around the world, while 1,900 attended the event.
Rex Feature Ltd.2. Prince Rainier of Monaco and Grace Kelly
Prince Rainier of Monaco married Grace Kelly on April 18, 1956, at the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas in Monte Carlo, Monaco. She walked down the aisle in a Lanvin wedding dress, which featured a high neckline, multiple petticoats, antique Brussels lace, and hundreds of tiny pearls. The couple’s nuptials was considered the “wedding of the century” and more than 600 guests attended, including Aristotle Onassis, France’s Minister of Justice Francois Mitterrand, and American hotelier Conrad Hilton, movie stars Cary Grant, Ava Gardner, Gloria Swanson, and Jack Warner, as well as the pope! The people of Monaco didn’t skimp on the couple’s wedding gift. They had a custom-made white and black Rolls Royce for them on the big day.
Source: Everett Collection1. Prince Charles and Princess Diana
When Prince Charles married Princess Diana in 1981, their wedding was also called the “wedding of the century.” An estimated 750 people tuned in to watch their nuptials while 3,500 guests attended the ceremony at St. Paul’s Cathedral. The total bill for the event came in at around $90 million – three times that of Prince William and Kate Middleton’s! Diana’s dress was designed by Elizabeth and David Emanuel and made of silk taffeta, lace, 10,000 pearls, and featured a 25-foot train and an eight-meter-long veil. At the reception, the couple had 27 wedding cakes!
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Courtesy Everett Collection