Prince William & Catherine Middleton - Royal Wedding Video

Normally, only Bollywood-related posts are created on Asha Ashish©, but I've just finished watching the Royal wedding coverage and wanted to gush. I thought the service was amazing.

Catherine looked absolutely stunning. I thought she was going to wear Alexander McQueen and I was right. I LOVED the dress - Sarah Burton did a fantastic job.

My favourite moment of the wedding was when Prince William saw Catherine in her wedding dress for the first time. It was such a sweet moment.

Did anyone else watch the wedding? Did anyone have any favourite bits?

On Friday, 29 April 2011, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge married Catherine Middleton at Westminster Abbey, at 11:00 am BST (UTC+1). William, who is second in the line of succession to Elizabeth II, first met Middleton in 2001, while both were students at the University of St Andrews. Their engagement, which began on 20 October 2010, was announced on 16 November 2010.
The build up to the wedding and the occasion itself attracted much media attention, with the service broadcast live around the world, and with it being compared and contrasted in many ways to the last high profile British Royal wedding, the 1981 marriage of William's parents, Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer. Much of the attention focussed on Middleton's status as a commoner (i.e. not of Royal blood or a part of the aristocracy), marrying into royalty. Hours before the service, William was granted the titles of the Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn, and Baron Carrickfergus by the Queen. Upon her marriage, Middleton therefore became Her Royal Highness Princess William Arthur Philip Louis, Duchess of Cambridge, Countess of Strathearn, Baroness Carrickfergus, but is not styled as 'Princess Catherine'.
As William was not the immediate heir to the throne, the wedding was not a full state occasion, with many details left to the couple themselves to decide, such as much of the the guest list of about 1,900. It was however a public holiday in Britain, and featured many ceremonial aspects including use of the state carriages and roles for the Foot Guards and Household Cavalry. It was attended by most of the British Royal Family as well as many foreign royals and diplomats, as well as the couple's chosen personal guests.
Middleton wore a white dress with a 270 centimetres (110 in) train, by English designer Sarah Burton, as well as a tiara lent to her by the Queen. William, commissioned as a Royal Navy Lieutenant, Army Captain and Air Force Flight Lieutenant, chose instead to wear the uniform of his honorary rank of Colonel of the Regiment, Irish Guards. William's best man was his brother, Prince Harry, while the bride's sister Pippa acted as her maid of honour. The Dean of Westminster officiated most of the service, with the Archbishop of Canterbury conducting the marriage ceremony itself and the Bishop of London giving the sermon. A reading was also given by the bride's brother, James. After the ceremony, the newly married couple travelled in procession to Buckingham Palace for the traditional appearance on the balcony and a fly past, before crowds assembled in The Mall.
Following the wedding, the couple intend to continue residing on the Isle of Anglesey in North Wales, where Prince William is based as an RAF Search and Rescue pilot.



Engagement announcement

On 16 November 2010, Clarence House announced that Prince William, elder son of the Prince of Wales, was to marry his long-time girlfriend Kate Middleton "in the Spring or Summer of 2011, in London".They were engaged in October 2010 while on a private holiday in Kenya; William gave Middleton the same engagement ring that his father had given to William's mother, Diana, Princess of Wales—an 18-carat white gold ring with a 12-carat oval sapphire and 14 round diamonds.It was announced at approximately the same time that, after their marriage, the couple will live on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, where Prince William is based with the Royal Air Force.
The Prince of Wales said he was "thrilled ... they have been practising long enough",and Queen Elizabeth II said she was "absolutely delighted" for the couple, giving her formal consent to the marriage, as required by the Royal Marriages Act 1772, in her British privy council on the morning of the engagement.Congratulations also came in from the Queen's prime ministers, including Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard, who has moderate republican leanings.Further, Pete Broadbent, suffragan Bishop of Willesden, who has known republican views, published his reaction to the wedding announcement on Facebook. He later acknowledged that his words were "offensive" and subsequently apologised,but his superior, Richard Chartres, Bishop of London, instructed him to withdraw from public ministry "until further notice".
Following the announcement the couple gave an exclusive interview to ITV News political editor Tom Bradby and hosted a photocall at St. James's Palace.On 12 December 2010, Buckingham Palace issued the official engagement photographs; these were taken on 25 November, in the state apartments at St. James's Palace, by photographer Mario Testino.
The original engagement announcement stated simply that the wedding will be "in the spring or summer of 2011". On 23 November 2010 the date of Friday 29 April 2011 was confirmed. It was later announced that the day will be declared a public holiday throughout the United Kingdom, formal confirmation being made by the Queen in Council on 15 December 2010. The wedding date has also been declared an official public holiday in Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, Isle of Man, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey, the Falkland Islands, Montserrat and the Turks and Caicos.
As 29 April falls six days before elections for the Scottish Parliament and the Alternative Vote referendum, this has attracted political comment.John Curtice, a professor of politics at the University of Strathclyde, stated for the Scottish elections that the date was "unfortunate" and was "likely to see the Royal Family getting caught up in political debate".




Prince William is the elder son of Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales, and grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. As such, he is second, behind his father, in the line of succession to the throne in 16 independent states known as the Commonwealth realms. William was educated at Ludgrove School, Eton College, and the University of St Andrews, after which he was commissioned as an officer from Sandhurst in the Blues and Royals regiment of the Household Cavalry. He later transferred to the RAF and went on to become a full-time pilot with the Search and Rescue Force at RAF Valley, Anglesey.
Catherine "Kate" Middleton is the eldest of three children born to Michael and Carole Middleton. She was educated at St Andrew's School in Pangbourne, Marlborough College and the University of St Andrews. After graduating, she worked in retail and then as an accessories buyer/catalogue photographer at her parents' business. She is primarily of English descent, but with a few distant Scottish and French Huguenot ancestors. Her paternal family came from Leeds, West Yorkshire,while her mother's maternal family, the Harrisons, were working-class labourers and miners from County Durham.
The couple met while undergraduates at the University of St Andrews, where they both lived at St Salvator's Hall during their first year,after which they shared accommodation in the town for two years.They are fifteenth cousins—having Sir Thomas Fairfax and his wife, Agnes, as common ancestors—and are possibly twelfth cousins once removed, circumstantial evidence suggesting that they are both descended from Sir Thomas Leighton and Elizabeth Knollys.



Timings
At 6.00 am roads in and around the processional route were closed to traffic. From 8.15 am, the main congregation, governors-general, prime ministers of Commonwealth realms, and diplomats, all arrived at the Abbey. Princes William and Harry then left Clarence House at 10.10 am in a Bentley State Limousine, and arrived at 10.18 am, followed by representatives of foreign royal families, the Middleton family, and, lastly, the Prince's own family (the Princess Royal, the Duke of York, Princess Beatrice of York, Princess Eugenie of York, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall). By tradition, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were the last members of the Royal Family to leave Buckingham Palace, arriving at the Abbey for 10.48 am. The bridal party then left the Goring Hotel in the former Number one state Rolls-Royce Phantom VI at 10.52 am, in time for the service to begin at 11 am. The service finished at 12.15 pm, after which the newly married couple travelled to Buckingham Palace in a procession consisting of other royal family members, the parents of the groom and bride, the best man, and the bridesmaids. At 1.25 pm, the couple appeared on the balcony at Buckingham Palace to watch a fly-past consisting of Lancaster, Spitfire, and Hurricane aircraft from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, followed by two Typhoons and two Tornado GR4s.


The route of the couple
Route of the bride and groom to and from the wedding ceremony at Westminster Abbey
The route of the bride and groom went between Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey, by The Mall, passing Clarence House, by Horse Guards Road, Horse Guards Parade, through Horse Guards Arch, Whitehall, the south side of Parliament Square, and Broad Sanctuary.

Wedding service
St James's Palace announced on 5 January that the ceremony was to start at 11:00 local time and that the bride would arrive at the abbey by car rather than by carriage (the latter is the traditional transport for royal brides.) The route was along The Mall, through Horse Guards Parade, and down Whitehall to the abbey. After the ceremony, the bridal couple returned along the same route by carriage to a reception hosted by the Queen at Buckingham Palace. The Prince of Wales is to host a private dinner in the evening.
In a break with royal tradition, the groom had a best man—his brother, Prince Harry—rather than a supporter, while the bride chose her sister, Pippa, as maid of honour. There were four bridesmaids—Lady Louise Windsor, the seven-year old daughter of the Earl and Countess of Wessex; The Hon. Margarita Armstrong-Jones, the eight-year old daughter of Viscount and Viscountess Linley; Grace van Cutsem, the three-year old daughter of the couple's friend Hugh van Cutsem; and Eliza Lopes, the three-year old granddaughter of The Duchess of Cornwall. Two page boys participated: William Lowther-Pinkerton, the ten-year old son of William's private secretary Major Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, and Tom Pettifer, the eight-year old son of Princes William and Harry's former nanny, "Tiggy" Pettifer.
The Dean of Westminster officiated for most of the service, with Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, conducting the marriage ceremony itself and Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, giving the sermon.It has long been traditional for the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Church of England's most senior bishop, to officiate at the weddings of England's monarchs and future monarchs,  but as Chartres is a close friend of the Prince of Wales, he was invited to take part in the ceremony.



Bridal dress
Main article: Wedding dress of Kate Middleton
The bridal dress was designed by English designer Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen.It was made of satin and featured a lace applique bodice and skirt. Middleton wore her hair down, with her veil held in place by a tiara, loaned by the Queen. The lace, detailing a rose, thistle, daffodil and shamrock, was hand-made by the Royal School of Needlework, based at Hampton Court Palace.
The bridal train measured 270 cm (110 in), and along with the lace, all other fabrics used in the creation of the dress were sourced from and supplied by British companies. The lace motifs were pinned, "framed up" and applied with stab stitching every 2–3 mm around each one. Workers washed their hands every 30 minutes to keep the lace and threads pristine, and the needles were renewed every three hours, to keep them sharp and clean.
Bridal tiara and veil
The veil is held in place by a Cartier Scroll Tiara, made in 1936 and lent to Miss Middleton by the Queen. It was purchased by the Queen's father, the Duke of York (subsequently King George VI) for his Duchess (later Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mother) three weeks before succeeding his brother Edward VIII (Duke of Windsor) as King. Princess Elizabeth (now the Queen) received the tiara from her mother on her 18th birthday.
Designed by Shane Connolly, the bride's shield-shaped wired bouquet contained myrtle, Lily of the Valley, Sweet William and hyacinth.
Groom's uniform
Prince William wore the full dress uniform of the Irish Guards, of which he has been the honorary colonel since 10 February 2011. He chose to wear the peaked hat of the Irish Guards as opposed to the bearskin. As a knight of the Order of the Garter, he wore the Order's blue riband to which was affixed his RAF wings and Golden Jubilee Medal. The uniform was made by the Savile Row tailors Gieves & Hawkes.
Liturgy and bridal vow
Kate did not promise to "obey" her new husband in her vows but instead to "love, comfort, honour and keep" him. The bridal couple used the the Series One (1966) Book of Common Prayer ceremony.
The Lesson from the New Testament, Romans Chapter 12, verses 1–2 and 9–18, was read by the bride's brother, James Middleton.
Music
The bride processed down the aisle to the anthem "I Was Glad," written by by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, from Psalm 122. It was composed for the crowning of Prince William's great-great-great grandfather, Edward VII, at Westminster Abbey in 1902.[66] As the choir sang, the bride made her three-and-a-half minute procession through the Nave and Quire on her father's arm, to meet the Prince. The recessional music was the orchestral march "Crown Imperial" by William Walton, which was also played at Charles and Diana's wedding.
Two choirs, one orchestra and a fanfare team performed the music at the wedding service of Prince William and Middleton at Westminster Abbey. These were the Westminster Abbey Choir, Chapel Royal Choir and London Chamber Orchestra, and a fanfare team of the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.
The choirs were directed by James O’Donnell, Organist and Master of the Choristers at Westminster Abbey. The Abbey’s Sub Organist, Robert Quinney, played the organ. The Organist, Choir Master and Composer at Her Majesty’s Chapel Royal is Andrew Gant. The London Chamber Orchestra was conducted by Christopher Warren-Green, who is its Music Director and Principal conductor.
The fanfares were performed under the direction of Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs,whose own composition, Valiant and Brave, was performed as the royal couple signed the wedding register. "Valiant and Brave" is the motto of 22 Squadron, in which Prince William is serving as a search and rescue pilot at RAF Valley in North Wales.
Hymns
William and Kate chose three of their favourite hymns: "Jerusalem", and two others with a strong association with Wales. The first was the rousing "Guide me, O Thou Great Redeemer". It is also known as the Welsh rugby anthem "Bread of Heaven," and the Duke of Cambridge is the vice-royal patron of the Welsh Rugby Union. It was sung at the funeral of Princess Diana, and is associated with Welsh Male Voice Choirs and Eisteddfodau, having been originally written in Welsh by 18th-century Methodist preacher William Williams.
The words to their second hymn, "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" were written by 18th-century Methodist evangelical preacher Charles Wesley. Its tune – "Blaenwern" – was composed by a Welshman, William Penfro Rowlands, during the Welsh Christian revival of 1904–5. This hymn was sung at the Prince of Wales’ 2005 marriage to the Duchess of Cornwall.
The third hymn, also considered as an anthem, is "Jerusalem". With text by visionary 19th-century poet William Blake and music written in 1916 by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, it is "a favourite at Last Night of the Proms, the Women's Institute and weddings.




Reception
Buckingham Palace. The balcony at the centre of the facade is where bridal couples traditionally appear to the public after the wedding.
The Queen will host a lunchtime reception at Buckingham Palace. The reception will start after the arrival carriage with the married couple. It will be a private gathering for guests drawn from the congregation who will represent the couple’s official and private lives. During the reception, the couple will give an appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony. The East front of the palace contains this well-known balcony on which the Royal Family traditionally congregate to greet crowds outside. Guests will be served with canapés at the reception.The Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales, Claire Jones, will perform at the reception.The reception is expected to finish in the mid-afternoon.


Guest list
Main article: List of wedding guests of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Kate Middleton
On 16 and 17 February, three sets of guest lists were sent out in the name of the Queen. As William is not the heir apparent, the wedding is not a "state occasion".Thus protocol has dictated that many guests (or their successors in office) who were invited to the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer on 29 July 1981 need not be invited to William's wedding. More than half of the guests will be family and friends of the couple, though there will be a significant number of Commonwealth leaders (including the governors-general who represent the Queen in Commonwealth realms other than the UK, prime ministers of the Commonwealth realms, and heads of government of other Commonwealth countries), members of religious organisations, the diplomatic corps, several military officials, members of the British Royal Household, members of foreign royal families, and representatives of William's charities and others with whom William has worked on official business. Although St James's Palace declined to publish the names of those invited, a breakdown of guests was published by category−the list made no mention of foreign heads of state, though it was announced that about 40 members of foreign royal families had been invited.
The first list, consisting of about 1,900 people, is of attendees to the ceremony in the abbey. The second list of approximately 600 people is of those invited to the luncheon reception at Buckingham Palace, hosted by the Queen. The final list, containing about 300 names, is for the evening dinner hosted by the Prince of Wales.
On 19 April Sean Cardinal Brady, Primate of All Ireland said he will attend. The invitation to the event and its acceptance, have been described as “unprecedented” by a spokesman for Ireland’s Catholic bishops. The spokesman attributed the invitation to Cardinal Brady’s contribution to the Northern Ireland peace process.



Wedding cake
The wedding cake had a strong British floral theme, using elements of the Joseph Lambeth technique. It was a multi-tiered traditional fruit cake decorated with cream and white icing. The Lambeth technique is based on a style of decorating that was popular in England where chefs and decorators would use a lot of intricate piping to create 3-D scrollwork, leaves, flowers, and other decoration. The method is still popular today and is frequently used by wedding cake designers and decorators to create ornate wedding cakes. The cake designer Fiona Cairns was chosen in February 2011 to create the wedding cake. Furthermore, McVitie's created a special cake from chocolate biscuit for the reception at Buckingham Palace. The chocolate biscuit cake was made from a Royal Family recipe and was specially requested by Prince William.