Prince Harry and Meghan Markle celebrate wedding anniversary – 6 controversial moments | Royal | News

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are celebrating their seventh wedding anniversary today. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex tied the knot on May 19, 2018, in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, and the lavish ceremony was watched by millions worldwide.

The ceremony and reception were attended by an eclectic list of family, friends and celebrities; however, in the following years, there were several controversies and claims around the day that emerged in the media. Harry and Meghan will undoubtedly mark their special day in private, with Harry expected to treat his wife behind closed doors.

Here, the Express takes a look at some of the most eyebrow-raising moments from the Sussexes’ wedding.

Meghan Markle looked exquisite in what is now considered one of the most iconic royal wedding dresses of all time.

She opted for a traditional wedding gown that was very reminiscent of Audrey Hepburn’s.

It was made of silk with three-quarter-length sleeves, an open bateau neckline and a train with a built-in triple silk organza underskirt.

The beautiful gown – named the most-searched royal wedding dress of all time – was designed by British fashion designer Clare Waight Keller, artistic director of the fashion house Givenchy.

It was later claimed that the late Queen Elizabeth thought that Meghan’s dress was “too white” as she had been married before she met Harry.

Author Ingrid Seward wrote in her book My Mother and I: “In the [late] monarch’s view, it was not appropriate for a divorcee getting remarried in church to look quite so flamboyantly virginal.”

Ms Seward said the late Queen only revealed her opinion to her closest confidantes, including her cousin, Lady Elizabeth Anson, who claimed Elizabeth thought the dress was improper for a divorcee.

The Duchess of Sussex’s five-metre-long veil was made from silk tulle and was also made by Givenchy.

The fashion house reportedly spent 3,900 hours embroidering it with flowers of the 53 countries of the Commonwealth, as well as the California poppy, in honour of Meghan’s home state and wintersweet, a flower that grows at Kensington Palace.

At the very front of it, the unique piece featured embroidered crops of wheat which were blended into the flowers, to symbolise love and charity.

But according to author Tom Bower, Meghan seemed to struggle getting out of her car when she arrived at St George’s Chapel, as her heel became tangled with her veil and she had to fix it – with her escorting officer not helping her.

Mr Bower claimed that the officer in question did not help the duchess due to an incident at the wedding rehearsal, and dubbed it an omen for what was to come.

Meghan’s veil was held in place by Queen Mary’s diamond bandeau tiara, lent to Meghan by the late Queen.

The diamond bandeau is English and was made in 1932, with the centre brooch dating from 1893.

Various reports at the time claimed that there had been a row between Prince Harry and the late Queen’s dresser, Angela Kelly.

After viewing Queen Elizabeth’s collection of tiaras and trying them on in front of Elizabeth and Ms Kelly, as well as a jewellery expert, the duchess expressed her desire to try them on when her hairdresser was visiting to make sure they fit right, which led to an alleged cold exchange between the Sussexes and the Palace when trying to arrange a date.

Harry denied telling Ms Kelly “What Meghan wants, Meghan gets” in his memoir Spare, saying: “The article said Meg had demanded a certain tiara that had belonged to Mummy, and when the Queen refused, I’d thrown a fit: What Meghan wants, Meghan gets!”

Meghan Markle was infamously involved with the Princess of Wales in a row regarding the silk dresses worn by the young bridesmaids, including Princess Charlotte – a subject widely talked about by royal watchers.

Whilst it was initially reported that Meghan made Kate cry over Charlotte’s dress needing alterations because it didn’t fit properly, Meghan alleged during her 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview that it was the other way around and it was she who had been left upset.

Later, Harry touched down on the incident in his memoir Spare, saying that his wife was left “on the floor sobbing” after the argument between the two sisters-in-law.

More recently, a new royal book cited sources who claimed both women were left very upset over the incident and were “crying their eyes out”.

The Royal Family never commented on the bridesmaids row claims.

The Duchess was famously walked down the aisle by her future father-in-law, the then-Prince Charles, as her father, Thomas Markle, was unable to make the wedding last minute due to ill health.

Following their wedding, Meghan’s relationship with her father progressively got frostier.

In a BBC documentary celebrating Charles’s 70th birthday, Harry spoke publicly about how he asked him to walk Meghan down the aisle at the royal wedding.

Harry said: “I asked him to and I think he knew it was coming, and he immediately said: ‘Yes, of course, I’ll do whatever Megan needs and I’m here to support you.’ For him that’s a fantastic opportunity to step up and be that support, and you know he’s our father so of course he’s going to be there for us.”

Harry and Meghan famously broke a royal tradition when it came to choosing their wedding cake.

While royals tend to choose fruit cake at their weddings, the new couple then decided to go for a lemon sponge cake with elderflower syrup, lemon curd, and buttercream.

The presentation of the cake was not traditional either as Harry and Meghan chose to present their cake tiers on individual stands, decorated with flowers.

The unique cake was made by Claire Ptak, founder of East London’s bakery-café, Violet.