We are a couple of days away from the 10th Wedding Anniversary of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Let’s have a walk down memory lane and relive the excitement and happiness we had around us 10 years ago. It’s only appropriate if we start from the official beginning.
‘When will Prince William Pop the big Question?‘ It had been one of the most anticipated Royal questions in the second half of the first decade of the 21st century. At 12:04 PM of November 16 in 2010, a tweet from Clarence House changed the Royal Era. The tweet from the Clarence House’s Twitter account that was launched just a day before the big day read,
“The Prince of Wales is delighted to announce the engagement of Prince William to Miss Catherine Middleton“.
The official Press release said, “The wedding will take place in the Spring or Summer of 2011, in London. Further details about the wedding day will be announced in due course.“
And the world began counting minutes for the first appearance of the couple that was scheduled a few hours later.
Prince William introduced his fiancée Catherine Middleton, whom he proposed with his mother’s Diamond and Sapphire ring hardly a month before during a vacation in Kenya, to the world in the State Apartments of St James Palace.
Standing beneath the grand portrait of King William IV commissioned by Queen Victoria in the 1860s, the happy couple posed for the photographs and answered quick questions.
The photocall gave us the first dazzling moment of the new Royal Era that William and Catherine were going to lead. The Middle-class fiancée of Royal Prince was the breath of fresh air in thousand years old Traditional House of Windsor. A new community of Royal Watching was born that day and the days leading to the wedding were full of joy and excitement.
Catherine made her first official public appearance in a stunning high-street Issa Silk-jersey wrap-effect dress. The dress was the perfect selection that became one of her iconic looks. The dress was such a huge hit in the British Fashion Economy that the term “Kate-Effect” was born that day. Commonly known as Kate’s Engagement Dress, the knee-length dress had cross front neckline and features a flattering silhouette with the belted waistline and long sleeves.
The dress paired with Tiffany & Co Sapphire Oval Cabochon Earrings and Necklace and Episode ‘Angel’ Black Suede Platform Court Shoes.
The Tiffany set is part of her wardrobe since at least 2008. Her outfit was emphasizing her iconic Sapphire and Diamond Engagement Ring. Designed by the former Crown Jeweler Garrard & Co the iconic ring has fourteen solitaire diamonds elegantly surrounding a twelve carat oval blue Ceylon sapphire set in 18-karat white gold and cost £28,000 in 1981.
The fun fact is that the ring at the time was not a custom piece and Charles did not have any ring at the time of proposal. Diana chose it later when Gerard was called to present engagement ring samples at the Palace. The ring was later on resized to fit Princess’s finger.
Many of us already knew who Kate Middleton was? But for the first time, we found out who is Catherine Middleton that will be Queen Catherine one day. The couple sat for their first joint interview with ITV’s Tom Bradby.
The engagement ring held so many significances in the British Royal history, but to William, it was a way of making sure his mother, The Late Princess of Wales, Diana was not missing out on her son’s big day. When asked about the ring William said, “It’s very special to me, as Kate is very special to me now as well. It was only right that the two were put together. It was my way of making sure that my mother didn’t miss out on today, and the excitement, and the fact that we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.”
I will leave you with this coverage of the day and this post covering some interesting Royal Wedding preparation Fun Facts.