Skip to content

Top Navigation

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Food
  • Holidays & Entertaining
  • Home & Garden
  • Style & Culture
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Southern Living

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • These Haircuts Are Going To Be Huge in 2021

      The trendy haircuts you’ll be seeing everywhere next year. Read More Next
    • How To Season A Cast-Iron Skillet

      Learn how to season this Southern kitchen staple in five easy steps. Read More Next
    • The Right Way to Heat a Pre-Cooked Ham

      It's so easy, trust us. Read More Next
  • Food

    Food

    See all Food

    Lost Cakes of the South

    These simple and spectacular Southern cakes deserve a comeback
    • All Food
    • All Recipes
    • Holidays & Occasions
    • Quick Fix Suppers
    • Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Desserts
    • Casseroles
    • Healthy Recipes
  • Holidays & Entertaining

    Holidays & Entertaining

    See all Holidays & Entertaining

    70 Wedding Vow Examples That Will Melt Your Heart

    Fight writer's block and find ways to express your love with these romantic, funny, and short wedding vow examples.
    • Christmas
    • Entertaining
    • Thanksgiving
    • Southern Weddings
    • Easter
    • Kentucky Derby
    • Valentine's Day
    • 4th of July
    • Mother's Day
  • Home & Garden

    Home & Garden

    See all Home & Garden

    7 Paint Colors We’re Loving for Kitchen Cabinets in 2020

    ‘Tis the season to ditch your all-white palette in favor of something a little bolder and brighter.
    • Home Decor Ideas
    • Idea Houses
    • Before & After
    • Inspired Communities
    • Curb Appeal
    • House Plans & Builders
    • The Grumpy Gardener
    • Plant Names A-Z
  • Style & Culture

    Style & Culture

    See all Style & Culture

    50 Books Everyone Should Read in Their Lifetime

    Curl up with a classic!
    • Southern Culture
    • Hair
    • Travel
    • Beauty
    • Pets
    • Southern Fashion
    • Healthy Living
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow us

  1. Southern Living
  2. Southern Culture
  3. Celebrities
  4. Every Royal Bride Has Carried a Sprig of This One Flower in Her Bouquet

Every Royal Bride Has Carried a Sprig of This One Flower in Her Bouquet

By Michelle Darrisaw
October 13, 2017
Skip gallery slides
Save FB Tweet
Credit: Terry Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Getty Images
Like most Southerners, the royal families are sticklers for tradition—and details. Amid excitement and fanfare of every British wedding ceremony, from Queen Victoria in 1840 to Kate Middleton in 2011, there have been more than a few wedding conventions connecting each bride, beyond their royal ties, of course. From perfume and crowns to nail polish and engagement rings, you don’t have to search far to find a common thread of the “something borrowed” in each of these ceremonies. However, we were surprised to learn of another wedding tradition the gracious brides across the pond practice.To symbolize their love and unity, every royal bride carries a bridal bouquet containing one sprig of a particular flower: myrtle. The evergreen woody shrub is commonly thought of as the flower of love and marriage, so it’s no wonder it holds such a significant meaning in weddings, even for those who are set to marry a Prince. But the sprig of myrtle doesn’t just come from any old bush in Great Britain. No, the flowering ritual was uprooted straight from Queen Victoria’s own 170-year-old garden. According to The Telegraph, the myrtle plant was given to her in the 1800s by the grandmother of her husband, Prince Albert.Another commonality each bouquet shares is that they’re usually filled with white flowers, and they’re also left in the same spot following the wedding. Started by the late Queen Elizabeth I, each bride has left her flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey ever since. Here’s a look back on a few of the beautiful blossoms shaping royal wedding ceremonies, with the customary sprig of myrtle included.
Start Slideshow

1 of 7

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Take A Look:

The tradition was started by Queen Victoria.

1 of 7

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 7

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Bouquet: The Queen

Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Queen Elizabeth II, then Princess Elizabeth, married Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in 1947. Her jaunt down the aisle of Westminster Abbey was complete with a bouquet full or orchids and, of course, the sprig of myrtle. The church was also decorated with white lilies, chrysanthemums, carnations, roses, camellia, and ivy, and the reception at Buckingham Palace was beautifully adorned with vases of pink and white carnations atop the tables.

2 of 7

3 of 7

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Bouquet: The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton

Credit: Anwar Hussein/WireImage/Getty

Along with the myrtle, Duchess Kate carried a bouquet filled with hyacinths, lily of the valley, and Sweet William as a tribute to her husband.

The theme of their wedding was revealed to be "The Language of Flowers," which is a Victorian custom of giving each bloom a different meaning so that sweet scents and sweet nothings could be coded and exchanged between courting couples. The lily of the valley symbolized a return to happiness, the hyacinths represented constancy, and the ivy reflected fidelity.

3 of 7

Advertisement

4 of 7

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Bouquet: Princess Diana

Credit: Terry Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Getty Images

Princess Diana's cascading bouquet of gardenias, stephanotis, orchids, lily of the valley, roses, freesia, veronica, spider lilies, and ivy reportedly weighed two kilos (ahem, that's a whopping four pounds!). The interior of St. Paul's was also decorated to the max and featured 300 pots of hydrangeas, lilies, and campanulas.

4 of 7

5 of 7

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Bouquet: Sophie, Countess of Wessex

Credit: Tim Graham/Getty Images

Sophie, like the other royal brides, stuck to royal tradition for her wedding to Prince Edward in 1999. Although her waterful bouquet wasn't nearly as elaborate (or as heavy) as the late Princess Diana, it was filled with plenty of ivory petalsm from roses and calla lilies to lily of the valley and freesia. She later preserved a portion of the bouquet to have framed for her drawing room.

5 of 7

6 of 7

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Bouquet: The Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla Parker Bowles

Credit: Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images

For his second wedding, Prince Charles' ceremony at Windsor Castle in 2005 was a bit more understated than when he married the Princess of Wales. Camilla Parker Bowles carried a simple posy bouquet of spring blooms, including lily of the valley and yellow, purple, and cream primroses to complement her Robinson Valentine silk dress and custom-made Philip Treacy fascinator.

6 of 7

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 7

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Bouquet: Zara Phillips

Credit: Mike Marsland/WireImage/Getty Images

Only the best blooms for the Queen's granddaughter, right? Zara Phillips married rugby player Mike Tindall in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 2011. Her bouquet was made of white calla lilies, silver senecio, lily of the valley, hydrangeas. She also gave a subtle nod to the Scottish location of her nuptials by filling her bouquet with alpine thistles. The bridesmaids carried smaller versions, accented with blue thistles. The venue, Cannongate Kirk, was laced with stargazer lilies and beech branches, and the outside was decorated with roses, carnations, stocks, hydrangea, eucalyptus, and more alpine thistles.

7 of 7

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Michelle Darrisaw

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 7 Take A Look:
2 of 7 Wedding Bouquet: The Queen
3 of 7 Wedding Bouquet: The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton
4 of 7 Wedding Bouquet: Princess Diana
5 of 7 Wedding Bouquet: Sophie, Countess of Wessex
6 of 7 Wedding Bouquet: The Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla Parker Bowles
7 of 7 Wedding Bouquet: Zara Phillips

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Login

Southern Living

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • About Us
  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Books from Southern Living
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Southern Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. Southern Living is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab All Rights Reserved. Southern Living may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.southernliving.com

View image

Every Royal Bride Has Carried a Sprig of This One Flower in Her Bouquet
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.