Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip Married 78 Years Ago. See Inside Their Special Day
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip Married 78 Years Ago. See Inside Their Special Day
Nicole Briese, Emily KrauserTue, April 21, 2026 at 12:30 PM UTC
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Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip wave to the crowd from the balcony of Buckingham Palace in London shortly after their wedding at Westminster Abbey on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip's fairy tale wedding in 1947 was just the start of a marriage that became the longest in royal history.
The two first met in 1934 at the wedding of Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark to Prince George, Duke of Kent. At the time, Elizabeth was 8, and Philip was 13.
It wasn't until years later, when the then-princess visited Dartmouth Naval College with her parents as a teenager and spent time with the young cadet, that she developed feelings for her would-be suitor.
"She fell in love, and she never looked at anyone else," biographer Sally Bedell Smith told PEOPLE in 2021.
The two kept in touch, and in July 1947, the couple announced their engagement. Prince Philip proposed with a platinum ring he had created at Philip Antrobus Ltd. (now Pragnell), using diamonds from a tiara his mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, had given to the prince.
Naturally, the future Queen — who died at the age of 96 on Sept. 8, 2022, and would be turning 100 on April 21, 2026 — said "yes."
"Prince Philip is the only man in the world who treats the Queen simply as another human being," her former private secretary Lord Charteris told writer Gyles Brandreth, per Wales Online. "He's the only man who can. Strange as it may seem, I believe she values that."
Less than five months later, then-Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip wed at Westminster Abbey in London on Nov. 20, 1947. The ceremony came on the heels of World War II, forcing some restrictions (the wedding gown, for instance, was purchased with rationing coupons). Still, it proved to be an epic event that was celebrated by thousands worldwide.
Here are all the details of the couple's nuptials, from their 900-lb. cake that was cut with a sword to the 10,000 congratulatory notes they received afterwards.
The Date
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip announce their engagement at Buckingham Palace in London on July 9, 1947Credit: Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty
Less than five months after announcing their engagement on July 9, 1947, Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh, wed at Westminster Abbey in London on Nov. 20, 1947, at 11:30 a.m. GST.
The Pre-Wedding Celebration
According to Vanity Fair, two days before their ceremony, the young couple was celebrated with a ball at London's Buckingham Palace, which was later reportedly described as a "sensational evening." It was said that "everyone looked shiny and happy," especially the guests of honor, who appeared "radiant."
The Venue
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip kneel in front of the Archbishop of Canterbury during their wedding ceremony at Westminster Abbey in London on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Central Press/Getty
Then-Princess Elizabeth became the 10th member of the British monarchy to be married at Westminster Abbey, the same place where her father, King George VI, was crowned just 11 years earlier and where she herself would be coronated five years after her nuptials.
Per the Abbey, the architectural work of art, which was largely rebuilt in a Gothic style in the 13th century by King Henry III, was also the setting for Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding on April, 29 2011.
Founded by Benedictine monks in 960 A.D., the Abbey became a coronation church in 1066 when William the Conqueror ascended the throne. It serves as the final resting place of 17 monarchs.
The Title
Just ahead of the pair's nuptials, Prince Philip received new titles, per the official royal website. He became the Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich of Greenwich.
The Guests
Though Queen Elizabeth's father, King George VI, was reportedly warned to keep the princess's wedding ceremony "simple" in the wake of the war, the guest list was far from small, with a reported 2,000 people on the list.
Among them were five kings, five queens and eight princes and princesses, including King Michael of Romania, King Haakon VII of Norway, King Faisal of Iraq, King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid of Denmark, Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, Prince Philip's uncle, Earl Louis Mountbatten and the Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg and Princess Elisabeth of Luxembourg, per British Pathé.
The Transportation
The crowd cheers on Queen Elizabeth (in coach) and Prince Philip as they make their way to Buckingham Palace in London following their wedding ceremony on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Sport and General Press Agency L/AFP
Escorted by the British Life Guards regiment, the princess rode in the Irish State Coach with her father to her wedding venue.
After her nuptials, the bride rode with her new husband in the Glass Coach that was purchased in 1911 for King George VI's coronation (via the official royal website). In the years since, the coach has carried other royal brides, including Princess Anne, Princess Diana and Kate.
The Dress
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip are photographed on their wedding day on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty
Princess Elizabeth chose a wedding gown design submitted by British designer Norman Hartnell three months before the wedding.
It took Hartnell and his team of nearly 350 seamstresses seven weeks to create the piece, which was paid for in part by rationing coupons. According to the groom's cousin, Lady Pamela Hicks, women were even sending their own clothing coupons to Buckingham Palace to help, though they were ultimately returned.
"It showed how people wanted to be involved," Hicks told PEOPLE in 2020.
The gown, made of Duchesse satin from Scotland and silk, was exquisite, with a 15-foot silk tulle train that attached at the shoulders and a bodice encrusted with 10,000 seed pearls and diamanté crystals that formed flowers, roses, jasmine blossoms and ears of wheat.
Hartnell was reportedly inspired by the Botticelli painting "Primavera," a symbol of the coming of spring, and later referred to the gown as the "most beautiful dress" he'd ever made.
Seamstress Betty Foster told The Telegraph in August 2007 that Elizabeth didn't try on the gown before her wedding day as she was "respecting the tradition that it would be unlucky."
The Tiara
Queen Elizabeth leaves Westminster Abbey after her wedding on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Topical Press Agency/Getty
The bride's most notable piece of jewelry on her special day was the Queen Mary Fringe Tiara she wore atop her head, which served as her "something borrowed" from her grandmother, Mary of Teck. Once a fringe necklace, Mary had it recreated as a tiara in 1893, and on Elizabeth's wedding day, it seemingly snapped.
"The catch, which I didn't know existed, it suddenly went," the Queen later told Kate in July 2011 while touring a Buckingham Palace exhibition. "And I didn't know it was a necklace, you see … I thought I'd broken it … We stuck it all together again, but I was rather alarmed."
A jeweler at Garrard was able to repair the piece in record time, sending it back to the princess by police escort just in time for her nuptials.
"With her bridal dress and tiara on her wedding day, she was a knockout. And, of course, Philip was every girl's dream Viking prince," Hicks told PEOPLE, adding, "[Elizabeth] really was radiant, with her diamond tiara on top. And she was very much in love."
The Shoes
A close-up of Queen Elizabeth's satin wedding shoes in November 1947Credit: Central Press/Getty
To complement her gorgeous dress, the princess wore a pair of ivory Duchesse satin heels by Edward Rayne. The silver buckle was studded with silver seed pearl detailing that matched her dress.
The Jewelry
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip stare at each other on their wedding day on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty
In addition to her borrowed tiara, Princess Elizabeth wore two pearl necklaces for her big day: the Queen Anne necklace and the Queen Caroline necklace, after King George II's wife. The princess received both baubles as a wedding present from her father, who inherited them as part of the royal collection.
According to the 2007 book Queen and Consort: Elizabeth and Philip: 60 Years of Marriage, the princess narrowly avoided another mishap when the necklaces accidentally got left behind at St. James Palace, where the couple's other wedding gifts were displayed. The jewels needed to be retrieved by Elizabeth's newly appointed private secretary, Jock Colville, who had to fight through the crowds at both St. James and Buckingham Palace to get them to the bride-to-be in time for her vows.
The Flowers
Florist Martin Longman of Fenchurch Street at work with his assistants Mary Nelson and Constance Fears on Nov. 5, 1947Credit: Chris Ware/Keystone/Getty
The princess carried an arrangement crafted by florist Martin Longman of Fenchurch Street, created with flowers from the Worshipful Company of Gardeners. Longman kept the design, which featured white orchids and a sprig of myrtle — a tradition that began with Queen Victoria, who received it from Prince Albert's grandmother — a secret until the ceremony.
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Though the bridal party thought it lost for a time, a mishap that caused the royals to reshoot their wedding portraits, it was ultimately found in an icebox, where a footman had placed them to preserve them, according to Queen and Consort.
"In the middle of their honeymoon, they had to get dressed up again in their wedding clothes, and my father had to provide another bouquet for those photos," David Longman later revealed in the ITV documentary Invitation to the Royal Wedding, per Hello!.
The couple's wedding favors, meanwhile, were comprised of individual posies of myrtle and white Balmoral heather.
The morning after the ceremony, Elizabeth's bouquet was sent to lie on the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, a tradition started by Elizabeth's mother, Elizabeth I, who did so on her own wedding day in 1923. The gesture was in honor of her brother Fergus Bowes-Lyon, who lost his life eight years prior during World War I.
The Wedding Party
Queen Elizabeth (center) and Prince Philip pose with members of their immediate and extended family at Buckingham Palace after their wedding on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Topical Press Agency/Getty
Princess Elizabeth was joined by eight bridesmaids, including her sister Princess Margaret; her first cousins Princess Alexandra of Kent, Margaret Elpinstone and Diana Bowes-Lyon; her second cousin Lady Mary Cambridge; her first cousin once removed Lady Caroline Montagu-Douglas-Scott and Philip's cousin Hicks (then known as Pamela Mountbatten).
Each bridesmaid wore a tulle gown with small satin flowers designed by Hartnell — the reverse of Elizabeth's own creation by the designer.
"Tulle could easily be acquired, whereas duchess satin was so difficult to get in those days," Hicks told PEOPLE in 2020.
According to Queen and Consort, Prince Philip designed gold compacts engraved with his and Elizabeth's initials in jewels for the party. As for the groom, he had his own first cousin, David Mountbatten, by his side as best man. Serving as page boys were Prince William of Gloucester and Prince Michael of Kent.
The Wedding Ring
During the ceremony, Princess Elizabeth received a wedding ring made from the same Welsh gold as her mother's ring, which came from the Clogau St. David's mine near the town of Dolgellau, Wales.
Per Tatler, in the 2020 book Prince Philip: Revealed, author Ingrid Seward claimed that the ring was engraved with a secret message only the bride, groom and engraver knew.
The Service
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip make their way down the aisle at Westminster Abbey on their wedding day on Nov. 20, 1947Credit: Bert Hardy/Picture Post/Getty
Geoffrey Fisher, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Cyril Garbett, the Archbishop of York, officiated at the ceremony, who "urged upon the young couple patience, a ready sympathy and forbearance."
According to the British royal family's official website, music was provided by William Neil McKie, the Abbey's organist and Master of the Choristers. He directed a group of 91 singers made up of members of the Abbey choir, the Chapel Royal choir and the St. George's Chapel choir.
Together, they sang a series of hymns, including "Praise, my soul, the king of heaven" and "The Lord's my shepherd," as well as a motet McKie composed for the occasion titled "We wait for thy loving kindness, O God."
Elizabeth and Philip's wedding anthem was "Blessed be the God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ" by Samuel Sebastian Wesley, and they left the Abbey to Felix Mendelssohn's "Wedding March."
The Breakfast
Following the ceremony, the newlyweds headed back to Buckingham Palace in the Glass Coach.
Once there, they famously waved from the balcony to the crowd of roughly 100,000 gathered outside before heading inside to the Ball Supper Room. There, they enjoyed a more intimate wedding breakfast, which actually took place at lunchtime, during which the Grenadier Guards' string band performed.
The Food
Former royal chef Darren McGrady shared the menu for the couple's wedding breakfast on X (formerly Twitter) ahead of their platinum wedding anniversary in 2017.
The meal started with Filet de Sole Mountbatten, a nod to Prince Philip's surname, followed by Perdreau en Casserole (partridges in a casserole), with green beans, noisette potatoes and royal salad. According to The Kitchn, partridges were chosen because they were not subject to rationing like other foods at the time.
For dessert, guests were treated to Bombe Glacée Princess Elizabeth, an ice cream dish made with fresh strawberries. In April 2011, McGrady told Epicurious (via National Post) that the out-of-season fruit was meant to be a luxury and was grown in hot houses at Windsor Castle. He also shared that it's common practice at British weddings for the new bride to get a dish named after her, courtesy of the chef.
The Cake
Mr. Schur is pictured with the official royal wedding cake of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip in 1947Credit: PA Images via Getty
The newlyweds served a whopping 11 cakes at their breakfast, even though their main cake was plenty huge. Created by McVitie and Price, the 9-foot-tall masterpiece boasted four tiers and weighed 500 lbs. Nicknamed the 10,000-mile cake for its internationally sourced ingredients, the confection was cut with the groom's naval sword, a present from King George VI.
More than just being big, the fruity concoction was highly intricate, featuring decorations of both families' coat of arms, the bride and groom's monograms, naval badges and sugar-iced figures showcasing the couple's favorite activities. According to a 1947 press release acquired by Hello!, "each piece of sugar work was made separately and then fitted into its place on the cake."
The bottom tier featured a silver coin, a thimble, a bell, a button, a boot and a horseshoe, all of which were meant to give the newlyweds good luck.
The couple's leftovers were put to good use and distributed throughout the kingdom to hospitals, schools and charitable institutions.
The Exit
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip in a carriage procession to Waterloo Station to catch their train to Winchester for the start of their honeymoon in 1947Credit: PA Images
As the couple was leaving for their honeymoon at Birkhall at the Balmoral Estate in Scotland in an open-drawn carriage, they were showered with rose petals by the Queen Mother.
They kept warm with blankets and hot-water bottles. The princess, who had changed into a mist-blue coat dress by Norman Hartnell, also had her corgi, Susan, on her lap.
The Gifts
From her parents, Elizabeth received not only the two pearl necklaces she wore, but also a sapphire-and-diamond necklace and earring set and a pair of diamond Cartier earrings, according to Bell's Queen Consort.
The princess' grandmother, Queen Mary, gifted her with even more jewels, including an antique diamond stomacher, diamond Indian bangle brooches and a pair of ruby earrings Mary had received from Elizabeth's father for her 59th birthday. She also gave the couple a bookcase, per the royal website.
Royal dignitaries gave the new bride and her groom rubies, a 54.5-carat uncut pink diamond (this from Canada's John T. Williamson), emeralds and diamonds, as well as a racehorse, a Kenyan hunting lodge, a TV, a mink coat, a Singer sewing machine, a fridge and maple furniture for the couple's home. President Truman reportedly sent a Steuben crystal bowl engraved with a merry-go-round, and Mahatma Gandhi sent a piece of cotton lace he spun himself with the words "Jai Hind," which translates to "Victory for India."
The young couple was also showered with a reported 10,000 congratulatory telegrams and more than 2,500 presents. The New York Times reported that among those gifts were 80 pairs of stockings, then in short supply.
The bride's biggest gift of all, however, may have come from the groom. Not only did Prince Philip present his new wife with a diamond bracelet he created, set with more diamonds from his mother's tiara, but he also promised to quit smoking, a habit Queen Elizabeth reportedly detested. In fact, he quit cold turkey on the morning of their wedding, per Hello!, and kept his word for the rest of their days together.
According to Glamour, not long after their nuptials, Prince Philip wrote to the Queen Mother, "Lilibet is the only 'thing' in the world which is absolutely real to me, and my ambition is to weld the two of us into a new combined existence that will not only be able to withstand the shocks directed at us, but will also have a positive existence for the good."
The Impact
Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth enjoy a walk during their honeymoon at Broadlands near Romsey in Hampshire, England, on Nov. 24, 1947Credit: Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty
The royal couple's ceremony was heard by roughly 200 million people worldwide on BBC Radio. Though it wasn't televised, cinemas around the country also showed a film of their nuptials.
Following the event, more than 200,000 people are estimated to have made the trek to St. James's Palace, where their wedding gifts were displayed. The princess' Norman Harnell gown was also shown at St. James before it went on tour around the United Kingdom.
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