Well, Prince Harry is off the market. But, there is good news! There is something new in Buckingham Palace. Her name is Meghan Markle and she just scored the title “Duchess of Sussex.” The Royal Wedding was epic and we are sad it is over! The wedding made royal history keeping with some traditions, and rocking some other ones. Want to know some surprising facts about the wedding and the royal family? We got you covered!
The Queen Celebrates not 1, but 2 Birthdays!
The Queen is one lucky woman, she gets to have 2 birthday parties! She has an official birthday that is celebrated in the Commonwealth of Nations. Usually, these countries have a parade and a mass celebration in her honor. She also as a “real” birthday, April 21, 1926. She just turned 92! She likes to celebrate her real birthday with her family circle.
2-Birthdays
No Touching The Royal Family
This is one fact that is well known but is broken all the time. Usually, celebrities, world leaders, and other famous people violate this rule. Michelle Obama broke this rule more than once!
Michelle-Obama-and-The-Queen
Prince Henry?
Even though nicknames are looked down upon in the Royal family, Henry has been going by Harry most of his life. His real name is Henry Charles Albert David Mountbatten-Windsor. What a mouth full!
Prince-Harry
The Middleton Family Lived in Jordan
Pretty interesting, huh? Kate’s family lived in Jordan for two years in the mid-80s. They moved for her father’s work.
Middleton-Family-in-Jordan
Sorry, No Shellfish
This is a weird one. One old rule in England is the Royal family cannot eat shellfish. This rule was created to prevent food poisoning. Prince Charles openly does not follow this rule.
Prince-Charles
Sovereign Grant
Taxpayer money is collected in the HM treasury. Every two years the Queen gets a “Sovereign Grant” which is used to pay salaries, for travel expenses and to fund maintence of the palaces. In 2016, the Queen recieved £43 million or $57.5 million USD. Not too shabby!
Royal-Palace
The Queen Doesn’t Need a Passport
Seeing as the Queen issues passports, I guess it makes sense she doesn’t need one to travel abroad. She can show a coin or banknote that has her image. Pretty lucky for her! All other members of the Royal family have to use passports to travel.
No-Passport
No Monopoly
There is an unofficial rule that the Royal family can’t play monopoly, especially in their home. It just gets too vicious!
No-Monopoly
Queen Catherine
Kate Middleton is definitely not the first Queen Catherine. She is actually England’s 6th Queen Catherine!
Kate-Middleton
No License Plate Required
The Queen is the only person in the UK who has the right to drive a car without a license plate. Some people have reported she also doesn’t wear a seatbelt!
No-License-Plate
Marriage Licenses
According to the Inheritance Act, the first 6 people in line to the throne aged up to 25 years have to obtain a marriage license from the Queen. If she says no, then there is no wedding.
Marriage-License
Marriage Doesn’t Equal Throne
The Queen’s husband, Prince Philip, is the King-Consort, which doesn’t give him the right to become King. He is native to Greece and thus has no claim to the throne. The same is true for with Prince William. If he becomes King, then Catherine will have the title of Queen-Consort.
Marriage-Doesnt-Equal-Throne
They Must Accept All Gifts
Technically, all gifts belong to the monarchy. It is a rule all members of the Royal family must accept all gifts. I don’t think this is a bad rule! Who doesn’t want gifts?
Gifts
Proposal in Africa
Did you Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton in Africa? He presented his mother’s 18-carat ring during a 10-day trip the couple took to Kenya in October 2010. Kate is one lucky lady! The ring is stunning. Do you agree?
Ring
Baby Prince Louis!
Prince William and Kate Middleton had us all on edge while we not so patiently waited to know the name of their new baby boy. They recently announced his name is Royal Highness Prince Louis of Cambridge. How cute! Louis means “renowned warrior” in French and it is likely a tribute to Prince Phillip. We love the name!
Prince-Louis
Wax Statue Museum Loves The Queen!
The wax museum Madame Tussauds is located in London and it loves to have the Queen on exhibit! They have displayed 23 different life-size models of Her Majesty to date. We think it looks like the real thing!
Wax-Statue-Of-The-Queen
Corgis!!
The Queen is well known for her avid love of corgis. We love them too! Pembroke Welsh Corgis are the Queen’s favorite breed. She has owned more than 30 during her reign. Her first one was named Dookie and it was a gift from her father in 1933.
Corgis
Documentary About The Family
Did you know there is a documentary about the Royal Family called “Royal Family?” Surprisingly the Queen gave permission to the crew to follow her daily life and interview her and other members of the family. It was very popular when it debuted! About 75% of the UK watched it.
Royal-Family-Documentary
The Queen Is Very Bilingual
The Queen is a very smart lady. She actually is very proficient in French. She doesn’t need an interpreter and insists to use the language when needed.
French
Yes, The Queen Rationed
During World War II, the Queen collected clothing coupons for her wedding dress. This is due to the fact clothes were rationed then. She still got her dress and wore it at her wedding to Prince Philip in 1947.
Wedding-Dress
Queen’s Birthplace Is Now A Great Restaurant
While the Queen celebrates two birthdays, she was born at a house in Mayfair on April 26, 1926. The house no longer exists and it has been turned into a Michelin star restaurant called Hakkasan. A reservation is definitely required!
Hakkasan
Kate Middleton Is A Smart Cookie!
Kate Middleton is the first royal bride to have a university degree! Pretty awesome! She has a degree in art history from Scotland’s University of St. Andrews.
Art-History
Prince Louis Is 4th In Line
Prince Louis is so, so cute! And 5th in line to take the throne. He is behind Prince Charles, Prince William, and Prince George. There’s still hope, right?
4th-In-Line
Bye, bye, footman!
It is well known the Queen loves her Corgis. Once she was forced to demote a royal footman. Why? Apparently, he was intentionally getting the corgis drunk by adding whiskey and gin to their food and water. Why would he do that? Good thing he’s fired!
Fired-The-Footman
She’s Got The Wanderlust
The Queen is a known lover of traveling. She has visited 117 countries to date! That is two-thirds of all the countries that exist. She’s one lucky lady!
Traveling
No More Corgis Fights!
The Queen risked herself, mostly her hand, by trying to stop a corgis fight. 10 of the dogs went at it! This happened in 1991. We hope they are living in harmony now.
Injured-Hand
The Dorgi Of Course
The Queen invented a royal dog breed. We support it. She created a “dorgi,” after she mated a corgi with one of Princess Margaret’s dachshunds. She decided to name it Chipper. Cute name!
Dorgi
Prince William Is Also A Smart Cookie
Prince William has a Scottish Master of Arts degree from St. Andrew’s. This is the highest degree ever obtained by an heir to the British throne! He also met Kate at St. Andrew’s. The rest is history!
Prince-William-Graduating
Celeb Crushes
Prince William had a huge crush on Cindy Crawford when he was a teenager. He loved her so much that the Queen invited her for tea.
Cindy-Crawford
China China China
As we mentioned, the Queen is known for her love of traveling. She actually made history when she became the first British Monarch to visit China.
China
Lucky Number 40
Queen Elizabeth II is the 40th monarch. She succeeded her father in February 1952. She is the queen of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon.
40th-Monarch
Prince William Stood Up A Pop Princess
Britney Spears said she had a date planned with Prince William, but he didn’t show up. This happened back in 2002 before she dated Justin Timberlake.
Prince-William-and-Britney
Her Majesty’s First Email
The Queen reportedly send her first email from an army base in 1976. That’s pretty early! Look at that ancient computer! She sent her first tween in 2014 and keeps in touch with the rest of the family through text messaging. What a cool Queen!
First-Email
Surname
Despite popular belief, the Royal family does have a last name. They didn’t before 1917. George V changed the family’s name from the German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the House of Windsor. In 1960, Queen Elizabeth II declared her descendants would have the last name of Mountbatten-Windsor.
Surname
Names In Case Of Divorce
The Queen established in 1960 that members of the family are called His or Her Royal Highness. If there is a divorce, the royal loses the title if they are not a birthright royal. This happened with Princess Diana and Sarah Ferguson.
Fergie-and-Diana
Diamonds Are A Queen’s Best Friend
The Queen’s Imperial State Crown is made up of 2,868 diamonds. Isn’t it gorgeous?
Imperial-State-Crown
Selfie Much?
No. The Queen doesn’t selfie, but she does have over 130 official portraits! Her first was completed in 1933 when she was only 7 years old.
Portrait
Prince William Is A Traveler, Too!
Prince William took a gap year before college in order to travel the world. He went traveling and volunteering to Belize, Chile, and many African countries.
Prince-William-Loves-To-Travel
Don’t Forget Harry!
Just like Prince William, Prince Harry also took a gap year before college. He volunteered at an AIDS orphans in Africa, making the documentary The Forgotten Kingdom.
Prince-Harry-In-Africa
Kate Was An Actress
Kate was a model and actress before she was married. She played Eliza Doolittle in the St. Andrew’s School production of My Fair Lady.
Kate-Was-An-Actress
Super Fans
Kate and William received more than 60,000 pieces of fan mail for the royal wedding! Wow! They made sure every single person got a reply. Very nice of them!
Kate-and-Williams-Wedding
Is A Royal Curtsy Required?
No, no curtsying or bowing is required by law, but many chose to do so out of respect.
Curtsy
Kate Is The Oldest Bride
She was married when she was 29 years old, making her the oldest bride to date!
Kates-The-Oldest-Bride
They Can Change Rules
All rules can be…well amended if you are a member of the royal family. In 1929, Edward VIII brought golf clubs made of steel shafts to St. Andrews. Members playing there are only supposed to use wooden shafts. They permitted him to play anyway and changed the rule.
Edward-Golfing
Harry Was On The Frontlines
Both Will and Harry graduated from the Royal Military Academy. Harry graduated as a Second Lieutenant, and in 2008, he fought on the frontlines in Afghanistan.
Harry-In-Afghanistan
A Royal Baby’s Birth
Whenever a royal baby is born, it is obviously a big deal! The Queen is the first to know, and then the baby’s birth is announced with a 62-Gun Salute.
Royal-Gun-Salute
Tattoo?
George V has a large red and blue tattoo of a dragon on his arm! He got it in Japan when he was a young sailor. We didn’t expect that!
George-V
First To Graduate From Cambridge
Prince Charles was the first royal to graduate from Cambridge. He got a perfect mark of 2:2.
Cambridge
Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service
This is a pretty cool fact! During World War II, Elizabeth joined the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service. She was just a princess then and trained as a mechanic and driver.
Womens-Auxiliary-Territorial-Service
Kate and William’s Cute Nicknames
Kate and William have adorable names for each other. She calls Prince William “Big Willie,” while he calls her “babykins.” So cute!
Nicknames
Bishop Michael Curry
Usually, according to royal protocol, addresses are given by senior members of the Church of England. Meghan and Harry broke history when they invited an American Episcopalian bishop to speak and preside over the wedding. He gave nothing closed to the traditional aristocratic sermon royal wedding goers are used to!
Bishop-Michael-Curry
Meghan Wore Queen Mary’s Tiara
Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue! Meghan’s something old was Queen Mary’s beautiful tiara. It is just stunning on her!
Queen-Marys-Tiara
Obey?
To keep with tradition, Harry and Meghan read traditional vows from the Common Book of Prayer. Meghan, like Princess Diana and Kate Middleton, left out the word “obey.”
Obey@
No Escort
Meghan was the first ever royal bride to walk down the aisle without an escort. Her father couldn’t make the wedding due to a recent medical operation.
No-Escort
Bishop Michael Curry
For the first time, an American Bishop gave a sermon at a royal wedding. Some were shocked, and some loved it!
Bishop-Curry
That Jag Though!
The royal duo rode in a beautiful Jaguar E-Type to their wedding reception. It was originally made in 1968 but made into an electric car.
That-Jag-Though
Flowers Galore
The wedding’s floral designer was Phillipa Craddock. She worked with a team of florists to make the wedding displays. All the flowers were donated to St Joseph’s Hospice in Hackney, East London after the wedding.
Royal-Wedding-Flowers
Princess Di’s Ring
Did you know Harry gifted Princess Diana’s ring to Meghan? Yep, he gave the emerald cut aquamarine ring to her.
Princess-Dianas-Ring
First Dance
Harry and Meghan’s first dance was to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.”
First-Dance
Who Was Invited!
There were 600 invitations sent to the royal wedding, but only 200 were invited to the royal reception at the Frogmore House.
Crowd
Twins
Keeping with royal tradition, the bride’s wedding procession should be filled with children. Meghan asked her best friend’s twin sons, Brian and John, to hold her veil. They were so adorable!
Twins-Holding-The-Veil
45 Million
While this is just an estimate, it is believed the royal wedding cost £31,969,873 price tag (about $45,520,303). Wow!
45-Million
Fruitcake
One interesting fact is every British royal wedding since Queen Victoria’s 1840 ceremony has served fruitcake. Interesting!
Fruitcake
Longest Train
While Meghan’s train was an impressive 16.5 feet long, Diana’s was longer! Diana’s had a 25-foot train at her wedding.
Princess-Dianas-Train
St. George’s Chapel
King Henry I’s marriage to Princess Matilda of Scotland in 1100 was the first royal wedding to take place at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle in the United Kingdom.
St-Georges-Chapel
Entertainment
Sheku Kanneh-Mason, the 19-year-old who won BBC Young Musician of the Year, was the official cellist at the wedding.
Sheku-Kanneh-Mason
32 million
This wedding was more expensive than William and Kate’s! It is estimated their wedding cost $32 million in 2011. Most of the costs went to security.
Will-and-Kate
18 Million Viewers!
18 million people in the U.K. watched the royal wedding! This is actually less than Will and Kate’s 2011 royal wedding, which had about 24 million viewers in the U.K.
Wedding-Crowd