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On a summer’s day in 1981—July 29, to be exact—crowds of well-wishers lined the streets near Buckingham Palace, as 750 million people turned on their televisions, eagerly awaiting the chance to see history beamed into their homes. A 20-year-old Lady Diana Spencer was preparing to head to St Paul’s Cathedral to marry Prince Charles, in what would go on to be considered one of the last great state events of the 20th century.
Since that day 44 years ago, every element of the day has been discussed in detail, from Diana’s dress and tiara, to the 3,500 guests, the 27 different wedding cakes and that famous balcony kiss. One small feature of the lavish spectacle has not, however, received quite as much attention: a secret addition to the Princess’s wedding dress, designed by husband-and-wife team David and Elizabeth Emanuel.
The Princess reportedly asked for a small, horseshoe charm to be included in the design, to bring good luck.
Princess Diana Archive/Getty Images
“On the Princess of Wales’s wedding day to King Charles, it is reported that she actually had a little 18-carat gold horseshoe brooch sewn into the back of her wedding gown for an extra helping of prosperity on her big day.” Sarah McCann, an expert at a luxury jewelry company, recently revealed to The Express. “The horseshoe has been a common good luck charm in the United Kingdom since 969 AD.”
Studded with diamonds and made from Welsh gold, it’s said that on the day, only the Emanuels and Diana knew about this secret addition stitched into the petticoats of one of the most famous wedding gowns in history. Allegedly, Princess Diana asked for a small, blue ribbon tied in a bow to be sewn into the back of her dress as well, fulfilling the tradition of wearing ‘something blue’ on your wedding day to ensure good luck.
Charles and Diana married in an enormous spectacle, estimated to have cost a staggering £57 million
Bettmann
The event cost a staggering 57 million British pounds (about $66 million) and was watched by a record-breaking number of people across 74 countries. Around 600,000 well-wishers gathered to see the newlyweds process through the streets, as the day had been declared a national holiday. For her wedding, which took place just five months after the couple had announced their engagement, Diana wore a silk-taffeta fairytale gown that was estimated to cost £90,000 (about $120,000). With its ’80s era-defining puff sleeves and enormous 25-foot train, it is still remembered as one of the most iconic wedding dresses of all time. In fact, the train, which remains the the longest in the history of royal wedding dresses, was so massive that the Emanuels had to relocate from their studio to an abandoned wing in Buckingham Palace, where they had the space to cut the train to size and shape.
Diana biographer (and previous Tatler and Vanity Fair editor) Tina Brown described the dress as “the fulfillment of her Princess fantasy. She was insistent in her demand for its puffy sleeves and floating silk, its 25-foot taffeta train, its nipped waist, and its antique lace embroidered with pearls and sequins.” Diana teamed her dress with satin and lace slippers—low-heeled so that she didn’t tower over her new husband – made by celebrity shoemaker Clive Shilton. Intricately decorated with 500 sequins and 100 seed pearls, the suede soles were painted with a small “C” and “D” under the heel, a heart added between the initials.
Princess Diana’s 25-foot train remains the longest of any royal bride in history
Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
As is tradition, Princess Diana wore a tiara on her wedding day, but she did not borrow one from the royal family. Instead, she wore the Spencer tiara, which had been in her family for nearly a century. Made up of different pieces of jewelry, it was transformed by Garrard in the 1930s into a tiara, which was also worn by Diana’s elder sisters, Lady Sarah Spencer (now Sarah McCorquodale) and Lady Jane Spencer (now Jane Fellowes) on their own wedding days.
Despite all her efforts to ensure a happy marriage with the many sweet touches included in her wedding outfit, Charles and Diana’s union was not to last, and the couple divorced in 1996. Nevertheless, Diana’s wedding dress remains preserved in time as one of the best-known examples of royal style, and arguably represents the beginning of the Princess’ relationship with fashion—an interest that would endure for the rest of her life.
Originally published in Tatler UK.
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