By Aurelien Guichard from London, United Kingdom (changes by Rabanus Flavus) – File:St. Georges Chapel, Windsor Castle (1).jpg, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
It was one of the most talked about royal weddings in decades and now it is the marriage of a monarch and consort. On April 9th 2005, King Charles III and Queen Camilla married in Windsor. Millions were watching and they saw a bride with not one but two different wedding outfits. Those same outfits now have a place in history as the wedding dresses of Queen Camilla.
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This double wedding wardrobe was as much necessity as choice as there were two ceremonies that day in two very different setting. First, the couple were legally married in a civil ceremony which took place at Windsor’s Guildhall. Later they arrived at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, as man and wife, for a service of blessing for their marriage.
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For her first wedding ceremony that day, Queen Camilla wore a cream dress with matching coat. The dress was created from silk chiffon and featured embellishment at the hem in the form of applique disks. The long sleeved basket weave coat was made of silk.
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Like her second wedding outfit that day it was designed by Anna Valentine and Antonia Robinson. Queen Camilla, famous now for her love of hats, turned to milliner Philip Treacy who created a wide brimmed straw hat with feather detailing for this most talked about of royal brides.
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The second bridal outfit was chosen to stand out in the setting of St. George’s Chapel. Queen Camilla wore a pale blue full length chiffon gown covered by a long sleeved coat dress which swept out into a small, integrated train at the end.
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The coat dress was also pale blue and covered in golden embroidery and embellishments. It was complemented by another Philip Treacy creation, this time the famous spray of gold feathers which the bride wore without a veil and in the place of a tiara. The bride carried a small posy of spring flowers for her second wedding ceremony that day.
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Almost twenty years on, both outfits remain classic royal wedding looks but now with an added layer of history for, since September 2022, they have been the marital dresses of a queen.
