Elisabeth Toll, Kungl. Hovstaterna
It was a long-awaited royal wedding in Sweden when Crown Princess Victoria wed her longtime love, Daniel Westling in a ceremony in Stockholm that brought in royals from across the globe which was described as “Europe’s biggest royal wedding since the Prince of Wales married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981.”
The engagement between the pair was announced on 24 February 2009 with the wedding set to take place on 19 June 2010 (Victoria’s parents’ 34th wedding anniversary) at Stockholm Cathedral.
The Swedish Parliament (Riksdag) held a gala concert on the eve of the wedding at Stockholm Concert Hall with the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and various other Swedish performers.
Crown Princess Victoria wore a Pär Engsheden designed gown with the Swedish Cameo tiara and her mother’s veil in a sweet tribute. The dress later went on display in 2016-2017 alongside her mother’s wedding gown and the wedding gowns of her sister, Princess Madeleine; sister-in-law, Princess Sofia; and aunt, Princess Lilian.
The wedding was held on 19 June 2010, taking place at 15.30 with over a thousand guests. There was a bit of controversy regarding the bride walking down the aisle as Church of Sweden tradition has the bride and groom walk up the aisle together, but Victoria wanted her father to walk her down the aisle. In the end, they found a compromise. King Carl XVI Gustaf walked his daughter halfway down the aisle to meet Daniel, and the couple walked the rest of the way together.
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The Archbishop of Uppsala conducted the service with help from Royal Court Chief Chaplain and the Bishop of Lund. The first music played was by the Royal Swedish Academy of Music who performed a tune they had written especially for the occasion.
The bridesmaids and pageboys included several of Crown Princess Victoria’s godchildren including Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway (a future queen), Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands (a future queen), and Prince Christian of Denmark (a future king).
After the ceremony, the couple walked back down the aisle to the song “When You Tell The World You’re Mine” by Agnes Carlsson and Björn Skifs which was written for the wedding. The couple then took a carriage ride through the streets of Stockholm with half a million people estimated to have gathered along the route in what was Sweden’s biggest event covered on television.
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Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel then travelled to the Royal Palace of Stockholm where they appeared on the balcony to sing the Swedish national anthem and thank the Swedish people. The evening wedding banquet was held in the Hall of State that night. The banquet was televised with Daniel giving a moving speech in English to his bride, and King Carl XVI Gustaf giving Queen Silvia a rose in celebration of their anniversary.
Part of Daniel’s speech, spoken in English and Swedish, included him saying, “Crown Princess Victoria, Princess of Sweden, princess of my heart.”
Upon the marriage, Daniel became HRH Prince Daniel, Duke of Västergötland – the latter being the male form of Victoria’s dukedom.
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The couple now has two children: Princess Estelle (b. 2012) and Prince Oscar (b. 2016).