Queen Mary and King Frederik of Denmark will be celebrating their twentieth wedding anniversary on 14 May 2024. Although their year has been busy with Frederik’s ascension and the ensuing ceremonies and engagements, we are looking back at their wedding with a closer look at Mary’s wedding gown. 

Then Mary Donaldson, the future Danish Queen turned to Danish designer Uffe Frank to create her gown for her wedding to the Crown Prince of Denmark. The pair met at a bar in Sydney in 2000; however, their wedding was anything but casual. 

The gown was made of duchess satin and lined with silk organza. It had a scooped neckline, a very defined waistline, and sleeves that the designer described as “callasleeves”. The three-quarter length sleeves opened up much like calla lilies. 

Mary’s mother had passed away in 1997, and she chose to wear her mother’s wedding ring sewn into her gown for her wedding day.

Queen Margrethe also allowed Mary to wear a family heirloom for her veil. The Irish lace veil originally belonged to Princess Margaret of Connaught who became the Crown Princess of Sweden when she married in 1905. Margaret’s daughter, Ingrid, brought many of her pieces into the Danish Royal Family, and the veil has been worn by every female member of the Danish Royal Family who has married since. Mary was the first non-royal to wear the veil. 

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