The Wedding Gift Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle Received That Queen Elizabeth Denied Prince William and Prince Harry’s Cousin
When we think of royal weddings, we think of beautiful, large-scale events that resemble something out of a storybook. But not all royal weddings are created equal.
Some are grand affairs televised all over the world, while others are low-key ceremonies held at modest churches and do not end with a procession through the streets. That was the case with the late Queen Elizabeth‘s oldest granddaughter, Zara, who married rugby player Mike Tindall on July 30, 2011.
Instead of tying the knot at Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s Cathedral, or St. George’s Chapel, Princess Anne‘s daughter didn’t even get married in England. She also didn’t recieve a wedding present from the queen that both Kate and Meghan got.
What Queen Elizabeth gave Kate and Meghan when they got married that she didn’t give Zara
As Guides for Brides noted, when Prince William wed Kate Middleton in 2011, she received a wedding gift of a title from Queen Elizabeth. From the moment they became husband and wife Prince William was the Duke of Cambridge and Kate the Duchess of Cambridge. The same thing happened when Prince Harry married Meghan Markle as he was gifted the Duke of Sussex title and his wife the Duchess of Sussex.
But Zara was not given a title from her grandmother the day she got married because royal tradition states that it’s “only sons and grandsons of the presiding monarch who can receive peerages when they marry.”
And for those wondering why Zara doesn’t already have a “princess” title like her cousins, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, that’s because after she was born Princess Anne rejected the queen’s offer to give either of her children, Zara or Peter Phillips, a title so they could live without the burden of their royal lineage.
Zara opted for a much different ‘something blue’ than Kate and Meghan
On her wedding day, Zara’s “something blue” was a bit out of the ordinary.
Guides For Brides’ Head of Strategy Nikita Thorne explained: “It’s tradition for brides to wear a special something blue on their big day. But whilst Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton opted to have a piece of blue fabric stitched into their dresses, Zara went bold and revealed she had her toenails painted electric blue.”
And Zara paid tribute to her grandmother and mother when she said “I do” with what she wore on her big day.
“Her bridal dress featured a silk faille and silk duchesse satin, plus a structured bodice and silk tulle-capped sleeves,” Thorne said. “When Zara wore a £280,000 ($350,00) tiara from the late queen’s collection, everyone assumed it was a touching tribute to her beloved grandmother. But whilst the exquisite piece of jewelry was a gift from Princess Alice to Queen Elizabeth on her wedding day, it was later passed on to Zara’s mother, Princess Anne.”
