The Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester

Prince and Princess Richard pose with members of the British Royal Family and the bride's family. 

"There were no impressive gold embossed invitations to the wedding of Prince Richard of Gloucester to the Danish Miss Birgitte van Deurs," wrote an article on The Australian Women's Weekly about the wedding of Prince Richard of Gloucester and Miss Birgitte van Deurs. "No car stickers were required and there was no parking space anyway. 'Just come along,' they said, 'there will be free access for everyone,'" the article continues. 

It was an intimate village wedding  at the ancient parish church of St. Andrew in Barnwell, a picturesque village in Northamptonshire. Attending the wedding were some members of the British Royal Family, including the groom's brother, Prince William, and the Duchess of Gloucester, his mother. Noticeably absent was the groom's father, the Duke of Gloucester, who was ill. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, Prince Charles, Princess Margaret, Prince Michael of Kent, and Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, were also there, as well as the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch, the groom’s uncle and aunt, and the Earl anhd Countess of Dalkeith.

The Church of St. Andrew in Barnwell. Source: Britishlistedbuildings.co.uk

Barnwell Manor. Image from Wikimedia Commons

With only some fifty guests in the wedding ceremony, the simplicity of the wedding was no doubt. There was no fanfare of trumpets, no colourful pageantry, no guards of honour, and no royal standard. 

Following Danish custom, Birgitte, the daughter of a prominent Danish lawyer, did not have any bridesmaids, pages of even train bearers. As such, Norman Hartnell had to make sure that the bride's wedding dress is one that did not have any extra drama or excitement. What he created, instead, was one of sheer white, floating and soft "as a summer's day, with not a whisper of embroidery or beading."

After the ceremony, the couple and their guests posed briefly in the rain before proceeding to Barnwell Manor for the reception. A crowd of onlookers, journalists and photographers gathered outside the church to catch a glimpse of the royals. At the manor house, the groom’s father, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, already frail and in poor health following a series of strokes, awaited the new royal pair. 

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The Other Prince William: The Story of Prince William of Gloucester 

The Selfless Royal: Meet Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester