They reunited three years later in 1980, developing a romantic relationship that Charles described as "a gradual business.". When Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer announced their engagement in 1981, neither of them showed any sign of concern over the 12-year age difference that separated them. [9][19][22] The security screenings in the airports also increased. LISTEN: The Windsors podcast looks at the highs and lows of Prince Charles' life in the royal spotlight. "I thought it would be a good idea, that ... she could then think about it, and if she didn't like the idea, she could say she didn't," he explained in the interview. [9] The Naval Armed Forces supplied the official wedding cake. Diana was well receiv… Watch the brand new season of Younger now on Stan. [39], Per the Queen's orders, two similar bouquets were prepared for the bride by David Longman which contained "gardenias, stephanotis, odontolglossum orchid, lily of the valley, Earl Mountbatten roses, freesia, veronica, ivy, myrtle and trasdescantia". Charles and Diana got engaged 35 years ago. Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer announced their engagement at Buckingham Palace in February 1981, and were married only months later in July. Many street parties were held throughout the United Kingdom to celebrate the occasion. “I think that Diana will keep me young, apart from anything else,” the prince said during an interview after the announcement. [38] The official parfumeur of the royal wedding was Houbigant Parfum, the oldest French fragrance company. [44] Most of Europe's elected heads of state were among the guests, with the exceptions of the President of Greece, Constantine Karamanlis (who declined because Greece's exiled monarch, Constantine II, a kinsman and friend of the bridegroom, had been invited as "King of the Hellenes"), and the President of Ireland, Patrick Hillery (who was advised by Taoiseach Charles Haughey not to attend because of the dispute over the status of Northern Ireland). Biographer Tina Brown said the comment would "haunt his life." The ring, which now belongs to the Duchess of Cambridge, featured a 12-carat oval Ceylon sapphire surrounded by 14 solitaire diamonds, set in 18-karat white gold. [20], In a series of tapes recorded for her 1992 biography, Diana said that she recalled discovering a bracelet which Charles had bought for his longtime lover Camilla Parker Bowles shortly before their wedding. [35] The dress was made of ivory silk taffeta, decorated with lace, hand embroidery, sequins, and 10,000 pearls. Charles' comment has been perceived by some as a lack of affection for his bride-to-be, perhaps fuelled by it being misquoted as "whatever love means". Prince Charles had known Lady Diana Spencer for several years. How Charles first met 'amusing and attractive' 16-year-old Diana, The couple kept their engagement a secret from the public for three weeks. The Prince of Wales in the 1902 State Landau which was later used following the ceremony to take the couple back to Buckingham Palace. [9][46] The couple's other wedding cake was created by Belgian pastry chef SG Sender, who was known as the "cakemaker to the kings". The future Princess of Wales, nicknamed "Shy Di" by the media at the time, admitted the thought of entering the royal spotlight was a daunting one. Instead, Diana had selected it herself from the collection of former official crown jeweller Garrad; it was available to any member of the public to purchase. This was followed by an invitation to Balmoral Castle, the Royal family's Scottish home, to meet his family. [14] The Queen Mother gave Diana a sapphire and diamond brooch as an engagement present. After a short courtship, Charles and Diana announced their engagement in February 1981. [19], All of the governors-general of the Commonwealth realms, as well as the reigning European monarchs, attended, with the exception of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía of Spain. During his 1981 engagement interview to Princess Diana, Prince Charles said "whatever in love means," and now his biographer Sally Bedell Smith explains why (Getty), by her future husband's words, as revealed in the 2017 documentary, Charles and Diana pictured on their honeymoon later in 1981. Prince Charles the Prince of Wales and fiancee Lady Diana Spencer arrive for their first official engagement together "He rang his mum, simply to say there, I've done it now. "I had a long time to think about it. Among the invitees were the royal household's members and staff. You can put your own interpretation there," he remarked with a wry smile, as Diana giggled at his side. [9][55] The Edinburgh District Council was among the organisations that made a charitable donation in honour of the couple's wedding and donated $92,500 to the Thistle Fund, "a charity for the disabled". [30], Other church representatives present who gave prayers after the service were a former Archbishop of Canterbury, Donald Coggan, Cardinal Basil Hume, the Right Reverend Andrew Doig and the Reverend Harry Williams CR. Princes Diana and … The prince went on to marry Camilla in 2005, and she was given the title Duchess of Cornwall. They made two identical cakes in case one was damaged. June 21, 1982: Prince William was born. February 24, 1981 marked Charles and Diana's first public appearance as a couple following a six-month courtship. He said he would offer her "thy goods" instead of "my worldly goods". During that time, the press was given an arranged opportunity to take pictures. [20] The wedding ceremony was positively received by the public,[50] and according to The New York Times symbolised "the continuity of the monarchy" in the UK. The couple then had several dates in London. [32][31] Music and songs used during the wedding included the "Prince of Denmark's March", "I Vow to Thee, My Country", "Pomp and Circumstance No.4" and the British National Anthem ("God Save the Queen"). [26], At 10:22 BST the Queen and the royal family were taken to the cathedral in eight carriages. Prince Charles had known Lady Diana Spencer for several years. "[20], The royal couple had seven bridal attendants. (Getty). , featured a 12-carat oval Ceylon sapphire surrounded by 14 solitaire diamonds, set in 18-karat white gold. Princess Diana was the first royal to give birth in a hospital … The first official interview given by Lady Diana and Prince Charles since their engagement was announced. One interaction seems to say it all; in a foreboding clip that People uncovered, Prince Charles and Princess Diana are seen talking to a reporter during the announcement of their engagement … Diana had planned a holiday for the next week, and Charles hoped she would use the time to consider her answer. [40] Barbara Daly did the bride's make-up for the ceremony. I don't see it as a cynical, cruel statement. The ring was made by the Crown jewellers Garrard. Philip proposed to Elizabeth after a monthlong vacation at … [49], An estimated 750 million people watched the ceremony worldwide,[2] and this figure allegedly rose to a billion when the radio audience is added in, although there are no means of verifying these figures. As The Crown shows, when asked if he loved Diana, Charles said, "Whatever in love means." Diana and Charles had been seeing each other for about six months when he proposed on 3 February 1981 in the nursery at Windsor Castle. Five months after announcing their engagement, Charles and Diana tied the knot at Westminster Abbey. ", "Royal Wedding Dresses throughout history", "This is why the Queen made Princess Diana have two wedding bouquets", "Britain Celebrates, Charles Takes a Bride", "The Surprising Link Between Harry and Meghan's Royal Wedding and Charles and Diana's", "Prince's Guest List embraces Kings and Charwomen", "A Look Back At Princess Diana & Prince Charles' Wedding", "Flashback: Diana's Wedding Was Four Times As Expensive, And Her Train Was 17-Feet Longer", "Endlessly Appetizing 37-Year-Old Royal Wedding Cake Up For Auction", "From The Archive: Remembering The Prince Of Wales And Lady Diana Spencer's Wedding", "Scotland celebrates as Prince Charles marries Diana", "Wales celebrates the marriage of Charles and Diana", "Translators prepare for Prince Charles' wedding coverage", "Royal Wedding Gifts: Extraordinary and Ordinary Diana", "The Crown: why Charles and Camilla may not be amused", House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, The Prince's Foundation for Integrated Health, List of environmental/social interest awards received, Prince of Wales Prize for Municipal Heritage Leadership, Prince of Wales v Associated Newspapers Ltd, Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain, Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Playground, Diana: A Tribute to the People's Princess, Prince Albert Edward and Princess Alexandra, Prince Alfred and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, Prince Arthur and Princess Louise Margaret, Prince Albert and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, Prince Henry and Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott, Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten, Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones, Prince Michael and Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz, Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wedding_of_Prince_Charles_and_Lady_Diana_Spencer&oldid=1018407598, Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, Marriage, unions and partnerships in England, Pages with login required references or sources, Articles with dead external links from March 2020, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 17 April 2021, at 23:17. [2][3] Events were held around the Commonwealth to mark the wedding. Recounting his proposal, Charles revealed he had popped the question three weeks earlier, a few days before Diana embarked on a trip to Australia. [27], The couple received gifts from foreign officials including "an engraved Steuben glass bowl and a handmade porcelain centerpiece by Boehm" from the US, a set of antique furniture and "a watercolor of loons" by Canadian Robert Bateman for Prince Charles, together with "a large brooch of gold, diamonds and platinum" for Diana from Canada, handcrafted silver platters from Australia, an "all-wool broadloom carpet" from New Zealand, "a matching diamond and sapphire watch, bracelet, pendant, ring, and earrings" from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, and a "small oil painting by the American artist Henry Kohler of Prince Charles playing polo", and a clock in Art Deco style by Cartier's chief designer, Daniel Ciacquinot. The most extravagant royal weddings of modern times, On this day 40 years ago, the hopes of many an aspiring princess were dashed when, Prince Charles and Princess Diana's relationship: a timeline, Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer announced their engagement on February 24, 1981. However, it seemed Diana didn't need any time to dwell on her answer, saying yes to the heir apparent "quite promptly" then and there. [31][27], Three choirs, three orchestras and a fanfare ensemble played the music for the service. Though the proposal had come three weeks before the announcement, Charles had only presented Diana with her famous engagement ring days earlier. News of the engagement was kept secret for a few more weeks while Diana spent some time alone with her mother in Australia. [27] The couple was driven over Westminster Bridge to catch the train from Waterloo station to Romsey in Hampshire to begin their honeymoon. [16][17] Clayton Howard did Diana's make-up and John Frieda did her hair for the official portrait. It was watched by an estimated global TV audience of 750 million people. You can unsubscribe at any time. She giggled and you don't get any sense of her raising her eyebrows.". Absolutely traumatised me," she recalled in footage aired in the documentary. [54] Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom John Betjeman released a poem in honour of the couple. February 1981: Charles and Diana announce their engagement. Two million spectators lined the route of Diana's procession from Clarence House, with 4,000 police and 2,200 military officers to manage the crowds. ", The journalist probed further, asking: "And, I suppose, in love?". It was designed by Elizabeth and David Emanuel and had a 25-foot (7.6 m) train of ivory taffeta and antique lace. [4] He took serious interest in her as a potential bride in 1980 when they were guests at a country weekend, where she watched him play polo. [55] The Greater Manchester Council offered engineering apprenticeships for a small number of unemployed young people, and Cambridge University sent "a spare copy of The Complete English Traveller" by Robert Sanders. It seems Diana was equally bemused by her future husband's words, as revealed in the 2017 documentary Diana: In Her Own Words. "That threw me completely, I thought, 'What a strange [answer]'. "Whatever 'in love' means. The pair posed in … The ceremony was a traditional Church of England wedding service. Their divorce was finalised in 1996, one year before Diana was killed in a road accident in Paris in August 1997. [32] The choirs were conducted by Barry Rose, the choirmaster at St. Paul's Cathedral. RELATED: The stories behind the most famous royal engagement rings. Diana's engagement ring was not custom-made like other royal rings before it. The Crown makes it appear that Diana and Charles barely saw each other between their engagement in February 1981 and their July wedding, which is slightly exaggerated to … (The Spanish king was "advised" not to attend by his government because the newlyweds' honeymoon included a stopover in the disputed territory of Gibraltar). (Getty), That was all about to change, as the couple. After the ceremony, the couple made the traditional appearance on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. (Getty), 12 of the most moving photos from Prince Philip's funeral, Bindi Irwin's daughter Grace wears adorable wombat onesie. [27] A number of ceremonies and parties were held at different places by the public to celebrate the occasion across the United Kingdom. He invited her for a sailing weekend to Cowes aboard the royal yacht Britannia as their relationship began to develop. The Prince of Wales's coat of arms and the Spencer family's crest were used in the decoration of the five-foot-tall layered fruitcake which weighed 225 pounds. It's been widely claimed that during those months, the Queen's eldest son, 32, and the nursery teacher's assistant, 19, met in person just 13 times. But the real lasting “gem” of the engagement is the first televised interview between Charles and Diana. The groom was the heir apparent to the British throne, and the bride was a member of the Spencer family. The wedding took place on 29 July 1981. They first met in 1977 while Charles was dating her elder sister Lady Sarah.