Royal wedding 2018:Here are key moments from the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and America's Meghan Markle at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle

3:23 a.m.: Inside the castle walls


     Harry and Meghan invited 2,640 “regular” folk to attend the wedding and watch from the gardens inside the Windsor Castle walls. These guests represent charities the couple, especially Harry, has supported over the years -- like Surfers against Sewage, and environmental and veterans groups.

Alan Scott, 69, from Lincolnshire has been involved in British Scouting for 45 years. He and his partner set up lawn chairs outside St George’s Chapel. “Splendid!” Scott said. “I think it’s amazing that we are all invited.”

Scott brought a picnic hamper of pork pies. "And some champagne," said his partner, Julie Frisby.


4:47 a.m.: Oprah makes her entrance.

Among the invited guests now entering the chapel is global media personalty Oprah Winfrey.


Oprah is wearing lilac dress with sunglasses and a large hat. She is seated in the A-List section in the chapel's quire.

4:58 a.m. Prayer for the day

The Church of England has let us know the special prayer for the day:

God of love,

send your blessings upon Harry and Meghan,

and all who are joined in marriage,

that, rejoicing in your will

and continuing under your protection,

they may both live and grow

in your love all their days,

through Jesus Christ our Lord.


Amen.

5:05 a.m. The rings

Kensington Palace just told us hacks:


Harry and Meghan chose Cleave and Company to make their wedding rings. Markle's ring "has been fashioned from a piece of Welsh Gold, gifted by Her Majesty The Queen. Prince Harry's ring will be a Platinum Band with a textured finish."

5:30 a.m.: The Clooneys and the Beckhams

Just seeing the Clooneys now -- the actor George, the human rights lawyer Amal -- getting off the bus and walking to the chapel entrance. Right behind them are David and Victoria Beckham, the soccer star and his former Spice Girl.

5:55 a.m.: Elton John is here

Elton John strolls by. It is rumored he may perform at one of the two receptions to follow the wedding service. (He sang "Candle in the Wind" at the funeral for Prince Harry's mother, Princess Diana.) Inside the chapel, the press pool cameras are lingering on the Clooneys, especially Amal, in a lemony gold dress and hat. Almost all the women are dressed in hats. The men are divided: some in suits, others in traditional morning coats with vests.

6:30 a.m.: Meghan Markle is on her way

Meghan Markle and her mum, Doria Ragland, have left nearby Cliveden House for the drive to Windsor Castle. The pair are being driven in a well-waxed vintage Rolls-Royce Phantom IV. Through the window, there's a glimpse of the dress. It is white. Details to follow. On her veiled head, Markle wears a diamond bandeau.

6:42 a.m.: Princes Harry and William arrive

The red-bearded Prince Harry marches in a happy gait toward the chapel's West Door, alongside his best man, his older brother and second in line to the throne, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge.

Both Harry and Will are wearing the uniforms of the Blues and Royals.

Bespoke, cut and sewn by hand, Harry's frockcoat is made of blue doeskin, in a single breasted style, with figured braiding. He is wearing his Pilots' Wings and a medal honoring his service as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan.

Next up: the dress reveal. In the press room at Windsor, of course, we know what it is. But there are armed guards outside.

7:00 a.m.: The reveal of the dress

Meghan Markle’s wedding dress was designed by British designer Clare Waight Keller, the first female artistic director at the French fashion house Givenchy.

Markle and Keller worked closely together on the design, we are told.

The fashion house tweeted that the dress was “inspired by all 12 signs of the Zodiac, the Zodiac Signs collection features artisanally carved rings and earrings to convey the wearer’s character.”

Here's the verdict from Washington Post fashion critic Robin Givhan:

The dress isn’t everything but it is a lot. And the Givenchy haute couture gown chosen by Meghan Markle for her marriage to Prince Harry told a story about contemporary romance, geopolitical history  and the institution into which she has married. But mostly, most importantly, it offered a bit of insight into the bride herself.

The sleek white gown, with its six strategically placed seams, was stitched from a heavy silk with a subtle sheen. A simple bateau neckline gracefully framed her face. The body of the dress subtly outlined her waist and flowed into a full train. But what was most noticeable were all the things that the dress was not. It was not a Hollywood red carpet statement. It was not a Disney princess fantasy. It was not a mountain of camouflaging tulle and chiffon.

The dress was free of extravagant embellishments. It was not covered in yards of delicate lace. It did not have a single ruffle — no pearls or crystals. Its beauty was in its architectural lines and its confident restraint. It was a romantic dress, but one that suggested a clear-eyed understanding that a real-life romance is not the stuff of fairy tales. The dress was a backdrop; it was in service to the woman.

7:03 a.m.: Inside the chapel

Markle's mother Doria Ragland has been seated. Harry and William are sitting side-by-side inside the chapel gate, Harry looking slightly nervous. The bridesmaids and page boys arrive, looking cute as heck.

Prince Charles and Duchess of Cornwell, Camilla Parker Bowles, enter the chapel.

Charles will walk Markle part-way down the aisle.

7:07 a.m.: Markle walks down the aisle

The service begins with a musical fanfare by the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry. As Markle begins to process down the aisle, the orchestra plays George Frederick Handel’s “Eternal Source of Life Divine,” sung by soprano Elin Manahan Thomas.

7:13 a.m.: "The Declarations"

The guests are standing and led in “The Declarations.”

The Archbishop of Canterbury says:

“First, I am required to ask anyone present who knows a reason why these person may not lawfully marry, to declare it now.”

This is always an awkward moment.

There is silence. Meghan Markle smiles.


Harry and Meghan also declare their love, and faithfulness — but these are not yet the upcoming vows.

7:16 a.m.: Princess Diana's sister

The Lady Jane Fellowes, the late Princess Diana’s older sister, reads a classic wedding passage from the Bible’s Song of Solomon.

“Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. Set me as a seal upon your heart, as seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave…”

And some more bits about flashes of fire, a raging flame and unquenchable love.

Read more: Princess Diana won’t be forgotten at the royal wedding. Her sons still mourn her death.

7:34 a.m.: The sermon

The Most Reverend Michael Curry performs a rousing address.

Bishop Curry is the first African American to preside over the Episcopal Church.

"There's power in love," he tells the couple, who are seated and holding hands.

“We were made by a power of love and our lives were meant to be lived with that love," he says.

Playing off the style of a classic American black preacher, he does an amazing, theatrical discourse on the power of love -- to heal wounds, to end poverty, to guide government. On BBC, there are cut-aways to the look on the prim and proper faces of royals.

As he closes, he says has to close, "we gotta get ya'll married."

"Well, that was forceful...," says the BBC announcer.


7:37: The choir

There's a real strain of Americaness, of the African American experience, in this service.

Now comes Karen Gibson and The Kingdom Choir singing the classic "Stand By Me," by Ben E. King, and once upon a time covered by John Lennon.


The rings are exchanged.

7:40 a.m.: The vows

Markle repeats the vow. "I Meghan, take you, Harry, to be my husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part..."

8:07 a.m.: God save the Queen

Everyone rises! And belts out the British national anthem.

"God save our gracious Queen,

Long live our noble Queen,

God save the Queen..."

As soon as Meghan Markle becomes a British citizen, as she plans to be, Elizabeth II will be not only her grandmum-in-law but her sovereign.

8:11 a.m.: The kiss

They pass through the floral arch. They pause, and Harry leans in and Meghan leans in and the couple kisses.

They board the Ascot Landau carriage. Prince Charles waves goodbye. The long wedding dress train is addressed. The father-and-son Windsor Grey horses begin to pull them out into the town...

You hear a roar.


The royal wedding by the numbers

200 Amalfi lemons went into the wedding cake
16 feet of silk tulle made up the bride’s veil
10 pint-sized bridesmaids and page boys participated in the ceremony
175 years since the was another Duke of Sussex
7 charities were chosen by the couple for donations in lieu of gifts

5,000 members of the media received credentials


8:14 a.m.: The procession

                            

The procession! The moment that many in Windsor have been waiting for -- in some cases, for days -- a chance to clap (misty) eyes on the newlyweds. An estimated 100,000 well-wishers have lined the streets, including the tree-lined road known as the Long Walk, to watch the Duke and Duchess of Sussex pass by. The procession is expected to last about 25 minutes.

“It was spectacular,” Jayne Ralph, 50, a retail manager from Vancouver, said of the moment the newlyweds passed by. Though she suggested it would have been nice if other royals could have driven by and offered a wee wave.

•  Britain's Prince Harry and America's Meghan Markle are now the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
• Queen Elizabeth hosted a lunch reception at Windsor Castle for about 600 guests. Elton John performed.
• More than 100,000 people are estimated to have lined the wedding procession route.
• The wedding dress was designed by British designer Clare Waight Keller, the first female artistic director at Givenchy.
  
  

Source: WashingtonPost