Royal Wedding for 2013 is all set

One of the most beautiful princesses in the world will be out in the market comes June.

Her Royal Highness Princess Madeleine of Sweden and her future husband, American financier Chris O'Neil. Image by Reuters from the Daily Mail UK

Her Royal Highness, Princess Madeleine of Sweden, one of my personal favourites then to marry Prince William of Wales (now the Duke of Cambridge), will finally walk-down-the-aisle with her American financier boyfriend, Christopher O'Neil, on June 8, 2013 at the Royal Palace Chapel in Stockholm.

The ceremony might not a grand royal affair in Europe but will surely attract royal watchers around the world and royal guests will add glamour and sophistication to the event.

The princess, 4th in line of succession to the Swedish throne, is the youngest child of King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden and his German wife, Queen Sylvia. Madeleine already provided the public with some hints on how her wedding would look like. In an interview, she revealed her wedding will be an afternoon ceremony with a lavish palace reception and guests with no more than 500. So far the royal guests confirmed to be attending are the Earl and Countess of Wessex, who had been attending royal weddings in Europe for the past years to represent the Queen, the Prince and Princess of Asturias, Felipe and Letezia, Prince Frederick of Denmark and wife Princess Mary.

Madeleine and Chris attending the gala dinner for their royal guests

Princess Madeleine currently holds the title Duchess of Halsingland and Gastrikland but it is not known whether her future husband will be given a royal title and whether their future children will earn their places in the line of succession to the Swedish throne.

It is an interesting note to share that the Princess had been engaged in 2009 to a Swedish lawyer, Jonas Bergstrom, but months after the announcement of their official engagement, the two broke up due to some issues of infidelity on the side of Madeleine's fiance prompting her to move to New York after the wedding of her older sister, Crown Princess Victoria in 2010, to forget the heartache she suffered from the breakdown of her almost one decade romantic relationship. A year later she met O'Neil.

Christopher O'Neil despite his status of being commoner was born from a wealthy family. He has a British blood and holds a dual American and British citizenship. He studied at a boarding school in Switzerland and obtained a degree in International Relations from Boston University and earned a masters degree in Business at the Columbia Business School in New York.

Eve of the Royal Wedding

Tomorrow, the world will witness the royal wedding of Prince William and Miss Middleton, and as what Kitty Kelly mentioned in her book, The Royals, "Royal weddings invigorate the monarchy. With all its pageantry, they pump energy into the ancient rituals. They provide an epic pageant that can stirs emotions." Royalty often spend lavishly on the weddings because they believed such occasion helps revitalize the monarchy.

And royals knew they needed one to attract their subjects' fascination once again and wind up threats from the republicans of a change of government. 

The people too are tired hearing bad news and witnessing crimes. that traveling back to the fairy land seems a welcome respite.

Amidst the economic meltdown, political unrest, global warming and calamities that hit the world, it seems we needed something to amuse us in order  to distract our mind temporarily from all the chaos and clutters in the surrounding. Nothing is more fascinating than watching royals come out from their castles and palaces and paraded in town mesmerizing us with their fascinator hats, sash and crowns.

The prancing horses, glass couches, horse-drawn carriages, blaring trumpets, footmen and royal guards in their state livery, offer a unique experience of grasping a life in a fairytale world away from these troubles we are in. 

As William and Kate are preparing to walk-down-the-aisle tomorrow, people from other parts of the globe are also excited to wake up to watch their very public saying of "I dos". 

APRIL 27, Wednesday

They had their final wedding rehearsal last Wednesday at Westminster Abbey with their  young bride's maids, page boys, Best Man and Maid of Honor, Kate's father also attended to practice how to walk with his daughter all the way to the altar. Later, Prince William went out with his training suit with his friends riding in a motorbike playing football.

The wedding has 1,900 guests from different background and event is assumed to reach 34 million pounds in spending which will be shouldered by Prince Charles and the Queen with private and small contribution from the Middletons. Catherine seems won the jackpot prize in Lotto.

APRIL 28 Thursday

The Middletons checked-in at the posh Goring Hotel where they will stay until the morning of April 29. This morning, one of the palace aide was seen carrying a covered-dress, believed to be Kate's wedding gown, from Clarence House to Goring Hotel. The florists already decorated the Abbey this morning with spring romantic green plants with white and yellow flowers transforming the church into a lush forest dazzling in a bright morning light. But weather forecasters announced Friday the 29th might be marred by heavy rain.

At 6:00 pm, Prince William surprised the throngs of people who had camped earlier on the Green parks to get better positions on the wedding route. The Prince went out to greet them and thanked them with their supports. His grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, went to Mandarin Oriental Hotel near Hyde Park (across Buckingham Palace) to host a dinner with foreign royals.

While browsing on the photos of the couple's secret rehearsal at Westminster Abbey and watching the live videos, I noticed how messy Catherine's face, (picture left) she looked totally drained and haggard and her hair is so ghastly dry and frizzy, the dress she wore (black print with white polka dot which she topped with white cotton blazer, she wore her favorite black peep toe shoes) didn't compliment her physique and it feels like she dropped her dress size too thinly. She looked like a complete skeleton and she seemed tensed and nervous. Could it be wedding jittery? Relax girl, remember it is your ultimate dream to marry a Prince and wear a crown, you devices so many scheme for the past 10 years so rest your mind in peace now that you have it.

Fairytale Blunders

Undoubtedly, the wedding of Prince William to a commoner woman is the end of the fairytale. Gone are the days when royals appeared so mysterious in public because their spouses came from the same circle.

The very reason why people adored royalty is because "they are not one of us", we adored their mystical existence, their being untouchables and the way they portrayed  refinement in public, but the moment commoners start penetrating the delicate world of fairytales, the mystery that shrouds its turf began to expose and, lifting the sacred veil of the royal court, thoroughly revealed what's inside. In the 1980s when scandals and controversies haunted the marriages of both royal children, the Queen Mother believed the troubles surfaced because of the commoners inclusion to the family. Andrew Morton, the biographer of Diana, would say it more blatantly "Grafting commoners into the Hanoverian (the Windsors) tree proved to be very disastrous".

But the royals know they cannot hold on to the mystic forever. They need to be more flexible and more human. They need to invigorate the crown. Modern times dictate that they should be more aware of their environment and to be more in-touch with their subjects by adopting the modern trend and not the outdated traditions of the monarchy. For this reason, most royals in Europe start looking beyond their palace walls to be more popular with the crowd and retain the position of the monarchy in the twenty first century democracy.

And Prince William exactly knew where to put his best foot forward...

But amidst his effort to steer the British monarchy into a more normal establishment by taking a commoner spouse, there are still uncertainties left hanging in the horizon if he could really salvage the eroding prestige of the crown due to the controversies inflicted by its members in the past decades. But can he avoid the same mistake? Many people believed he can, but what if some of the pre-requisites of the disaster started appearing in his surrounding than he expected?

ENGAGEMENT RING

When the public saw the glittering blue sapphire engagement ring previously worn by his mother on his fiancee's finger, many people cried "wrong decision". Why? Well, because the ring signifies suffering and disenchantment in his mother's life. For the record, this exquisite oval-shaped ring was not intended for Diana, Prince Charles did not choose it for her. In fact when Prince Charles proposed in February 1981, he had no ring to offer to Diana, so he told the crown's jeweller, Garrads, days later, to bring their rings display to the palace so that his fiancee can choose one. Garrads brought several rings and Diana picked the larger one, many believed the late Princess of Wales chose it because it reflects the colour of her eyes--blue sapphire. Meaning, the ring was not intended for her, it was her who personally chose it and paid by the Queen. 

THE VOW

Traditionally, the words "to obey" are included on the wedding vow which will be uttered by the bride. But in July 1981, Lady Diana Spencer opted not to utter it, well, probably because the words were not included in the script of the wedding vow. Now it's Kate Middleton's turn, but during the final wedding rehearsal, where they rehearsed their vows too, it seems Miss Middleton will follow the footsteps of Diana by not uttering the "to obey" words, instead she would declare "to love, comfort, honour and keep" her husband.

NO GLASS COUCH

The previous royal brides were transported in a glass horse drawn carriage on the way to the church. But Miss Middleton will not, instead, she would ride in an ill-fated Rolls Royce car from the Royal Mews which had previously smashed by demonstrators in London some months damaging its windows and side mirrors, the incident almost knocked off Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall who rode the car on the way to a public engagement. Could it be a bad omen?

THE TROUBLE WITH CAROLE

Even before the relationship of her daughter to the future King becoming more serious, she was already accused of inappropriate behaviour not fit for a royal's mother-in-law. Badly criticized for having no proper social etiquette and for dressing inappropriately as if she was a teenager, Carole Middleton is being pictured in the public as a publicity-hungry, social climber woman which might affect how the royal family will treat Kate the moment she becomes a legal member of the family. In fact one poll survey recently revealed that it is still uncertain if the royal family will accept this commoner woman wholeheartedly into their circle the moment she emerged from the Abbey tomorrow after the ceremony.

Only years can tell if Prince William made the right decision.

A different tradition in the Royal Wedding

With just two days left before the world will be treated to the pomp and pageantry of the ancient ritual of horse-drawn carriages, glass couches and muffled guns on the royal wedding, here are few of the "surprises" and royal practices we will surely witness on the ceremony.

THE LONG WALK

Diana on the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral in 1981 oh her way to the aisle for a long walk. Her 25 foot long train was taken care by her young bride's maids, one of them was a granddaughter of Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

It is part of the tradition of royalty not to let the groom see the wedding gown before the bride will glide down-the-aisle on the wedding day, so the wedding dress Kate Middleton will wear on Friday, the 29th of April ,remained locked up in the secret room of  Prince Charles's residence, Clarence House, to keep it from the eyes of the public and, well, Prince William. But while the people in London and those who will watch the live coverage on their television set, will catch the glimpse of the gown right after Kate will step out from Goring Hotel to the waiting Rolls Royce, Prince William will not see it until he faces her on the altar, therefore, he is the last person to see the dress. William is expected to arrive, with Prince Harry, by 10:30 at the Abbey then go ahead walking on the aisle. 

On a typical wedding march, the groom and his best man would stand below the altar while watching the bride do her slowly walk. But based on the 1981 wedding of Charles and Diana, this is not the case. Prince William and his brother will customarily go to a private chapel of the church near the altar before his bride-to-be takes her walk. He and his brother will only come out and walk near the altar when the bride and her father will start a march.

BRIDAL TIARA

The Prince and Princess of Wales after their wedding at St. Paul's Cathedral in July 29, 1981, appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. The Princess of Wales wore a stunning Diamond Spencer Tiara.

It is customarily for royal brides to wear a Tiara on the wedding day. The Queen herself wore a diamond-and-pearl piece on her wedding to the Duke of Edinburgh in 1947 given to her as a wedding present from grandmother, Queen Mary. The Queen's late mother, Queen Elizabeth and Lady Diana Spencer, because they are children of wealthy British Earls, wore a family heirloom Tiara. The Queen Mother--a dainty floral design, Strathmore Rose Tiara---while Lady Diana---a  sparling Diamond studded Spencer Tiara. Though Hello!magazine's voters picked up this tiara to be most likely seen on Miss Middleton's head on April 29, it is less known if it will really happen as the Tiara is now under the care of Diana's brother, Earl Spencer. When Sarah Ferguson married the second son of the Queen, Prince Andrew, in 1986, she did not wear a tiara from the royal collection, instead, the Queen purchased a brand new tiara from the crown's jewellers, Garrad, as the royal family's gift to the couple. Whether Kate Middleton will wear a tiara from the royal collection or don something new, remains to be seen.

WEDDING ATTENDANTS

Princess Margaret's wedding in May 1960. The bride wore a Poltimore Tiara, a gift from her grandmother, Queen Mary. In 1986, the tiara was sold to a whopping $1.5 million. Queen Elizabeth II is the first British monarch in 200 years to accept a commoner to her direct family, her only sister took Anthony Armstrong-Jones, a royal court photographer, as her husband after denouncing Group Captain Peter Townsend due to pressure from her position and duty to the realms. In this picture, the couple, is surrounded by the cute little bridesmaids. Prince Charles, who was only 13 years old during the wedding, stood as a pageboy wearing a Tartan garb (because at that time he was already a Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay).  Princess Margaret was accompanied by her brother-in-law, Prince Philip, to the altar.

In ordinary weddings, we mostly seen Bride's maids and Groom's men considerably older or same age as the bride and groom, but in royal weddings, attendants are usually younger, aged 3 to 12. Kate's bridesmaids are aged 3 to 8 including Prince William's cousins The Lady Louise Windsor, 7 years old, and The Honourable Margarita Armstrong-Jones, 8 years old. Royal bridesmaids will wear the same pattern and color of dress of the bride while the groom's men known as the page boys sometimes wear a sailor suit, just like the one wore by Prince William himself on the wedding of his uncle, Prince Andrew, in 1986.

WEDDING RING

In an ordinary wedding, the wedding ring will be carried by a young page boy to the altar, but traditionally, wedding ring and coins are to be taken care of by the Best Man, so Prince Harry take this responsibility. In earlier reports, Buckingham Palace's spokesman had already declared that the Prince would not wear a wedding ring following his marriage. So we will only see one ring in the ceremony.

WEDDING MARCH

There's no extended wedding march in the Anglican rites. Prince William will be with Prince Harry only while the bride will be ushered to the altar by her father only. Young Bridesmaids will follow the bride to take care her long train (reportedly 10 feet long--slightly shorter than Diana's train in 1981 which was measured 25 feet long).

AT THE ALTAR

The couple won't sit! Yes, and this is very certain. They will just stand in front of the Archbishop of Canterbury who will officiate the marriage. The church service will be conducted by the Dean of Westminster.

BRIDAL BOUQUET

Tomb of the Unknown Warrior on the floor of Westminster Abbey where bridal bouquets of past royal brides (married at Westminster) were laid upon.

Following the royal tradition set by Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1923 of laying the bridal bouquet on the Tomb of Unknown Warrior inside the Abbey, Prince William's future bride will lay her bouquet also on the tomb to honour the military where Prince William is a current member. The unknown soldier was buried here when he was brought home from France during World War I unidentified. The Tomb was created in 1920. Since 1923 every royal bride married in the Abbey laid her bouquet on the Tomb.

PRINCE WILLIAM'S SURNAME

Traditionally, Princes and Kings don't have any surnames, they are just known by their royal houses and countries of origin. Prince William himself, just like his brother, is using the geographical title of his father, WALES, while studying and even in his present rank in the British Armed Forces. So the question is, because marriage registry needs a surname entry, what is the surname of Prince William? Before 1917, British royals have no surnames and only carry the name of the royal house they belonged or the geographical title of their fathers. But in 1917, due to bitter anti-German sentiments (where every German living in England was accused of being a German spy) King George V (who descended from a German royal house, Saxe Coburg-Gotha) declared that all his descendants must be known henceforth as House and Family of Windsor, using it as a surname officially by his family. In 1960, Queen Elizabeth II declared also that she will continue using the surname but made it clear that all her descendants, other than carrying the titular dignity of a Prince of Princess, who need to have a surname will use Mountbatten-Windsor to honour her husband.

The Queen's husband is Prince Philip, a former Greek Prince (grandson of King George I of Greece) therefore no surname at all, but before their marriage in 1947 he was told to abandon his Greek royal status to be more acceptable to the British public, so the Prince obliged and took a family name Mountbatten. The name was adopted by his maternal grandfather, Prince Louis of Battenberg, the former Sea Lord of England, when he was forced to relinquish his princely title in 1917 at the height of World War I, he was created by his cousin, George V, as the First Marquess of Milford-Haven. The Battenbergs and the Windsors are of German origin, berg in Germany means Mountain, hence the name Mountbatten.

This surname, Mountbatten-Windsor, was first seen on the marriage registry of Princess Anne (the Queen's only daughter) in 1973, it was followed by his brothers when they got married. Now, it's Prince William's turn to use this surname on his marriage entry at the Abbey.

Complete Wedding Details

Here's the part II of the royal wedding details. The following details are taken from the royal wedding media briefing document I got yesterday from the official wedding site of William and Kate, the document's first page includes a monogram of the couple with a crown on top of their initials. The media briefing document was released by St. James's Palace, the official working office of the Prince of Wales, it was distributed to the media to give accurate reporting about the details of the wedding for the benefit of the public.

Oh, there's one more thing, for people who are expecting to see the very famous part of the ceremony --- and one of the customs of the modern wedding --- "you may now kiss the bride", sorry to tell you that such behaviour has never been part of rules of the Church of England (the Anglican religion", no royals ever smooched on the church before the congregation after pronouncing them "husband and wife". The Dean of Westminster, who will conduct the church service, made it clear to the public that "We don't do that in the Church of England, that's sort of a Hollywood thing" referring to the "kissing of the couple". But the public might viewed them kissing on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during their appearance at 1:25 pm after the Wedding Breakfast. The marriage will be solemnized by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

ROYAL PERMISSION

The official consent of Queen Elizabeth II for the marriage of her grandson was released last Maundy Thursday. The Instrument of Consent was personally signed by the Queen at the Privy Council meeting after she made the Declaration of Consent last February. So what's this official consent stuff?

Based on the ancient law of the monarchy, the Royal Marriages Act of 1772, all descendants of King George III of the United Kingdom must formally seek the permission of the British ruling sovereign for marriage in order to be considered it legal in the United Kingdom. Anybody who would not ask permission or if the marriage will not be approved the sovereign, it is considered null and void in Great Britain and would automatically strip the royal from the line of succession to the British throne. Descendants of King George III include all royals of the European royal houses, except the Netherlands and Liechtenstein.

Under the Great Seal of the Realm, Her Majesty signed a notice of approval proclaiming (and transcribed calligraphy) and giving consent on the union of His Royal Highness, Prince William of Wales, K.G (Knight of the Garter) and Miss Catherine Elizabeth Middleton. The document has a decorative artwork to represent William and Kate, a white lily to represent St. Catherine of Siena whose feast day falls on the couple's wedding day, a Welsh leek surrounded by the Prince's white three-pronged second-in-line label and a red scallop taken from the Spencer's family Coat-of-Arms.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE SCHEDULE

The following timings have been confirmed for the Wedding Day. 

8.15 -9.45am  The general congregation will arrive at the Great

North Door of Westminster Abbey.

From 9.50am  Governors-General and Prime Ministers of Realm Countries,

the Diplomatic Corps, and other distinguished guests arrive at     the Abbey.

10.10am          The Bridegroom and Prince Henry of Wales leave Clarence House for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.15am.

10.20am          Members of Foreign Royal Families arrive at Westminster Abbey from Buckingham Palace.

10.20am          Mrs. Michael (Carole) Middleton and Mr. James Middleton leave the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.27am.

10.25am          Members of the Royal Family (except those listed below) leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.30am.

10.35am          The following Members of the Royal Family leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.40am:

The Duke of York

Princess Beatrice of York

Princess Eugenie or York

The Earl and Countess of Wessex

The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence

10.38am          The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall leave Clarence House for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.42am.

10.40am          The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.45am.

10.48am          The Bridesmaids and Pages leave the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.55am.

10.51am          The Bride, accompanied by Mr. Michael Middleton, leaves the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey.

11.00am          The Marriage Service begins.  The Marriage Service will be relayed by audio speakers along the Route.

12.15pm          The Carriage Procession of the Bride and Bridegroom with a Captain’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, followed by The Queen’s Procession with a Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, leaves Westminster Abbey for Buckingham Palace.

12.30pm          The Bride’s Carriage Procession arrives at Buckingham Palace.

12.40pm          Members of the Royal Family and Members of Foreign Royal     Families arrive at Buckingham Palace.

From 12.40pm Other guests for the Reception arrive at Buckingham Palace.

1.25pm            The Queen and the Bride and Bridegroom, together with their   Families, appear on the Balcony.

1.30pm             Fly Past by the Royal Air Force and Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. 

All arrivals at Westminster Abbey are at the Great West Door unless otherwise indicated. 

THE BRIDAL ENTOURAGE

Best Man: His Royal Highness, Prince Harry of Wales (the groom's only brother)

Maid of Honor: Miss Philippa Middleton (the bride's only sister)

Bridesmaids: 

             The Lady Louisse Windsor, 7 years old (William's first cousin)

             Honorable Margarita Armstrong-Jones, 8 yrs.old (son of Viscount Linley-the Queen's nephew)

             Miss Grace Van Cutsems, 3 years old (William's godchild)

             Miss Elisa Lopes, 3 yrs.old (granddaughter of the Duchess of Cornwall)

Pageboys:

             Master William Lower-Pinkerton, 10 yrs.old (son of William's private secretary)

             Master Tom Pettifer, 10 yrs.old (son of William's former nanny)

These young girls and boys will perform their roles as Bridesmaids and Pageboys (commonly known as Groom's men) in the wedding and will have their position in the carriage after the ceremony.

WEDDING MUSICIAN AND PHOTOGRAPHER

Musicians: The Choir groups of Westminster Abbey and the Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace

                 The London Chamber Opera

                 The Fanfare team of the Central Band of the Royal Air Force

                 The State Trumpeters of the Household of Cavalry

Official wedding Photographer: Hugo Burnard of Conde Nust Publications, he was personally chosen by Prince William to take wedding souvenirs because of his long service to the royal family as portrait photographer.

WEDDING RING

In British royalty and aristocracy, males never actually wear a wedding ring because under the marriage vow of the Anglican rites ring symbolizes "worldy treasure" which will be offered by a groom to his bride. Wearing a wedding ring among British aristocrats is entirely a personal choice and Prince William already made it clear he won't wear a wedding ring. So there will only be one ring in the ceremony, which will be worn by the bride. It is made from the lump of Welsh Gold owned by the royal family. By not wearing a wedding ring, Prince William will follow the tradition set by male royals including his grandfather, Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh. But his father, Prince Charles, and two uncles, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, each wore a wedding ring for their respective marriages. The Prince of Wales placed it under his signet ring on his little finger.

WEDDING CAKE

There will be two sets of wedding cake prepared for the wedding. One is the traditional wedding cake made of Fiona Cairns from Leicestershire. It is a multi-tiered fruit cake with roses and cream icing and will be decorated by British floral themes. The other cake is a Chocolate Biscuit Cake, especially requested by Prince William, made from the royal family recipe and will be created by McVitie's Cake Company.

WEDDING RECEPTION

Traditionally, the royal family called this WEDDING BREAKFAST even if the reception falls in the afternoon. There will be two receptions. First at 1:00 pm hosted by the Queen at Buckingham Palace. Among the 1,900 invited guests, only 600 will be invited to Wedding Breakfast. Guests will be served with Canapes and the chocolate biscuit cake. Among the 600 people, only 300 will be invited to a private dinner at 6:00 pm hosted by Prince Charles also at Buckingham Palace.

WEDDING BOUQUET

The flowers comprising the bridal bouquet are not mentioned in the document but one thing for sure, there will be no tossing of the bouquet in the reception just like other ordinary weddings because Kate Middleton will follow the tradition set by previous royal brides by putting it on the Tomb of Unknown Soldier located on the floor of Westminster Abbey. It means, she will leave the church without bringing the bouquet anymore.

WEDDING GIFTS
William and Kate have set up a Charity Fund which listed charitable institutions around the United Kingdom with no existing royal patronage and mostly unknown, to be the beneficiaries of their wedding gifts. The couple announced through their official wedding site that in case of any generosity for their wedding, gifts will be in the formed of anything to be donated to any of the charities listed in the Fund.

WEDDING PARADE

The wedding ceremony will be relayed by audio speakers along the route. After the ceremony at Westminster Abbey, the entourage and the royal family will return to Buckingham Palace and will pass on a designated route with a tight security. William and Kate will ride in a 1902 State Landau, the same Landau that carried Charles and Diana after their 1981 wedding. They will be followed by horse-drawn carriages carrying the members of the British royal family, the Queen and her husband, Prince Philip, will ride in a State glass carriage. The Middleton family will ride on the motor couches provided by the royal family.

FLYPAST PRESENTATION
After the wedding breakfast, the newly wed will appear for 10 minutes in the balcony of Buckingham Palace with the royal family to greet the cheering crowd, just like the Prince and Princess of Wales in 1981 (left picture). There will be fly-past presentation where Royal Air Force will do an acrobat stunt of their aircraft. It was revealed that the aircraft units to be used are Spitfire, Lancaster and Hurricane mostly from the Battle of Britain Memorial, the Spitfires and Hurricanes were prominently featured in the book, The Battle of Britain by Matthew Parker (which I read last week) used by the Royal Air Force, where they emerged victorious against Hitler's forces during World War II.

LIVE STREAMING ON THE ROYAL CHANNEL
It was announced also that the royal wedding can be viewed for free at the Royal Channel in youtube accompanied by a live multi-media blog coordinated by St. James's Palace. The Royal Channel will host a live stream gadget courtersy of google.com which will stream the wedding live from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm (6:00 pm to 10:00 pm Philippine time).

There will be thousands of British military personnel to control the crowd and protect V.I.P guests on the wedding day.

Royal Wedding Media Briefing

Just today, I got a copy of the media briefing file to the royal wedding from the official wedding site of Prince William and Catherine Middleton approved by Buckingham Palace. The document includes the details of the ceremony, costs, timing, seating arrangement and the names of guests.

ARRIVAL

The media briefing file listed the timings of the arrival of the guests and the entourage to Westminster Abbey. The guests are expected to be in the church at 8:30 in the morning. Prince William and Prince Harry, who will travel in a Bentley car together, will leave Clarence House at 10:00 in the morning, while the rest of the royal family will be in the church shortly before 10:45. Kate Middleton with her family and bridesmaids will spend the night before the wedding at Goring Hotel. She will be accompanied by her father in a state car from the Royal Mews, Roll Royce Phantom IV, on her way to the church and not in a glass carriage which carried the late Princess of Wales, Diana, in 1981. The ceremony will start promptly at 11:00 o'clock and expected to finish at 12:30.

THE CHURCH SERVICE

The service will be conducted by the Dean of Westminster while the Right Reverend, Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, will officiate the marriage vows of the couple, the Bishop of London will give the address.

THE COSTS

The Queen and Prince Charles will shoulder the costs of the wedding , Mr.and Mrs.Middleton reportedly will share considerable amount of the costs. Because Prince William is not yet the Heir-Apparent, the British government won't share any expenses except for the security.

SEATING ARRANGEMENT

The briefing document includes the seating arrangement inside the church. The Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles, Camilla and Prince Harry will occupy the front seat directly facing William and Kate, on the opposite side will be the Middletons. Members of the royal family will come next facing the Spencer family and selected relatives of Kate. The foreign royals will occupy the right part of the Abbey. Members of the Defence forces will seat at the back of the royal family

INVITED GUESTS

Finally, the names of the invited guests are revealed in the document. There are 40 foreign royals who are invited, plus government officials, ministers of the commonwealth and friends of both William and Kate. Celebrities like Sir Elton John, David and Victoria Beckham and Film director Guy Ritchie are included. Surprisingly, President Obama and President Sarkozy of France are not invited, a palace spokesman said "traditionally, royal family only invites fellow royals in a wedding, if there are government officials invited, only those who belonged to the British commonwealth of nations". As of April 24, there are 1,900 guests who will come to the royal wedding on April 29.

Here is the complete list of royals who will be attending the ceremony:

BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY

 The Queen

The Duke of Edinburgh

The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall

Prince Henry of Wales

The Duke of York

Princess Beatrice of York

Princess Eugenie of York

The Earl and Countess of Wessex

The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence

Mr. and Mrs. Peter Phillips

Miss Zara Phillips with Mr. Mike Tindall

Viscount Linley and Viscountess Linley

 And The Hon. Charles Armstrong-Jones

The Lady Sarah Chatto and Mr. Daniel Chatto

 And Master Samuel Chatto

 And Master Arthur Chatto

The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester

The Earl and Countess of Ulster

The Lady Davina and Mr. Gary Lewis

Lady Rose and Mr. George Gilman

The Duke and Duchess of Kent

Earl and Countess of St. Andrews

Lord Downpatrick

The Lady Marina-Charlotte Windsor

The Lady Amelia Windsor

The Lord and Lady Nicholas Windsor

The Lady Helen Taylor and Mr. Timothy Taylor

Prince and Princess Michael of Kent

The Lord and Lady Frederick Windsor

The Lady Gabriella Windsor

Princess Alexandra, the Hon. Lady Ogilvy

Mr. and Mrs. James Ogilvy

Miss Marina Ogilvy

The Lady Saltoun

  

FOREIGN ROYALS

The Prince and Princess of the Asturias

The Crown Prince of Bahrain

Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium

The Sultan of Brunei and Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Hajah Saleha

King Simeon II and Queen Margarita of the Bulgrarian

The Queen of Denmark

King Constantine and Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes

Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece and Prince Constantine of Greece

Sheikh Ahmad Hmoud Al-Sabah of Kuwait

Prince Seeiso Bereng Seeiso and Princess Mabereng Seeiso of Lesotho

The Grand Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong and Raja Permaisuri Agong of Malaysia

Prince Albert II of Monaco and Miss Charlene Wittstock

Princess Lalla Salma of Morocco

The Crown Prince and Princess of The Netherlands

The King and Queen of Norway

Sayyid Haitham bin Tariq Al Said of Oman

The Emir of The State of Qatar and Sheika Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned

King Michael I of Romania and Crown Princess Margarita

Prince Mohamed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia and Princess Fadwa bint Khalid bin Abdullah bin Abdulrahman

The Queen of Spain

The King of Swaziland

The Crown Princess of Sweden and The Duke of Västergötland

Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand

The King of Tonga

The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi

Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of Yugoslavia

SPENCER FAMILY

Lady Sarah Mcquorcodale (sister of Diana) and her husband

Lady Jane Fellowes (sister of Diana) and her husband The Lord Robert Fellowes (former private secretary of the Queen)

Lord Charles Spencer, the 9th Earl of Althorp

Others are foreign dignitaries from the British commonwealth of nations, senior members of UK's Defence forces, members of British government, representatives of different religious organizations in Britain, representatives from different charitable institutions, selected relatives of the Middletons and friends of Kate and William.

Countdown to the Royal Wedding

Six days more to go...

And the pomp and pageantry of the royal wedding will charm the public...the prancing horses, muffled guns and horse-drawn carriages will mesmerize most of the subjects of Her Majesty once again...

WEDDING GOWN'S CLUE

Up to this day, no one ever know what kind of dress Miss Middleton will wear on her big day, though several designers' name popped up in the news since December 2010, none of them confirmed the rumor of being tapped as the lucky couturier . But recent article of the Daily Mail revealed that indeed, it is Kate Middleton herself who is designing her own wedding dress!

According to Daily Mail online, the 5 feet 10 inches woman who obtained her Art History degree at St. Andrew's University, was so excited with the thought of marrying Prince William that she did her own design shortly after the announcement of the engagement in November last year. According to the article, the bride-to-be drew experience from her Art degree and from her short stint as an accessory buyer of Jigsaw, a London-based fashion chain, to create a stunning dream design and brought it to an unnamed designer in London.

The gown is said to be finished now and kept in a secret room of Clarence House, Prince Charles's official London residence. The gown in question, according to Daily Mail, is made up of ivory satin and lace with a pearl button detail and a 10 ft. train created by a not-so-famous designer who owned a small fashion house in London. It was reported also that William and Kate agreed to place the gown in auction after the wedding to benefit several charities they supported including the Prince's Trust.

MEET THE QUEEN

With just few days before the wedding, sources revealed that Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II finally met ,for the first time, Kate's parents, Michael and Carole Middleton. In the past months, the Queen's snub to Miss Middleton's parents had been popularly talked in the media that some Palace insiders were quick to defend that "the meeting will take place as long as Her Majesty is free from commitments".

There had been speculations that the monarch, who, many believed, are less enthusiastic to dine and engage in casual conversations with commoners who are not commonwealth ministers, might not set aside a  specific day to meet the Middletons, but due to pressure of being accused as callous and stoic, suggestions might reach the ears of Her Majesty that it would look good if she will invite the two people who would become the in-laws of her grandson.

The meeting was confirmed by a Palace spokeswoman, according to the Daily Mail: "The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh invited the Middletons over lunch at Windsor Castle to break the ice before the royal wedding and last only one hour as Her Majesty couldn't linger long over lunch". Aside from the royal couple, only private secretaries of the royal household were present in the private meeting, William and Kate were not there not even Prince Charles.

VISITED DIANA

Sources also mentioned that Kate and William paid a visit to the grave of the late Princess of Wales, Diana, at Althorp. Diana's brother, Charles Spencer, the 9th Earl of Althorp, constructed a memorial on the oval garden near a small lake of the estate to make sure her sister's final resting place is safe and secure.

Prince William has been known with his strong devotion to his mother that even beyond her death, he made sure she won't be left out in his big day. He chose the blue sapphire-cut engagement ring, which previously belonged to his mother, when he proposed to Kate and previously planned to live in Kensington after the wedding.

The red brick palace was a former home of his mother and shared so many wonderful memories with Diana during his childhood years. But lately, reports abound that the Prince, probably due to high cost of renovation, will share a flat with Prince Harry at Clarence House, when he and Kate are in London. Prince Harry also commented in one interview that surely their mother will be in their thoughts on the wedding day.

ENJOYING THE SPRING SUNSHINE

With just days away from the wedding, Kate Middleton made the most of her freedom by shopping for two days at different budget stores in high street, London, to buy some  wardrobe and accessories, which speculated to be items she would bring on the honeymoon. But what puzzles other observers is her dreadfully shrinking weight.

Though it is common that brides are desperate to trim down few inches to look gorgeous wearing their fabulous bridal gown, most people expressed concern over her unattractive weight loss which  made her looked like  a diet sucker and anorexic. Her ribs are showing prominently while her muscles around arms and legs are protruding, she looked too skinny and malnourished and appeared like suffering from an eating disorder.

 Her physical appearance before

Now this is her latest physique, a complete shocker

WEDDING REHEARSAL

Days ago, it was revealed that the bridal entourage undergone a wedding rehearsal at Westminster Abbey but did you know that Prince William was not there? How can that be?? Members of the entourage were all present except the groom, according to several sources, Kate understood William's absence and seemed happy with the rehearsal. The Prince was on-duty at his Anglesey barracks. Why he didn't file a leave of absence from his job to join the rehearsal? Was it a bad omen?

WILLIAM'S TITLE

In the British royalty, any senior male members who are set to marry will be given a title of a Duke which will be conferred by the Queen, but up to now, there's no confirmation on the news if Prince William will be created a British Duke. He was Knighted by his grandmother in 2008, thus carrying an honor of a  Knight Garter (KG). There were suggestions to make him Duke of Strathern, Duke of Sussex or Duke of Clarence but so far, the Palace officials never confirmed such suggestions.

NOT PRINCESS CATHERINE

Contrary to the public's naive belief that she will be called Princess Catherine, creating a Princess status is not part of the tradition of the British monarchy. While other European royal houses automatically created a wife of a Prince a Princess in her own right, in Great Britain this is not the case. When Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles in 1981, the Palace Press Office immediately informed the public that the newly created Princess of Wales should not be called Princess Diana "Addressed her as Princess of Wales but not Princess Diana because she was not born a Princess".

Kate Middleton might be called Princess William after the wedding but not Princess Catherine, creating a title is always at the pleasure of the monarch under a Letter Patent issuance, failure to pass under this process is considered unofficial and invalid, in the history of British monarchy, no wife of a British Prince was created a Princess in her own right except Princess Alice of Gloucester, wife of Queen Elizabeth II's uncle, Prince Henry, the Duke of Gloucester. If William will be created Duke of Clarence for example, then Catherine will be called Duchess of Clarence but not Princess Catherine.

GOODBYE FREEDOM

Kate Middleton has only six days left for his carefree and unstructured lifestyle. The moment she walked-down-the-aisle in the arms of Prince William, the palace doors be invisibly closed around  her and the freedom she possessed once will be part of her "thing of the past"'. According to Jan Moir of the Daily Mail: "Shopping, clubbing with friends, roller disco nights, drinking and dining with friends, will all be gone. Never again will she skip down a city street with such a blithe spirit, her days of being just another face in the crowd will be long, long gone, As the gates clang shut behind her, what on earth does the future hold for Miss Middleton of Bucklebury?

Hope her strong determination to marry Prince William and the mastery she did on gripping the Prince  tightly for the past eight years, will help her surpass the difficult life of being a royal family recruit.

Where would the Bouquet Go?

In every wedding we attended and heard, the most anticipated tradition we always witness is the tossing of bridal bouquets on the group of anxious single ladies, who gathered before the bride for this ritual, in the wedding reception. Superstitious had it that, whoever catch the bouquet will have her turn to glide to the altar soon. This tradition has been around for many centuries now, this might sounds interesting to everyone, well for the sake of fun, but not for the British royal family.

Though Prince William desired to live a life in a liberated world (he and Kate had been living together several months before the announcement of their engagement in November 2010) and wanted to organize his upcoming wedding in a modern sense, there are still royal practices that is thoroughly traditional that he should abide, one of these practices is the "treatment of a bridal bouquet".

British royal protocol dictates that a bouquet of the royal bride must be placed in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier inside the Westminster Abbey right after the ceremony. The tomb, which is very symbolic to Britain, was created in 1920 to bury the unknown soldier died from World War II. It is located at the back of the Abbey on the church floor. The tradition of laying bridal bouquet on the tomb dated back in 1923 when King George VI married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. The bride, who would become the Queen Mother in 1952 laid her bouquet on her way to the Abbey. Since then all royal brides married in the Abbey imitated the gesture.

Now Kate Middleton will have her turn to do the honor to pay tribute to the British military where Prince William and Prince Harry are both officers. (Left photo: Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Westminster Abbey)

Note:

Among the daughters-in-law of Queen Elizabeth II, only Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York had laid her bouquet on the tomb as her wedding to the Queen's second son, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, in July 1986 was held at Westminster Abbey. Diana and Charles were married at St. Paul's Cathedral in July 1981, the Queen's youngest son, Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex and Sophie Rhys-Jones were married at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle in June 1999 while Prince Charles's church's blessing with Camilla Parker-Bowles happened also at St. George's chapel.

Latest Updates

Two weeks more to go and Prince William and Catherine Middleton will say "I do" at Westminster Abbey. So here are the latest updates on the final preparation I read from the official website of the royal wedding, Daily Mail Online and the Royal Forums (where I am a member). Important information like tiara, the wedding dress and the invited guests will only be known on the day of the wedding.

1. April 29, 2011, Friday is declared a national holiday in Great Britain. For British people, this is somewhat a good news.

2. Some branches of the British Armed Forces are now making final touches of the preparations for the said event. The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment will be the official escorts of the British sovereign and her family members, the Cavalry officers will ride on the royal carriages, thus, rehearsing their horses for a long walk from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace, will be their primary concern. The Royal Air Force, Navy and army will have its own role at the wedding. Members of the military personnel who will serving the event are expected to wear their service uniform.

3. Wedding guests will be treated with two wedding cakes at the reception: Chocolate biscuit cake and a traditional fruit cake. The Chocolate biscuit cake will be served to the guests during the reception at Buckingham palace, Prince William commissioned McVitie's Cake company, which had been doing business with the royal family since the reign of King George V, to do the job. The traditional wedding cake will be a multi-tiered fruit cake,  decorated in floral homage to the four nations of the United Kingdom – England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. William and Kate have chosen Fiona Cairns Ltd of Leicestershire to create their wedding cake, it will be decorated with cream and white icing using elements of the Joseph Lambeth technique with authentic British ingredients.

4. The identities of high profile guests had been kept secret due to security risks but some names are already confirmed, mostly royals, Prince William's godfather, King Constantine II of Greece and his wife, Queen Ana Marie including some of their children and grandchildren, are attending, Constantine's sister Queen Sophia and her husband, King Juan Carlos of Spain with Prince Felipe and his wife, Princess Letizia will be attending, this is partly because, Constantine and Queen Sophia are nephew and niece respectively of Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.

5. William's Best Man, Prince Harry, as reported by the Daily Mail online (March 31, 2011) already hinted some "naughtiness" on his speech at the reception. He previously revealed that he is planning to prepare a speech that would "break" few ribs of his brother out of embarrassment, a kind of speech that would make "William lose some hair”, he added. But Prince Harry was quick to say that his speech is not  very rude because his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, is in attendance and he never dreamed to disappoint his grandmother.

6. Guests are advised to be on the church at 8:30 in the morning. The Queen and her family are expected to arrive at the church at 10:40 while the bride and her father, who will be carried by one of the cars of the royal collection (probably Bentley or Rolls-Royce), will arrive at 11:00 o'clock in time for the ceremony.

7. There will be two receptions. One at Buckingham Palace at 3:00 pm hosted by the Queen another at 8:00 pm at St. James's Palace hosted by the groom's father, Prince Charles. Out of the estimated 2,000 invited guests only 600 or less are invited to the reception at Buckingham and only 300 are invited to the reception at St. James's Palace. While in ordinary wedding reception, all guests are invited, in the royal tradition this is not the case.

8. After the ceremony, the couple and the rest of the royal family members will have a traditional wedding breakfast at Buckingham Palace. Then the couple will appear on the balcony of the palace for 10 minutes to greet well-wishers and maybe another round of a "kiss" just like what William's parents did in 1981.

9. The Central Band of the Royal Air Force will serenade William and Kate during the signing of register in the church after they will be pronounced husband and wife. The Central Band of RAF is composed of seven trumpeters and one drummer, the wing commander, Duncan Stubbs, will direct the band. The music will last for 30 seconds.

10. Catherine Middleton with her family will spend the night before the wedding at Goring Hotel in London. She will leave there with her father on the day of the wedding and be at Westminster at 11:00 in the morning. According to reports, Kate's parents will pay their bills at Goring Hotel estimated to reach 20,000 pounds.

11. Since Prince William is not yet the heir-apparent, his wedding costs will not be shouldered by the state. Prince Charles will foot the bill with his mother, the Queen, and Kate's parents. The Middletons will pay the bill for their exclusive booking at Goring Hotel, the bride's wedding dress and maid of honor's dress. The British government will only pay the bill for security.

12. Two choirs, one orchestra and two fanfare teams will provide music during the wedding service at the church: The Choir of Westminster Abbey, the Chapel Royal, the London Chamber Orchestra, the Central Band of the Royal Air Force and the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry. The official Harpist of Prince Charles will serenade the guests during the reception at Buckingham Palace.

Visit this site often for more updates on the royal wedding.

Prince Albert's wedding

Apart from Prince William, there's another member of the European royalty who will get married this year.

Prince Albert II, the sovereign Prince of Monaco, will wed his girlfriend, Charlene Wittstock, a South African Olympian, this coming July in two ceremonies. The civil rites will be held on July 1, 2011 at the royal registry office while the lavish Catholic wedding ceremony will be held on the following day, July 2, 2011 at the main courtyard of the Palace of Monaco. Just like Prince William, Albert and his girlfriend announced that instead of receiving expensive gifts, guests may donate their gifts to charity they'd chosen.

Prince Albert will use two hybrid vehicles for the church ceremony, Lexus and BMW, which are both designed in elegant black livery to suit the occasion. His wedding, which is a state event, will be attended by most royal members in the world and foreign dignitaries because he is a reigning sovereign and head of state. For more information on Prince Albert's wedding, visit the the official website of the Palace of Monaco.

Royal Wedding Tidbits

Here are some of the latest updates on the upcoming wedding of Prince William.

Lady Sarah McCorquodale

Lady Sarah is the older sister of the late Princess of Wales, Diana. It was announced that she will be wearing the stunning pair of earrings worn by Diana nearly 30 years ago when she wed the Prince of Wales in July 29, 1981 at St. Paul's Cathedral. The exquisite earrings, a pear-shaped diamond surrounded by almost 50 sparkling diamonds, were once belonged to their mother, the Honorable Frances Shand-Kydd (who died in 2004).

The earrings are part of the exhibition tour celebrating Diana's life in America organized by the 9th Earl Spencer to support various charities supported by the late Princess of Wales. The earrings will be carried back to London before the royal wedding so that Lady Sarah can wear it.

Last Official Public Engagement

Since December 2010, a month after the announcement of their official engagement, Prince William and Kate Middleton performed joint public engagement around the United Kingdom to condition his fiancee on the reality of marrying into the royal family, the future role she will embrace and how to endure the difficult life with in the limelight. Last week the couple had their last official public engagement before their big day. They traveled to East Lancashire to grace the opening of a public school and visited a park in Blackburn.

Bridal Attendants

Two months ago, the couple had announced their wedding attendants. This will be the first time that a royal wedding has Maid of Honor. Miss Middleton selected her only sister, Pippa, to do the part while William chose his brother, Prince Harry, as his Best Man. Bridesmaids, are all from the upperclass and they are considerably young, Lady Louise Windsor is only 8 years old, she is the daughter of Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex (brother of Prince Charles), The Honorable Margarita Armstrong-Jones, 9 years old, daughter of Viscount Linley (first cousin of Prince Charles) and Grace Van Cutsem (daughter of William's aristocratic bestfriend).

Who are Invited, Who are not

Up to this time, it is still uncertain if Sarah, Duchess of York, the estranged wife of Prince Andrew, the Duke of York (William's uncle) will be invited, she was once close to Diana but had a fall out towards the end of their marriages to the royal Princes. Though she remained close to Prince Andrew, a video where she was caught granting an access to a reporter in exchange of money and Prince Andrew's privacy, slightly enraged the royal family. The Obamas are not invited and so other foreign dignitaries. Celebrities like David Beckham and his wife, Victoria, are confirmed to be attending and so with the ex-loves of both William and Kate.

Not a State affair

It was reiterated on the royal news that the wedding of Prince William is not a state event, though April 29 is declared a national holiday in Britain. It is not a state affair because William is not an heir to the throne and his wedding cost will not be shouldered by the government but by Prince Charles.

London Residence

Contrary to the previous report of considering Kensington Palace as their official London residence, a palace spokesman confirmed Prince William and Miss Middleton will be sharing a quarter, which has two bedrooms, with Prince Harry at Clarence House when they are in London. 

Comments from Prince Harry

Before Harry left London for an excursion trek to the North Pole, he was interviewed how he feels that his brother will be getting married soon. The Prince said he was quite surprise on William's sudden decision to get married because he thought his brother won't take a plunge as early as 2011 but then expressed his happiness for his brother's upcoming wedding. Harry, who is famous for blurting naughty words in public, said he will be selective with his words on the wedding where he will give a speech, because his grandmother is in attendance. He also said, he is happy to welcome Kate Middleton into the family and gave a remark:"It's either I will be under her wings or she will be under my wings".

No Wedding Ring for Prince William

Wedding Rings are platinum bands worn by husband and wife, part of the long-cherished tradition of married life since the middle ages. It is a significant and precious symbol of the couples' love and deep commitment of a lifetime union. But what if royals are not into it? While modern ordinary men embraced this tradition wholeheartedly, British aristocrats seemed wary to take it as part of their married life. They treated it only as a personal choice and not as part of their marriage sentiments.

Type of Wedding bands. The plain design is intended for the groom, while the one with stones is for the bride

Prince William and Kate Middleton. While modern married men usually wear a wedding band, Prince William won't have it and will follow other male royals and aristocrats who have no wedding ring on their left fingers. His decision frowned the public because he is widely viewed as a modern royal who slowly adopted the lifestyle of ordinary people

And the issue of wearing a wedding ring becomes one of the most favorite topics in the royal circle once again as Prince William's wedding gets nearer. Would he wear a wedding ring? The answer is NO.

An article from the Daily Mail online revealed that the Prince will not wear a wedding ring following his marriage to Kate Middleton. The palace spokesman was quoted saying "It is a personal preference and William has decided not wear one". It further revealed that Prince William is not into jewelry and that this issue is already settled with his fiancee who reportedly "accepted the decision of the Prince happily". William will follow the tradition sets by other male royals, most notably his grandfather, Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh, and some aristocrats of not wearing a wedding band.

But William's father, Prince Charles and uncle, Prince Edward, wore wedding rings on their left fingers. The Prince of Wales placed it under his signet ring on his left little finger.

Prince Charles wore a wedding ring during his marriage to the late Diana, Princess of Wales

...and to Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall

While Kate Middleton will be presented with a ring made of a lump of Welsh Gold owned by the royal family, which will be carried by Prince Harry to the altar (the correct wedding etiquette dictates that rings should be carried by a Best Man to the altar and not by a young boy as we have seen on several wedding ceremonies),  Prince William don't have one as it is his personal choice not to wear a wedding ring. The Church of England's marriage vow clearly reinforced this decision of some aristocrats, according to the wedding rites under the Anglican religion, a wedding ring symbolizes "the worldly goods of the groom" the exact line will be uttered by the groom only, since the bride is not require to do it, she is not oblige to slip a ring to her husband's finger. But in the Catholic Church's rites, the ring symbolizes "deepest commitment and fidelity" which will be uttered both by the couple, hence, the importance of presenting a ring to each other.

Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh and Her Majesty, the Queen. While she wears a wedding band her husband does not have one

Other royals and aristocrats who had no wedding ring on their fingers are William's grandfather, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, James Ogilvy (son of Princess Alexandra of Kent), Edward Van Cutsem (husband of Lady Tamara Grosvenor), George Gilman (husband of Lady Rose Windsor) and many aristocrats.

Mean while, Kate Middleton, by now must prepare how to say the real name of Prince William correctly during their exchange of marriage vow to avoid the blooper that Princess Diana committed in July 1981 when she nervously rambled the names of Prince Charles, she uttered "Philip Charles Arthur George", instead of "Charles Philip Arthur George", later on, Charles's joked that his bride had just married his father Prince Philip!

William's real birth name is William Arthur Philip Louis Spencer Mountbatten-Windsor