Marie Claire UK Marie Claire UK
  • Fashion Fashion
      • Fashion
        • View all Fashion
        • Fashion Trends
        • Shopping
        • Watches and Jewellery
        • Fashion News
  • Beauty Beauty
      • Beauty
        • View all Beauty
        • Fragrance
        • Hair
        • Make Up
        • Skincare
        • Nails
        • Marie Claire Beauty Awards
  • Health Health
      • Health
        • View all Health
        • Fitness
        • Nutrition
        • Female Health
        • Wellbeing
  • Life Life
      • Life
        • View all Life
        • Opinions
        • Travel
        • Sustainability
        • Weddings
        • Money & Work
        • Competitions
  • Culture Culture
      • Culture
        • View all Culture
        • TV and Film
        • Celebrity News
        • Books
        • Royal News
  • Vouchers Vouchers
      • Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Mint Velvet
        • Karen Millen
        • H&M
        • nobody's child
        • ASOS
        • ARKET
        • MANGO
      • Designer Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Reiss
        • THE OUTNET
        • SSENSE
        • Mytheresa
        • Liberty London
        • Selfridges
        • Farfetch
      • Accessories
        • View all Vouchers
        • AllSaints
        • Aspinal of London
        • Charles & Keith
        • River Island
        • FitFlop
        • Kate Spade
        • Vagabond
      • Jewellery
        • View all Vouchers
        • Pandora
        • Abbott Lyon
        • Goldsmiths
        • Beaverbrooks
        • Astrid & Miyu
        • Swarovski
        • Angara Jewellery
      • Beauty
        • View all Vouchers
        • Sephora
        • Cult Beauty
        • Space NK
        • Dyson
        • Clarins
        • Look Fantastic
        • Clinique
      • Activewear
        • View all Vouchers
        • Lululemon
        • Gymshark
        • Sweaty Betty
        • Nike
        • adidas
        • New Balance
        • Helly Hansen
  • NEWSLETTER Signup to our newsletter
  • logoCreated with Sketch.
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • Women in Sport 2026
    • Marie Claire Masters
    • Spring Summer 2026
    • Nail Trends 2026
    • Best Investment Bags
    • Best Perfumes
    • Digital Issues
    • Women Who Win
    1. Style

    Apparently the Queen was surprised by this detail about Meghan’s wedding dress

    Penny Goldstone's avatar
    By Penny Goldstone
    Published 21 November 2018 In News

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    royal wedding tiaras
    (Image credit: Rex)
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    The Duchess of Sussex's Givenchy gown has already gone down in history and one of the most iconic Royal wedding dresses of all time, thanks to its timeless elegance.

    Meghan Markle's wedding dress was of course designed by Claire Waight Keller, and featured elegant three-quarter sleeves, an off-the-shoulder neckline and full skirt, plus a very conservative train, all made of pure white silk and organza.

    A fact that apparently, the Queen wasn't massively keen on to begin with. A source told the Mail on Sunday, 'The Queen is said to have expressed surprise that Meghan, a divorcee, wore quite such a white dress for her wedding.'

    According to (outdated in my opinion) bridal etiquette, a bride on her second marriage should wear something more subtle, like ivory, blush or pastel colour, as white traditionally means innocence and virginity. Which usually isn't applicable in the first place anyway these days.

    Both the Queen herself and Catherine the Duchess of Cambridge wore ivory gowns for their weddings.

    You may like
    • Andy Burnham and Marie-France van Heel entering 10 Downing Street “Are We Just Jealous?” Victoria Moss Unpacks the Sexist, Ageist Commentary Around Marie-France van Heel’s Victoria Beckham Dress
    • Realisation Par The Internet's Most-Wanted Dress Is Back in Stock—It's So Good, You Can Wear It (Almost) Anywhere
    • @oksanarim1 wears white dress, big sunglasses Not All White Dresses Are Equal—These New Silhouettes, Fabrics and Styles Are the Ultimate in Elegance

    Though apparently the Queen quickly recovered and gave her approval, as she usually does with Royal brides' wedding dresses. Which is all slightly mental if you think about it. If Meghan chose to wear lime green, it would be her prerogative, right?

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
    Penny Goldstone
    Penny Goldstone
    Social Links Navigation
    Contributing Fashion Editor

    Penny Goldstone is the Contributing Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK. She writes about catwalk trends and the latest high street and Instagram sartorial must-haves. She also helms the Women Who Win franchise.

    She has worked in fashion for over 10 years, contributing to publications such as Cosmopolitan, Red, Good Housekeeping, and Stylist.

    Read more
    Andy Burnham and Marie-France van Heel entering 10 Downing Street
    Fashion “Are We Just Jealous?” Victoria Moss Unpacks the Sexist, Ageist Commentary Around Marie-France van Heel’s Victoria Beckham Dress
    Realisation Par
    Fashion The Internet's Most-Wanted Dress Is Back in Stock—It's So Good, You Can Wear It (Almost) Anywhere
     
     
    @oksanarim1 wears white dress, big sunglasses
    Fashion Not All White Dresses Are Equal—These New Silhouettes, Fabrics and Styles Are the Ultimate in Elegance
    Dior Haute Couture AW26 runway
    Fashion From Chanel to Balenciaga—I Can't Stop Thinking About These Incredible Haute Couture Fashion Week Looks
     
     
    Latest in Style
    Oxfam
    Fashion “The Water Used to Produce Britain’s Unworn Clothes Is Enough to Supply 1 Million People for a Lifetime”: Oxfam’s Latest State of Style Report Finds
    Cara My Life in London
    Fashion Cara Delevingne on Designing Her First Collection for Topshop and London's Best-Kept Secrets
     
     
    models wearing new Sézane
    Fashion Sézane Just Launched the Most French Rebrand of All Time—Here's What We'll Shop
    Knee-Length Skirts
    Shopping Very Few Shoes Actually Look Good With Knee-Length Skirts—This One Style Always Works
     
     
    Latest in News
    Oxfam
    Fashion “The Water Used to Produce Britain’s Unworn Clothes Is Enough to Supply 1 Million People for a Lifetime”: Oxfam’s Latest State of Style Report Finds
    Beauty Digest
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Max Mara Bottles an Icon, a £12.99 Skincare Revelation and an Ode to the Classic Massage
     
     
    Knee-Length Skirts
    Shopping Very Few Shoes Actually Look Good With Knee-Length Skirts—This One Style Always Works
    Kinda Chic Trend
    Shopping Is "Kinda Chic" Kinda Cringe? Everyone's Favourite Fashion Word Just Went Completely Out of Fashion
     
     
    logoCreated with Sketch.
    • Site Archive
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Terms and conditions
    • Advertise with us
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • About us
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire UK is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.