10 best pictures from King Charles and Queen Camilla's wedding after controversial romance
Express.co.uk takes a look at 10 photographs of King Charles and Queen Camilla's wedding as the couple celebrate 19 years of being married today.
King Charles and Queen Camilla are celebrating a new milestone today as Britain's leading royal couple hit 19 years since getting married.
Charles and Camilla were married in 2005, 35 years after they first met in 1970, in a ceremony watched live by millions across the globe.
While the couple have warmed up to the British public recently, their courtship had not always been approved due to the very public breakdown of Charles' previous marriage to the late Princess Diana.
And while this year there may not be a big party to celebrate their 2005 nuptials due to the King's ongoing cancer treatment, the pair are still expected to celebrate the day privately.,
Here, Express.co.uk takes a look at 10 photographs of Charles and Camilla's big day.
Charles and Camilla's wedding was a far cry from a traditional royal wedding. It took place on April 9 in a civil ceremony (pictured) at Windsor Guildhall, which was not attended by Charles's parents, the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip. However, they did attend the Church of England Service of Prayer and Dedication at St George's Chapel and held a reception for the couple in Windsor Castle afterwards.
Charles was the first British royal in England to marry in a civil ceremony. Since they both had previously divorced, such a ceremony was chosen to avoid potential controversy caused by the future supreme governor of the Church of England marrying a divorcee in a religious ceremony. The then-Prince of Wales was previously married to Diana from 1981 to 1996, while Camilla was married to Andrew Parker Bowles from 1973 to 1995.
The royal wedding had to be postponed by one day due to the death of Pope John Paul II. Back then it was announced that the wedding - which was originally set to take place on April 8 - would be delayed by 24 hours, so that then- Prince Charles could represent his mother at the funeral of Pope John Paul II in Vatican City. On 4 April, it was announced that the wedding would be postponed 24 hours until 9 April, so that the Prince of Wales could attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II. The wedding was also originally scheduled to take place at Windsor Castle, but the venue was changed a few weeks before the wedding to the Windsor Guildhall.
Camilla did not wear a tiara for the wedding, unlike most royal brides in history. The late Queen would traditionally lend brides a tiara from her personal collection for their wedding. But instead, the then future-Queen donned a wide-brimmed cream straw hat for her civil ceremony, followed by a feather headpiece for the religious service. The straw hat was overlaid with ivory French lace and feathers, and that as well as the dramatic spray of golden feathers in her hair afterwards were designed by Philip Treacy.
Charles's wife stepped out in a cream silk chiffon dress for the civil ceremony, which was hemmed with vertical rows of Swiss-made appliqued woven disks with a matching oyster silk basket weave coat, a look she's popularised since then. She paired the look with a pair of beige heels by L.K. Bennett and a clutch by Launer's "East/West" collection. For the blessing afterwards, she opted for a floor-length embroidered pale blue and gold coat over a matching chiffon dress. The ensembles were designed by Antonia Robinson and Anna Valentine, who worked under the name Robinson Valentine, now solely called Anna Valentine.