The royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was grand in many ways, but perhaps the most striking aspect were the myriad collisions of American and British culture.
The wedding was an unprecedented mix of royal pomp, British tradition, black-American culture and Hollywood celebrity. Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, named a TV star the Duchess of Sussex before the native Angeleno was wed by the archbishop of Canterbury in a ceremony that opened with the soft serenade of a string section and ended with a gospel choir’s rousing rendition of “Stand by Me.”
In between was the animated sermon of Bishop Michael Bruce Curry, the first black American to serve as presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church. He took a solemn royal ritual dating back to the Anglo-Saxons and infused it with the new world
Pressed and groomed wedding guests such as Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and others related to the crown by marriage, blood or circumstance shared stunned expressions, stifled smirks and uncomfortable glances as the bishop’s animated delivery permeated every ancient beam and buttress in the 14th century chapel. Many of the 600 in attendance had likely never
stepped foot in a black church, let alone heard such a style outside footage of Martin Luther King Jr., whom Curry quoted during the hourlong ceremony Saturday.
At the same time, social media erupted with accolades for the breakthrough sermon, and CBS’ Gayle King, who was covering the wedding from Windsor, reported that he took the British chapel “to church.”
It was the clearest example of why this was a very different royal wedding from that of William and Kate seven years ago or Diana and Charles decades ago – and illustrated how new generations of royals are rethinking the monarchy’s global image and role.
American media who covered the daylong event in broadcasts that ranged from two to six hours did their best to honor British tradition by wearing flouncy hats (King’s was a flowery yellow number, ABC’s Deborah Roberts’ was a blue teapot), interviewing experts on the British monarchy and using words like “mum” and “blimey.”
“Good Morning America” and HBO’s fictitious team of Cord and Tish (Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon) were among the army of anchors in studios and along the Windsor procession route who commented on the “California-like” weather, Harry’s surprisingly thick beard and the lovely burgundy shade of the queen’s Rolls-Royce, which delivered Markle to St. George’s Chapel.
They gushed over the Clare Waight Keller/Givenchy-designed dress, brought in more British experts to explain things like the meaning behind the tiara the bride had chosen to wear (it was made for Queen Mary) and added awkward asides that will surely come back to haunt them at 3 a.m. In one instance, an ABC commentator mentioned how Harry’s mom was the same age as his bride, 36, when she died in 1997.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex got married at St George’s Chapel in Windsor, England, on May 19, 2018. Here is a look at how the entire day unfolded.
(Pictured) The newly wedded couple kiss on the steps of the chapel.
—-By Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times
