Princess Diana shared a sweet gift that she received from Charles the night before their wedding, which showed that the king was excited to be marrying his bride
On the eve of the highly anticipated Royal wedding between Charles and Diana, the then Prince of Wales sent a heartfelt message and a thoughtful gift to his bride-to-be.
According to Andrew Morton’s book, ‘Diana: In Her Own Words’, Diana recalled: “He sent me a very nice signet ring the night before to Clarence House, with the Prince of Wales feathers on and a very nice card that said: ‘I’m so proud of you and when you come up I’ll be there at the altar for you tomorrow.
“‘Just look ’em in the eye and knock ’em dead.'” The ring, which featured the Prince of Wales crest, was worn by Diana on several occasions, including the Regent Street Christmas lights switch-on event later that year
Charles and Diana leaving St Paul’s Cathedral on their wedding day which was watched by the world (
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(Image: Hulton Archive/Getty Images))
Interestingly, the monarch himself is often seen wearing a similar signet ring bearing the official Prince of Wales crest.
The wedding, which took place on July 29, 1981, at St Paul’s Cathedral in London, was a grand affair watched by 750 million people in 74 countries worldwide.
At the time, it was hailed as the “wedding of the century”. Diana’s elaborate wedding gown, crafted over three months, was made from ivory silk taffeta and featured a stunning 25-foot train.
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Reflecting on the day, Diana told Mr Morton: “I remember being so in love with my husband that I couldn’t take my eyes off him,” reports the Express.
She added: “I just absolutely thought I was the luckiest girl in the world. He was going to look after me.”
Head florist David Longman disclosed that following Queen Elizabeth’s own wedding flower blunder, she instituted the practice of preparing two identical bouquets to avert such incidents. “We made two bouquets,” Longman stated.
“The first one had to be delivered at 8 o’clock to Buckingham Palace.”
Charles and Diana on their engagement photo call, 1981 (
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(Image: Anwar Hussein/Getty Images))
Ensuring Princess Diana had no floral issues, Longman crafted two matching arrangements. “We had a police escort motorcyclist who took us all through the city to the Palace. Then we came back, and by that time they had finished the second bouquet and back we went again.”
The bouquet was composed of exquisite blooms including gardenias, stephanotis, odontoglossum orchid, lily of the valley, Earl Mountbatten roses, freesia, veronica, ivy, myrtle, and tradescantia.
