With just a couple of weeks to go before the royal wedding, Kensington Palace has revealed a number of new details about the big day, including the fact that Meghan Markle won鈥檛 have a maid of honour.
In a media briefing on Friday, Markle will have friends supporting her throughout the day but there won鈥檛 be anyone filling the role of a maid or matron of honour. There had been rumours Markle鈥檚 close friend and stylist Jessica Mulroney, wife of CTV Your Morning鈥檚 Ben Mulroney, would be chosen after she flew to London in January to help Markle select a wedding gown.
Last week, Kensington Palace announced that Prince William would be Prince Harry鈥檚 best man at the wedding on May 19. The roles were reversed when Prince William married Kate Middleton in 2011.
Knauf also shared that Prince Harry and Markle will be spending the night before their wedding apart out of respect for tradition. In fact, the first time the prince will gaze upon Markle in her wedding dress will be when she鈥檚 walking down the aisle as there are no plans for a 鈥渇irst look鈥� or photoshoot before the ceremony.
On the actual day, Markle will be accompanied by her mother Doria Ragland when she travels by car to Windsor Castle. Her father, Thomas Markle, will walk her down the aisle at St. George鈥檚 Chapel. There had been immense speculation about whether Markle鈥檚 father would accompany her down the aisle because she reportedly has a closer relationship with her mother.
Her parents will have 鈥渋mportant roles鈥� in the wedding and Markle is 鈥渄elighted鈥� to have them by her side, Knauf said.
The palace said Markle鈥檚 parents will travel to London a week before the wedding to meet Prince Harry鈥檚 family for the first time; including, Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip, Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, and Prince William and his wife Catherine. There was no mention of Markle鈥檚 siblings during the briefing.
There won鈥檛 be a rehearsal dinner before the wedding, but the palace said there would be private, family-related events leading up to the big day.
On Prince Harry鈥檚 side of the family, Knauf confirmed that Diana, Princess of Wales鈥� three siblings Lady Sarah McCorquodale, Lady Jane Fellowes, and Earl Charles Spencer would attend the wedding. Lady Jane will also give a reading during the ceremony.
鈥淧rince Harry and Ms. Markle both feel honoured that Lady Jane will be representing her family and helping to celebrate the memory of the late Princess on the wedding day,鈥� the palace said in a release.
Knauf confirmed that 600 guests have been invited to attend the ceremony inside the chapel, but said that no official guest list would be released. There will also be another 2,640 invited members from the public who will watch the day unfold from the grounds of Windsor Castle.
After undergoing a hip replacement surgery last month, Prince Philip鈥檚 attendance at the wedding has been in question. Kensington Palace refused to confirm if he would be there and deferred the question to a representative from Buckingham Palace at the briefing, who also declined to answer.
Following the ceremony and reception, the bride and groom will spend their first night together as husband and wife at Windsor Castle, the palace said. Knauf refused to reveal where and when the couple would be embarking on their honeymoon, but he did say it wouldn鈥檛 take place right away. The newlyweds will attend their first royal engagement together a week after the wedding, the palace said.
Prince Harry and Markle will live in Kensington Palace, where the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge already reside, after they鈥檙e married. The couple currently live together in Nottingham Cottage, on the grounds of Kensington Palace.
