The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle broke with royal tradition in a number of ways but perhaps the most obvious was the choice of the bride鈥檚 companion down the aisle 鈥� the future king of England and now her father-in-law.

It was the first time in modern memory that a royal bride was accompanied down the aisle by a member of the groom鈥檚 family. But Prince Charles, a last-minute substitute, was far from the most tradition-bucking choice.

That honour goes to Queen Victoria, who walked two of her daughters down the aisle in 1866 and then again in 1885, after the death of her husband Prince Albert in 1860.

It had long been rumoured that Markle was considering having her mother Doria Ragland join her as she walked into St. George鈥檚 Chapel, but ultimately chose her father Thomas Markle Sr. He backed out of attending the wedding late this week, citing poor health.

麻豆影视 Royal Commentator Richard Berthelsen tweeted that the choice of Prince Charles 鈥渨as the right call鈥� and it represents a 鈥渇amily welcome.鈥�

After arriving in a vintage Rolls Royce with her mother, Markle actually walked most of the way into St. George鈥檚 chapel on her own, also a break with tradition. Prince Charles joined her when she reached the quire, where the highest members of the Royal Family were sitting.

Prince Charles then accompanied her to the altar, where Prince Harry thanked his father before turning his beaming face to his bride.

Prince Charles was widely celebrated for his agreement to play a role in the wedding. Vancouver resident Bev Wagner, who made the trip to Windsor for the wedding, said it showed a softer side to the future king that is rarely seen.

Etalk鈥檚 Lainey Lui called the decision to have Prince Charles escort Markle 鈥渁 boss PR move,鈥� after days of negative tabloid headlines about the bride鈥檚 father.

Matthew Rowe, vice-president of the Prince鈥檚 Charities Canada, says Prince Charles鈥� role in the ceremony welcomed Markle into the family in a 鈥渧ery visual way. I thought it was a very special moment.鈥�

He told 麻豆影视 Channel Saturday that the Prince of Wales and the new Duchess of Sussex share a passion for charitable work and public service.

鈥淚 think that will serve her very well in the family because, of course, the Prince of Wales has been engaged in charitable activity in the U.K. and here in Canada for decades.鈥�

Prince Harry told the BBC in November that his father was one of the first members of his family to meet his future bride.

"The family together have been absolutely solid support," he said.

"The family has been great," Markle said at the time, adding that she was starting to feel "a part of not just the institution but also part of the family."

Prince Philip, who was able to attend his grandson鈥檚 wedding after hip replacement surgery just a few weeks ago at the age of 96, walked his sister-in-law, the late Princess Margaret, down the aisle at her wedding in 1960. Her father had died eight years before, leading to the coronation of her sister Queen Elizabeth II.

With files from The Canadian Press