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Marriage of Princess Elizabeth to Prince Philip -

Princess Elizabeth, later Queen Elizabeth II, and Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later styled Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, were married on November 20, 1947. 

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Engagement announced -

Princess Elizabeth and her fiancé, Philip, officially announced their engagement at Buckingham Palace on July 9, 1947. 

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Wedding dress -

Shortly after the announcement, court designer Norman Hartnell got to work creating a suitably regal wedding dress. The windows of his Mayfair salon were whitewashed to maintain the secrecy of the design. 

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Dressmaking honor -

Only a handful of people were privy to Hartnell's design. But one essential material ordered early on was silk. Here, a winder at the Winterthur factory in Dunfermline, Scotland, helps to weave Chinese silk for the wedding dress. 

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'The People Who Made The Dress' -

The creation of the dress by a small army of factory workers was documented by a photographer from Picture Post in a photo essay called 'The People Who Made The Dress.'  

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Royal footwear -

The shoes worn by Princess Elizabeth on her wedding day were unique. Created by Edward Rayne, they were made of ivory Duchesse satin and accentuated with silver and seed pearl buckles. 

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Queuing begins -

As the big day drew closer, the public began to queue along the route of the wedding procession, with some even camping out all night to claim a front row seat.

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Rooms with views -

On November 18, two days before the wedding, construction began on canvas pavilions outside Westminster Abbey. They were positioned to offer an ideal spectator platform to a select few. 

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Philip's stag night -

Following an age-old tradition, Prince Philip enjoyed a stag night with naval colleagues on the eve of the wedding. He is pictured seated in the center of the photograph.  

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Lining London's streets -

On the morning of November 20, thousands were lining the streets of London waiting to catch a glimpse of Elizabeth and Philip on their way to Westminster Abbey. Pictured is a ten-deep crowd on The Mall. 

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Spectators of the scene -

By the looks on their faces, these three women appear to have bagged themselves a perfect spot along the route. 

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Something to remember -

A group of children are photographed among the spectators. One toddler is biting into a sandwich while an older child is momentarily distracted by the camera. 

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Leaving the palace for the abbey -

Princess Elizabeth leaves Buckingham Palace on the morning of her wedding in the Irish State Coach accompanied by her father, King George VI. 

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Parliament Square packed -

Crowds throng Parliament Square as the bride's coach arrives at Westminster Abbey. 

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Royal wedding guests -

The bride's parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, make their way down the aisle of Westminster Abbey. 

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VIP invitations -

The guest list included royalty and nobility, dignitaries, politicians, and statesmen, among them Winston Churchill (center, right) with his wife Clementine. 

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Marriage ceremony -

Prince Philip, who by now had been made Duke of Edinburgh, departed Kensington Palace with his best man, David Mountbatten, the Marquess of Milford Haven. At 11.30 am on Thursday, November 20, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip were married in Westminster Abbey. The royal couple are pictured receiving the blessing of the Archbishop of Canterbury as they kneel on the steps of the sanctuary during the ceremony. 

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Top-tier view -

This young girl sits on a stepladder for a better view outside Westminster Abbey during the wedding ceremony.  

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Just married! -

After the wedding, the newlyweds departed Westminster Abbey to return to Buckingham Palace. A jubilant public waved and cheered as the royal carriage made its way past the Houses of Parliament.

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Jubilant crowds -

Whitehall was awash with thousands as the royal wedding party made its way towards Trafalgar Square. Every building was festooned with Union Jack flags while the Cenotaph memorial maintained its decoration of wreaths, placed earlier on November 11 to commemorate Armistice Day. 

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Standing room only -

At Trafalgar Square it was standing room only, with a police cordon needed to control the vast crowds. 

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Dutiful smiles -

Actually, such was the joyful spirit of the occasion that even police officers assigned to crowd control outside Buckingham Palace were smiling. Curiously, one woman spectator appears to have jumped the cordon, dressed as if she had somewhere else to go.  

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Mirror image -

One way of avoiding the crowds was to step back and use hand-held mirrors to observe the wedding procession from a distance. 

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Waves of emotion -

After arriving back at the palace, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip were joined by other members of the royal family for the traditional wave from the balcony to the crowds below. 

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Look of love -

Inside the palace, the newlyweds posed for a series of official wedding photographs. They would remain married for nearly 74 years, until Philip's death in 2021. 

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Royal wedding party -

Members of the British Royal family and guests pose around Princess Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. At the right of the group is King George VI while to the left stands Queen Elizabeth, later the Queen Mother.  

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Height of good taste -

The newlyweds cut the cake using the Duke's Mountbatten sword, which was a wedding present from the King. The cake itself had four tiers and was 2.74 m (9 ft) high.  

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Showered with gifts -

Wedding gifts from across the nation and around the world arrived almost hourly at Buckingham Palace. The presents eventually went on public display at St. James Palace. Pictured are some received by the couple, including a model of the Irish State Coach. 

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Revelry after dark -

Celebrations outside Buckingham Palace continued well into the night, the crowds forming a silhouette against the floodlit building.   

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Good old knees-up -

Meanwhile in pubs across the capital and beyond, the British public were partying in typical style, with pints of beer and a knees-up at the piano.  

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Cover girl -

The marriage of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip made headlines around the world. Though not filmed, the ceremony was photographed and the audio broadcast by BBC Radio to 200 million people around the world. Special royal wedding magazine editions like this Picture Post issue quickly appeared on newsstands.  

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Honeymoon -

Following their wedding reception, the royal couple honeymooned at Broadlands, Hampshire, the home of Philip's uncle, Earl Mountbatten of Burma. It's here that they were seen admiring their wedding photographs. Later, the pair traveled to Balmoral in Scotland to continue their honeymoon. 

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Happy memories -

Buckingham Palace in the 21st century is little changed from that momentous day in 1947. Sadly, most of those involved in the marriage of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip are no longer around, with Queen Elizabeth II herself passing on September 8, 2022—75 years after she tied the knot. 

Sources (Royal UK) (Tatler) (Today)

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