The royal wedding

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The royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle- now the Duke and Duchess of Sussex- drew in over 29 million American viewers. Many Americans woke up at the crack of dawn on Saturday morning to watch the two get married ontelevision channels including NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox News, CBS and MSNBC.

Prince William was the best man and he and his brother arrived in black House Cavalry Uniforms. It was an emotional moment to watch the two brothers, bonded by the tragic loss of their mother when they were young, walk through the nave together. One of the hymns played before the ceremony was “Guide Me, Oh Thou Great Redeemer,” which was played at Princess Diana’s funeral and William and Catherine’s wedding seven years ago.

From the moment Markle left her hotel in the royal Rolls-Royce, people were trying to get a glimpse of her dress. The dress, acclaimed by British designer Clare Waight Keller, was an all-white number with a simple boat-neck. Last year Keller became the first female Artistic Director at the historic French fashion house Givenchy.  The silk dress was modern and feminine, with a simple A-line silhouette and slim three-quarter sleeves. The train was short and stopped well before her 16.5-foot silk veil, which was hand-embroidered with flora representing the 53 countries of the Commonwealth.

This wedding was likely the Queen’s last royal union. The next person in her direct line to get married would be one of Prince William’s children, who are all under five. The Queen showed her approval of her new granddaughter-in-law by inviting Markle to choose her tiara from a selection of historic pieces. Markle ended up wearing a diamond bandeau tiara owned by Queen Mary.

This royal wedding marked the first time in history that a royal bride-to-be in the U.K. has walked herself down the aisle. Markle’s father was supposed to do the honors but could not due to health issues. Prince Charles, Prince Harry’s father, joined Markle about halfway through her walk down the aisle of St. George’s Chapel. Once Markle joined her husband-to-be at the front of the chapel, the nuptial couple could not stop being sweet to each other throughout the ceremony. When Harry first saw Markle, he told her that she looked amazing and expressed how lucky he is. The two held hands almost the whole service.

Throughout the service, a variety of traditional hymns and instrumental pieces were complemented by a beautiful version of “Stand By Me” performed by the Kingdom Choir, a Christian gospel group based in southeast England. After Harry and Markle said “I do,” Sheku Kanneh-Mason, a 19-year-old cellist who won the BBC Young Musician of the Year Award in 2016, performed.

From the music to the romance between the new duke and duchess of Sussex, the royal wedding proved to be truly majestic for all viewers.