Here's how Meghan honoured a royal wedding tradition set under the reign of Queen Victoria.
Why do royal brides carry myrtle in their bouquets?
Meghan's bouquet was carefully designed based on several factors, according to the Royal tradition "The bouquet was design to draw on the traditions of flowers of significance for the Royal Family, the royal family and on the Language of Flowers." Myrtle, an evergreen shrub that provides pretty white or rosy flowers, featured in Meghan's bouquet, and the bloom holds special meanings.According to the Royal Family's website, myrtle is associated with love and it is considered an emblem of marriage.
For many decades, royal brides have carried sprigs of myrtle grown at Osborne House in their wedding bouquets.
Meghan Markle's wedding bouquet was the perfect blend of modernity and tradition and packed full of symbolism too.
The main flower in the bouquet was Lily of the Valley, a highly fragrant spring bloom favoured by royal brides including the Duchess of Cambridge and Duchess of Cornwall. It was complemented by a medley of other all-white, spring flower including sweet peas, astrantia, astilbe and jasmine all bound together with raw silk in the fashionable hand-tied style. With so many beautifully scented flowers included, Meghan's bouquet would have had the most incredible perfume - a lovely accompaniment to any bride walking down the aisle.
Meghan's bouquet also featured a sprig of myrtle with links to the Queen's wedding bouquet from 1947. Meghan’s bouquet was made of forget-me-nots as well as sweet peas, lily of the valley, astilbe, jasmine, and astrantia. The bouquet was made by florist Philippa Craddock who was also responsible for the flower crowns in the bridesmaids’ hair.
In keeping with tradition Meghan Markle’s wedding bouquet also included myrtle, a flower carried by every royal bride since the 1800s. In fact the stems used in the royal wedding bouquet were most likely taken from Queen Victoria’s gardens at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight and cut from the same bush which bore flowers for Queen Elizabeth's bouquet and many a royal bride before her.
The decision to include forget-me-nots, Princess Diana’s favourite flowers, in the bouquet was a particularly poignant one and a touching way for Meghan Markle to pay tribute to her husband's mother on such a special day.
In an equally thoughtful gesture it was revealed that Prince Harry had hand-picked some of the flowers for the bride’s bouquet on the evening of the wedding. The Prince gathered the flowers from the couple’s private gardens at Kensington Palace and asked florist Philippa Craddock to include them in Meghan's bouquet. How romantic!
The neutral shades of the wedding bouquet were carried on through to the venue of St. George’s Chapel. A magnificent floral archway adorned the entrance to the chapel and provided the perfect backdrop for photographs on the steps outside.
It was within these designs that Meghan’s beloved peonies made their appearance, arranged with white garden roses and foxgloves and masses of greenery taken from the Windsor estate.
The design was mirrored inside the chapel, with branches of beech, birch and hornbeam adorning the walls of the organ loft, bringing a sense of ethereal beauty to the 14th century venue.