Prince Charles Reportedly Cried the Night Before His Wedding to Princess Diana

By Monica Sisavat Solís

Updated on 4/24/2017 at 8:30 AM

Getty | Anwar Hussein
Getty | Anwar Hussein

Princess Diana and Prince Charles got engaged in February 1981 after only going on 12 dates. They wed five months later in a lavish ceremony at St. Paul's Cathedral in London, and their wedding was watched by millions around the world. Despite separating in 1992 and Diana's untimely death in 1997, there are probably still a few things you may not know about their wedding, like the fact that Charles reportedly cried the night before their big day. Read on for even more interesting tidbits.

  1. Their wedding day was considered a national holiday. Just like Kate Middleton and Prince William's big day, July 29, 1981, was declared a national holiday by the UK so that citizens could be a part of the celebration.
  2. They had 27 wedding cakes. The official cake was provided by David Avery, the head baker at the Royal Naval cooking school. In 2014, a 33-year-old slice of cake from their wedding sold at auction for $1,375, and it was still in its original white and silver presentation box.
  3. Diana was the first royal bride to omit "obey" from her wedding vows. While the couple exchanged traditional wedding vows from the Book of Common Prayer, Diana removed the word "obey." Kate and William followed suit when they got married in 2011.
  4. Diana selected her engagement ring from a catalog. Although most royal engagement rings are custom made, Diana chose her ring — which consisted of 14 solitaire diamonds around a 12-carat sapphire set in white gold — from the Garrard jewelry collection catalog. It has since been passed on to Kate.
  5. Diana mixed up the order of Charles's name during their vows. Diana must have been nervous because rather than calling her husband Charles Philip, she referred to him as Philip Charles Arthur George.
  6. Charles also appeared to have a bad case of nerves. During their vows, Charles referred to "thy goods" instead of "my worldly goods."
  7. Diana's Emanuel dress had the longest train in royal history. Not only was her dress adorned with more than 10,000 tiny mother of pearl sequins and pearls, but it included a 25-foot-long train. The silk-taffeta creation reportedly cost $115,000.
  8. Charles reportedly cried the night before their wedding. According to royal writer Sally Bedell Smith's new book, Prince Charles: The Passions and Paradoxes of an Improbable Life, Charles allegedly felt pressured into his marriage to Diana and was torn abut his love for his then-mistress Camilla Parker Bowles.
  9. Their wedding was watched by millions. The event was watched by a congregation of 3,500, broadcast in 74 countries, and watched by 750 million people worldwide.