The late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip celebrated their 78th wedding anniversary on November 20, 2025. Their historic ceremony at Westminster Abbey in 1947 appeared flawless to the public, but two major mishaps nearly derailed the event hours before the bride walked down the aisle.
While preparing at Buckingham Palace, the then Princess Elizabeth discovered that her chosen tiara, Queen Mary's Russian Fringe tiara, had snapped. The Court Jeweller was urgently summoned and, escorted by police, rushed to his workroom to repair it, returning just in time for the ceremony.
Compounding the crisis, the princess realised she had left the pearl earrings gifted by her father at St James's Palace. Her Private Secretary retrieved them just in time for the official photographs.
The wedding took place during post-war austerity, with Britain still recovering financially. Many citizens sent clothing ration coupons to help the princess, but these had to be returned as using them would have been illegal. The government granted her 200 extra coupons for her Norman Hartnell dress.
After the ceremony, the Queen's bouquet went missing before the group photographs, leaving her hands empty. The couple later recreated the photos during their honeymoon, wearing their wedding clothes again. This incident led to the tradition of every royal bride having two bouquets.
