Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their wedding date: they will marry on May 19th, a Saturday, at Windsor Castle. There were some comments and questions about whether this site would be doing special coverage of the royal wedding, even with it being on the weekend. I mean, it’s still six months away so I’m not sweating over the planning right now, but I feel confident that we will have a lot of coverage throughout that day, of the wedding gown and the wedding guests and a lot more.
Now that we know the date, many people are noting the significance of May 19th in two particular ways, one historical way and one passive-aggressive brotherly way. The historical detail here is that May 19th was the day that Harry’s ancestor, King Henry VIII, beheaded his second wife Anne Boleyn in 1536. Harry’s real name is Henry, and if Harry ever became king (unlikely), he would be King Henry IX. And he would have married his wife Meghan on the anniversary of King Henry VIII beheading his second wife. It’s crazy. Another interesting historical parallel is that on May 19, 1568, Queen Elizabeth I ordered the arrest of Mary Queen of Scots. In the present day, however, May 19, 2018 is the same day as the Football Association Cup Final. Harry’s brother Prince William is the honorary president of the Football Association.
Ah, the sacrifice! Prince William will have to miss his beloved soccer final as it falls on the same day as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle‘s wedding date. The palace announced that Harry and Meghan will tie the knot at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle on May 19 — a Saturday. That is the date of next year’s prestigious FA Cup Final, which William normally attends and presents the trophy. William, 35, even had to grin and bear it as he watched his favorite team, Aston Villa, get beaten by Arsenal in 2015.
Most insiders expect William to be named as Harry’s best man (returning the duty that the younger prince did for William at his Westminster Abbey wedding to the then Kate Middleton in 2011) and he will have to also help his wife look after little Prince George and Princess Charlotte on the day, so he might not even get to sneak a peek online or on a TV for an update on the match. The prince is President of the Football Association, the governing body of the soccer in England — meaning he helps promote the game from the grassroots up.
The princes’ office at Kensington Palace said they were aware of the date clash but had no comment.
This is a bigger deal for Britishers than the Anne Boleyn thing (as I whisper, “this is how women are erased from history”). The whole idea that the nation would have divided loyalties is apparently causing a lot of consternation: what to do? Watch Harry and Meg’s televised wedding or watch the FA Cup Final? Well, royal insiders say that Harry and Meg will likely marry in the morning on Saturday, and then the game will be held in the afternoon. So, TV watchers won’t have to choose. William will have to choose though – he’ll have to attend Harry’s wedding and reception, and William will have to miss attending the game.
Many of you insist that William, Harry, Meghan and Kate all get along just fine. I doubt that, as it seems like Harry had no qualms about this wonderfully passive-aggressive counter-scheduling choice. I strongly suspect that this is Harry’s way of “calling in a chip” with William. Like, there was no reason for Harry to attend Pippa Middleton’s wedding over the summer. But Harry did it anyway, to be nice to his sister-in-law’s family. So now Harry wants the quid pro quo: William has to miss one of his favorite events of the year to attend Harry’s wedding.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid and Pacific Coast News.
It will never happen, but I wish she’d give a tutorial on how she styles her hair.
Well…. she straightens it I guess. Any hairdresser can do that.
I’d love to see her curly hair. I know I probably shouldn’t bc she can do whatever she wants and who am I etc., but I loved her pics as a child with styled Afro hair.
There are some pics of teen MM with her curls floating about.
ETA: here you go: https://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://ugc.reveliststatic.com/gen/full/2017/11/28/14/39/nb/ph655hapq82qbwe.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.revelist.com/hair/meghan-markle-natural-hair/10622&h=480&w=346&tbnid=nrwDEhext3M8bM&tbnh=265&tbnw=191&usg=__eEFumi2Z_tsalt6m-G6kY67YDIU
She also wears weaves for added length. Don’t worry Sliwsnow, when or if the little Wales’ come along their hair will probably be curly enough for us all to enjoy.
Oh she looks so lovely with her curls! Why is straight hair considered “better” anyway? It always looks sort of boring in comparison (and that is both for WOC and white women). Oh well – styles will change again.
I’m DYING to know how she plans on keeping it from frizzing in the damp English weather. Cause I sure can’t.
*goes to comb out hair frizzies. AGAIN*
Don’t worry. First, she’ll access to the best of whatever money can buy and she’s shown to have a good sense of hair, make up as per the nature of her profession.
Second, and this the cynical in me, let’s see how much time she’ll spend outdoors outside her private residences working. Only time will tell if she won’t be as lazy as Katie on her own will or due to circumstances dictated from the outside. That reads: Harry and Megan, seemingly more interested and motivated and prepared and willing than WK, will not be allowed to outshine the “first” couple. Only time will tell.
May 19th is also Malcolm X’s birthday. 👊🏽
👊🏿
👊🏿
Pound!
In terms of the horrid behaviour of his ancestors, or horrid bygone public figures, there are only so many days of the year and each one is tainted.
As an example, William and Kate’s wedding date is the same as Hitler + Eva Braun’s wedding date in 1945.
….but we concentrate on the day being St Catherine’s day rather than Hitler.
May 19 was likely one of the few dates available. Better to marry on a Saturday to decrease criticism about loss of work manhours to people taking the day off to watch the wedding. They would be discouraged from marrying during Lent, which runs Feb 14 – March 31.
They could maybe have gone with April, which would be colder and interfere with things like HM’s birthday on Saturday the 21st. Windsor is already closed to the public the 19th and 21st of April, so something is happening then already. Windsor Horse Show plus Trooping the Colour practices are the other weekends in May.
I’m thinking the date is more about the queen’s schedule than sticking it to William.
KP has issued a statement saying William will be attending both events. FA has issued a corroborating statement. With granny’s helicoptor it’s not a big deal.
But Hitler’s wedding is irrelevant to British history. (June 3rd, for example, would have been more contentious a choice.) Anne Boleyn, on the other hand… especially considering the fact that it was her husband, called Harry, who had her head chopped off. : )
And no, I don’t believe there is a conspiracy of any kind, least of all to stick it to William & Kate.
I’ve seen the brothers together. Their body language speaks volumes. They love each other, in that bear-love sort of way that is common in brothers.
Hitler is relevant to British history as we went to war with him.
Syncing dates to his pleasure dates is therefore relevant.
Am I the only one who thinks Harry and William actually get along great? I don’t think it was a ploy to get William to miss the FA cup final.
Yeah I don’t know. I can’t imagine this all being some sort of annoyed revenge type thing. I don’t think it’s absurd to think that the brothers are at least mainly fond of each other – and probably don’t hate their in-laws either. I’m sure like pretty much EVERY family out there they have some annoyances with their spouses family – but I doubt there’s anything more than the normal family drama happening here.
Not only that, but don’t they also have to consult other Royals’ work commitments already scheduled and coordinate to what can’t/can be changed? I’d assume it must be Herculean to accommodate everyone’s schedule (even though only TQ and PC are the *most* senior for accommodation).
agreed
I don’t buy the ploy, either. I think it is entirely likely that the date ( & all dates, frankly ) was picked by Buckingham Palace.
According to biographers, journalists, insiders and the brothers themselves, Harry and William are not just on good terms but extremely close.
I do.
It is probably a date picked by the queen… or maybe it has some meaning to harry and meghan?
Harry and Meg went to Pippa’s wedding cos they are all family or will be soon and its not like they work 60 hrs per week. Wills will miss maybe 2 hrs tops.
agreed, I think this feud is fanfic worthy
Only Meghan was not invited, and did not go to Pippa’s wedding.
I think they were always close and that their parents’ divorce and mother’s death made them even closer. I also think Kate and Meghan will get along well, to the disappointment of some 😛.
She didn’t say William and Harry didn’t get along Kaiser mentioned all 4 people.
If Kate rolls her eyes a million times and William keeps giving annoyed glances at his watch I’ll buy in to this theory. Short of that I’m not.
And any date has horrible points in history attached. It’s what gets trotted out in the news that stirs the pot.
AS if William has ever had a problem skipping work. Missed the Remembrance Concert and Commonwealth Service in the past year. He’ll do what he wants as he always does.
Exactly. Will’s going to great expense this time to get out of working. 😉
I dunno, I doubt Harry picked that date on purpose to poke at William. I feel like Harry & Meghan picked the date they wanted and that was that.
Also- when are we getting the engagement portraits?? I’d totally rather see those than the boring family Xmas card!
I’m just worried this is on the same day as the FA Cup final. Wouldn’t the police and security forces be kinda tapped out or concentrated at two areas? Touch on wood.
That’s a good point… but I’m sure British Intelligence & Interpol have a handle on any cell activity.
That was my main concern too – the stain its going to put on the Police and Security services holding two big events on the same day. Depending on which 2 teams get to the final there could be trouble/violence between the two sets of fans :/…and then their is the added terriorism threat to both events as well :/
The police have done this before. Think about the London Olympics, with Andy Murray, Roger Federer and the other tennis players, Rory McIlroy and all the other golfers, Usain Bolt and all the other track stars, the swimmers, etc. All in venues a few miles apart. (And honestly, Windsor Castle is an extremely secure fortress). It will be ok.
There is always going to be a conflict on any given day
Exactly. There’s always someone who’s double-booked or offended in some way. (shrug) It’s their wedding day and they should just choose the day they want.
The FA cup final! Please don’t let Man City, Arsenal, Man United or Chelsea win it, thanks.
It’s not such a big deal now we’re in the era of the Champions League though, is it? I think, for football fans, the order of importance would be Premier League, Champions League and only then FA Cup. I mean, does anyone even bother with the League Cup these days – or whatever they’re currently calling it?
(Mr Sixer = Chelsea fan. Sorry! My side of the family is West Ham.)
Actually traditionally the FA cup is the most important date on the football calendar. It has a history to it- Grand National and FA Cup. Tv coverage starts really early and everyone watches it. It’s kind of the British Super Bowl.
It was a rather odd date to pick.
TV audiences are not going to be great for this wedding!
@SIXER – Mexican-American here, and since I was a little girl I’ve been obsessed with the EPL! I would agree with your ranking, but it depends on who you ask I guess! Manchester United supporter here! Our very own chicharito is with the hammers right now, so I secretly hope they win when they aren’t playing MU!
Maum – traditionally, yes. Today? Not so much. I’m British. I live with maniacal football fans in immediate family, extended family and, well, everyone I bloody well know! (I, myself, am not a football fan.) The FA Cup Final really does not enjoy the popularity is used to. And it is not the priority for football teams that it used to be. It is no longer the UK Super Bowl, I assure you. 99.99% of football fans would rather their team won the Premier League or Champions League than the FA Cup. I can assure you that the country no longer stops for it!
Ostone – ha! Stick with the Hammers!
Really? I’ve lived in the UK 20+ years and the FA cup is still one of the biggest sporting dates in the calendar.
Not as big as it once was but still pretty important as far as TV audiences.
Most pubs would be showing the football rather than the wedding on a Saturday afternoon.
It’ll be fine! The wedding will be 11:00 or noon and kickoff isn’t until 5:30. Windsor and Wembley are only 20 miles apart. And I agree with Sixer. I think the only people who really care are Arsenal fans since it’s the only thing they win any more (oh yes I went there).
Please God no Chelsea or Man United, their fans are the worst.
Gunners all day!
May 19th is also Peter Mayhew’s birthday. I’m just going to operate under the assumption that they purposely chose to share the day with Chewbacca.
Nailed it!
How romantic.
Anne Boleyn – not erased from history. She’s pretty much the most famous royal wife there is.
Quite!!
She was more than a royal wife, she was one of the main drivers behind bringing Martin Luther’s reformist protestant teachings to England (she converted Henry) and a champion of the bible being translated into English so everyone could read it.
Katie Keen will be a footnote in history.
All the yeses.
She converted Henry for a while. He went back to Catholicism in his final years. Which I’m sure the ghost of Thomas More really appreciated.
@T, Thomas More was a fascinating character in Henry’s life.
I thought it was Katharine Parr who had reformed theological views and tried to influence Henry.
you don’t know that. we are all writing our story till our last. The queens mother was quite ordinary till wwii gave her chance to prove her strength.
The Queenmother was proving herself LONG before WW2. If you think WW2 is the sole reason the QM is remembered then you know nothing about her.
And the idea that Kate could rise to the heights of the QM is laughable given her history and inability to rise to simple things like a reasonable work ethic.
@M; I personally think HVIII was always a Catholic in his heart. He just turned the church because it was personally and financially beneficial to him.
Not to mention she was the mother of the best British Queen of all, Queen Elizabeth I, IMO.
My favorites among Queens. Love her. She was a testament to her mother’s intelligence and cunning.
RIP Anne Boleyn
Talk about stretching, the two brothers are extremely close, sure they pull one another chains, but upstaging each other in a vindictive way, no.
It’s not like Harry can pick any day, Kate is having a baby in April, May 1 and 28 are bank holidays, the Queen plans are most likely made a year in advance and Prince Philip is getting frailer.
Megan is 36, so why wait around.
Yes. Conspiracy nonsense.
I think Will and Harry get along, and I like to think that Meghan will, in time, make an ally of Kate. I think Meghan may truly value sisterhood, and won’t be competitive. A friendship with Meghan would be good for Kate. She needs someone other than her mother to hang out with.
Not into royals, but I have to say. My husband and his brother grew tighter than tight when their mom died at a young age. So I don’t believe they have animosity towards each other. Even Chilly Willys little joke about Harry snagging his food was cute and would be said in any household, any nation.
Willy Cambridge will do what he wants if he wants to miss his bro’s wedding for that cup thing he will, if he wants to be at his bro’s wedding he will.
According to some brit posters here in past post comments claim that their fellow countrymen don’t care about this wedding so why would it matter if they had the wedding on a weekday or clash with their beloved cup event since some claim not to care about it.
Pick any day of the week, you can google and find bad crap that happened on that day.
I’m imaging the Queen is the one who selects the date. I like the conspiracy theory but I don’t think Harry had one bit to do with it.
Maybe everyone involved prefers the public to be too busy watching the FA Cup to pay attention to the wedding. Harry is the spare, after all, and William & Kate wouldn’t t want to be upstaged. I do wonder if William will blow off the wedding, he seems to do whatever he pleases.
Why on earth would William “blow off” the wedding? Please.
I imagine they would want to downplay this “marriage” as much as possible.
Dates mean different things to different people.
I’m from the East coast, went to the mid-West a few years ago, and my son’s friend, was getting a C-Section on 9/11 and I asked why 9/11 and she asked me why not.
And I realized it never entered her mind, because of where she lived.
Wow, she’s American?? Most Americans would avoid that date if they had the choice, I would.
Really? Outside of the East Coast most of us out that in the past many years ago. I flew back from Germany to the U.S. on the one year anniversary of the attack and there were Muslims in robes on the plane even. But there were also U.S. soldiers returning home and a ton of empty seats so I was fine with it!
They should’ve just eloped
I very much doubt that either Harry or William care at all about some sporting event. I think they learned early on in life that family is the most important thing in life. These guys really love each other.
Henry VIII is not Harry’s ancestor. He is his predecessor, yes, but they are not related in any way. There were no surviving Tudors.
Harry is descended from the Hanoverian line, which can be traced to Margaret Tudor, sister of Henry VIII and Harry is directly related to Henry VII, the first Tudor king and father of Henry VIII.
Oh, well, duh – I forgot about Mary and Margaret. You’re right, of course – I was just thinking of the three kids who actually held the throne. Derp!
And to the legitimate line pre-Tudor through Elizabeth of York.
Actually, it’s possible that Henry VIII is a direct ancestor of Harry. It was rumoured that Catherine Carey (Mary Boleyn’s daughter) was Henry VIII’s illegitimate child, and the current royals do descend from her.
He is a direct ancestor of the current royal family through his daughter Margaret who married the King of Scotland, and entered into the Stuart dynasty.
Pretty sure she doesn’t wear “weaves”
Well I suppose her hair could magically grow 4 inches in a month….
(No shade – her weave is awesome!! I want it!!)
Sure Jan lmao. Meghan wears weaves fantastic weaves at that but weaves nonetheless.
Looks to me like her hair shows more length from the curls being straightened out. Maybe it is a weave. Whatever.
Nobody noticed anything on his neck on the 2nd picture??