8 facts about hidden details in Meghan Markle's historic wedding dress
On the eighth anniversary of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's wedding day, Meghan shared pictures from that special day on Instagram.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, is giving royal fans a new look inside her 2018 wedding to mark a very special occasion.
The former actress and her husband, Prince Harry, are celebrating their eighth wedding anniversary, and she has shared several pictures from the royal wedding, including never-before-seen snaps.
One picture shows Meghan staring lovingly at Harry as he gives a speech at the reception. They share a kiss in another intimate moment and raise a toast in another.
"Eight years ago today," Meghan captioned the images, which were taken by photographer Chris Allerton.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's wedding ceremony was held inside St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.
Meghan also shared pictures from their first dance. The couple danced to Wilson Pickett's 'Land of 1,000 Dances'.
In their 2022 Netflix docuseries, 'Harry and Meghan', the Sussexes describe their first dance as an "energetic moment".
The new snaps Meghan shared show them laughing and making animated faces. Harry is also seen dipping his new wife on the dancefloor.
British designer Clare Waight Keller designed her wedding dress, while Stella McCartney created her reception look.
According to PEOPLE, her wedding dress "will go down in history as one of the most revered bridal gowns of all time."
Waight Keller is the former artistic director of the French luxury brand Givenchy and collaborated directly with Markle.
In a Vanity Fair 2023 interview, she said: "[Meghan] wanted to bring some simplicity and just timeless elegance. Not overly feminine, but not really minimal either."
In honour of the couple's wedding anniversary, here is everything you need to know about her dress.
Why Meghan chose Waight Keller
According to the British royal family's official website, the designer was chosen specifically for her “timeless and elegant aesthetic, impeccable tailoring and relaxed demeanour.”
The Duchess also explained that she was looking for two specific traits in her designer.
I wanted a female designer, that was very important. I wanted a British designer because I wanted to embrace my new home in that way.
Waight Keller said she felt the immense pressure of the task at hand, given that the whole world would be watching, but it was also an incredible honour as a Brit to be part of British history.
The total hours it took to make
The dress was put together by a team of 50 people and included an almost 5m long veil.
That, together with the actual dress, resulted in 3,900 hours of work.
Embroiders had to wash their hands every 30 minutes
One of the reasons the dress took so many hours was the care taken in handling the garment.
The stark white tulle and threads were kept in top condition by the embroiderers, who had to wash their hands continuously.
Waight Keller explained: "Over a period of time, you build up oils on your hand and when you work on something of such purity — absolute pure white — you need to keep it immaculately clean. This was part of the process, when you are doing embroidery, that you need to keep your hands very fresh.”
Her 'something blue' was also something secret
In HBO’s 2018 Queen of the World documentary, the Duchess finally revealed what her 'something blue' had been.
Waight Keller had hidden a piece of blue fabric somewhere within her gown.
But it wasn't just any piece of fabric.
It’s fabric from the dress that I wore on our first date.
The fabric was sewn into the hem of the wedding dress, so it was hidden, and Markle was the only one who knew it was there.
The veil represented the 53 countries of the Commonwealth
The 16-foot-long silk tulle veil included one of the most intricate elements, even compared with the rest of the dress.
Markle chose to have 53 hand-embroidered wildflowers on her veil, each representing a Commonwealth country, to showcase her commitment to Britain and her royal work.
Kensington Palace revealed that Meghan also requested the addition of Wintersweet, which grows on the palace grounds, the California Poppy from her home state, and embroidered crops of wheat to symbolise love and charity, which were woven into the front of the veil.
How 1,7-million people managed to see the dress up close after the wedding
Given its historical significance, the dress was put on display in 2018 at the Windsor Castle exhibition 'A Royal Wedding: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.'
Visitors could also view the veil and Harry's suit and listen to audio the couple recorded on their big day.
The Royal Collection Trust’s annual report said that roughly 1,7-million people visited the castle where the wedding garments were being showcased, making for a record-breaking attendance year.
It is the most popular wedding dress of the decade
Find Me a Gift released data in 2021 stating that the most-searched bridal gown in the UK over the past decade was the Duchess of Sussex's dress.
It had racked up 21,900 hits a month, with sister-in-law Kate Middleton's gown hitting 21,500 monthly.
Since tying the knot, Meghan and Harry have welcomed two children: Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, who is named after her late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth.
The family lives in Montecito, California, with their dogs, Mama Mia and Pula. Meghan's beloved beagle Guy passed away in early 2025.
Despite intense media scrutiny, the couple remain stronger than ever.
Meghan has previously described Harry as the "best husband ever".
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Image: @RoyalFamily/X