The wedding dress of
Princess Margaret, the sister of
Queen Elizabeth II, was worn at
her wedding to photographer
Antony Armstrong-Jones
Antony Charles Robert Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, (7 March 1930 – 13 January 2017), was a British photographer and filmmaker. He is best known for his portraits of world notables, many of them published in ''Vogue'', ''Vanity Fai ...
on 6 May 1960 at
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...
.
The dress
The wedding dress was designed by
Norman Hartnell
Sir Norman Bishop Hartnell, KCVO (12 June 1901 – 8 June 1979) was a leading British fashion designer, best known for his work for the ladies of the royal family. Hartnell gained the Royal Warrant as Dressmaker to Queen Elizabeth in 1940, and ...
, the favoured couturier of the royals, and was made from silk
organza
Organza is a thin, plain weave, sheer fabric traditionally made from silk. Many modern organzas are woven with synthetic filament fibers such as polyester or nylon. Silk organza is woven by a number of mills along the Yangtze River and in the pr ...
. The skirt comprised some 30 metres of fabric. Hartnell specifically kept the adornments of the dress such as the crystal embellishments and beading to a minimum in order to suit
Margaret's petite frame.
The dress now belongs to the British
Royal Collection and is part of a display of royal wedding dresses at
Kensington Palace in London.
Critical appraisal
''
Vogue
Vogue may refer to:
Business
* ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine
** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine
** ''Vogue China'', ...
'' described the dress as "stunningly tailored".
Another author called it "a study in simplicity".
In 1960, ''Life'' magazine named it "the simplest royal wedding gown in history". It has also been described as one of Hartnell's most beautiful and sophisticated pieces.
See also
*
List of individual dresses
This is a list of individual dresses which are famous or otherwise notable.
Dresses worn by celebrities
* American Express Gold card dress of Lizzy Gardiner
* Black Christian Siriano gown of Billy Porter
* Black dress of Rita Hayworth
* Black ...
References
External links
BBC audio slideshow featuring her wedding dress
{{British Royal wedding dresses
1960 works
Margaret
House of Windsor
British royal attire
1960s fashion
Margaret, Wedding
Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon