STRIKING PICTURE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21993, 27 December 1934, Page 12

STRIKING PICTURE

GRANDEUR AND DIGNITY BRIDAL PROCESSION BEAUTIFUL DRESSES [from our,own correspondent] LOi\DON, Nov. 29 Westminster Abbey was ready at nine o'clock this morning to receive the thousands of guests invited to attend the wedding of Prince George, Duke of Kent, and Princess Marina, of Greece. Arrangements for 'their reception were perfect, ancl it was not long before a panorama of colour and a kaleidoscope of movement began to form a scene which, when complete two hours later, was wondrous to behold. Grandeur and dignity were its features. From the vantage point specially reserved for the London correspondent of the New Zealand Herald there was a perfect view over the Chancel to the Altar, including also the north transept from which the pulpit had been- removed to allow of further Beating accommodation. Minute by minute from 9 a.m. until 10.30, important people were arriving, adding to the animated and colourful picture which was gradually being created in the sublime and dignified setting. They' were ushered to their seats by high o.fficials, whose uniforms scintillated with gold, or -by boys • selected from Westminster School. As always, on these occasions, the scarlet uniforms of the military, the blue and gold of the naval and levee dress, und the unusual uniforms of the foreign dignitaries,- when all are assembled, provide the colour for the splendid picture.

Brilliant Uniforms and Dresses The women's dresses, of lovely velvets and satins, and of many hues, are nothing more than a foil to the dress of the men, which is further enhanced by the sashes and jewels of the various Orders.* Gems and jewellery scintillate elusively their brilliance in the rays of light diffused from overhead. Wellknown people arrived in orderly and constant procession; a number of Indian ruling princes and their ladies were in. gorgeous robes of silk, wearing jewels' of unrivalled brilliance. The Aga Khan was an outstanding figure in richly embroidered robes, with the isash of his Order, and a quaint, tall, black cap. His wife—a beautiful French woman—was in green with priceless sable furs. Earl Jellicoe was in full uniform, and Countess Jellicoe wan in velvet of a warm, rich blue. Many of the women chose velvo;t of the fashionable wine and black tulip tones—the latter being an intensely deep purple. Their headdress for the most part consisted of sometfiing in the nature of turbans, gracefully draped and finished with diamond ornaments. Others were in lighter tones of champagne and shrimp pink. ' " A Proud Prerogative

Presently through a cloister door in the south side entered the members of the Bodyguard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms—tall men all—in their scarlet and gold tunics, and wearing their shining helmets from which fall the drooping white plumes characteristic of tiie historic origin of the corps. :; These men do not doff their helmets.. It is their proud prerogative to wear them in church as well as out of doors. Thev proceeded to their allotted stations, with Colours borne at the head. The Gentlemen-at-Arms were posted in the transept by the choir stalls, and at the Chancel approach. Following them in procession were the Yeomen of the Guard—the "Beefeaters"—in their quaint, picturesque and historical uniform, each Yeoman carrying his pike at the,"slope." They took up their stations in the Nave. There was a striking procession from the west door to the Chancel, bended by the famous Abyssinian Cross of the Abbey, of canons in crimson copes. The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Archbishop of York, the Bishop of London had been to meet the Metropolitan Germanos of Thyateira, Exarch •of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Western Europe, and the Great Archimandrite Michael Constantinidis in the Jerusalem. These dignitaries of the Greek Church wore extraordinarily ornate copes and unusually elaborate mitres or, headdress. With due ceremony they took their places in the Sacrarium stalls at 10.45. Toward the west door all eyes next were concentrated, for the Royal guests were due to arrive. First there wasi a glimpse of a small bridesmaid in silver lame billowed with white tulle. Rings of tiny rose buttons outlined the yoke of her fairy like frock, and these , were repeated in the hair bandeau. She - wore a pearl necklace, the gift of the Queen. Light-hes.rted and graceful, and all excitement, she

was Princess Elizabeth of York, a little train-bearer. The Princess came with her mother and sister, and presently was joined by her companion train-bearer, dainty Lady Wary Cambridge. The little girls made an extraordinarily pretty pair as they stood hand in hand," waiting for the arrival of the groAvn-up bridesmaids. Tho Duchess, was in flamingo pink chiffon velvet, with toque to match finished with a diamond ornament; her dress had a collar of pale fox. The Duchess, in her progress to the Chancel, led by the hand the wee Princess Margaret Rose, for whom a little scarlet stool had been provided at her mother's feet. This pretty" child had a frock of blue tulle, covered with a coat of ivory satin, trimmed with beaver, completed with a Kate Greenaway bonnet to match. Sho behaved perfectly all through the ceremony, and, just as any little girl would do, she attended to her socks and did her best to coax her abbreviated frock and coat to cover her knees. The Other Bridesmaids

The other six bridesmaids arrived according to programme at brief intervals. They were Princess Juliana of the Netherlands, who came with the Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, and the Earl of Athlone, from Kensington Palace; Princess Irene of Greece, Princess Catharine of Greece, the Grand Duchess Kira of Russia, Princess Eugenie of Greece and Lady Iris Mountbatten. Their dresses of fragile white crepe interwoven with silver thread were cut on modernised Victorian lines, the skirts falling loosely and fully from the waistline. The bodices were made with a soft cowl drapery and the long sleeves, cut in one with the bodice, had large turned up cuffs of silver. Silver lame was used for a draped bow at the left side and the same silver formed rather a bolero outline at the back of the bodice. Headdresses were of plaited silver lame. Each one carried a lovely shower bouquet of cream roses. The Duke of Kent's gift to each bridesmaid was an aquamarine and diamond clip-brooch—-the blue and white of Greek colours. The Chancel meanwhile was beginning to fill. The Princess Royal arrived with the Earl of Harewood, who was in uniform with the liibbon of the Garter. The Princess Royal looked very attractive in a dress of soft pow-der-blue, with blue fox trimming to the *wide transparent sleeves, and a turban toque of the same blue finished with a diamond ornament. Her gloves were of .light grey. The Princess Royal and her husband sat next to the Duchess«of York, and next to the Princess Royal was the Queen of Norway, with King Haakon. With due ceremony, other notable people were ushered to their places. They included the Prince Regent of Yugoslavia, Princess Paul of Yugoslavia, the Count and Countess Toerring Jettenbach (a sister of the bride), Lady Patricia Ramsay, Prince and Princess Arthur of Connaught, Princess George of Greece, Prince and Princess Rone of Bourbon, the Grand Duke and. Grand Duchess of Hesse, and Prince Waldemar of Denmark. Handsome women, beautifully dressed, and handsome men in uniform, they constituted one of the most distinguished and important groups of Royal personages tliat Ims assembled in London since the Coronation.

The King and Queen At 10.50 a clatter of hoofs could be heard. This was the advance guard of the King's Cavalry escort. At the west gate the State coach cranio to a standstill. The King, in naval uniform out of compliment to the bridegroom, wore the Ribbon of the Garter. His Majesty is in excellent health. The Queen, regal and superb, was in Perveucbe blue and Australian gold brocaded velvet, woven in a classic floral effect. The gown in princess style had a gracefully sculptured skirt revealing an under-dress of supple cloth of gold. With the gown was worn :i eapelet of similar brocaded velvet, lined with pale gold, and collared with dark Russian sables. Her Majesty's turban toque was of blue and gold velvet, with a mount of Pervenche South African ostrich feathers. Across tho corsage of her gown the Queen ■wore the blue Ribbon of the Garter, and her jewels were diamonds, which scintillated with every movement or ray of light. Her gloves wore of pearl grey.

The King and Queen led the profession up the Nave, Princess Nicholas of Greece also being with them. Others were tho King and Queen of Denmark, tho King and Queen of Norway, and Prince Waldemar of Denmark. Princess Nicholas was in a clinging gown of ivory lame, with a cape of white ermine bordered with sable, and a cream toque with drooping cream paradise plumes. After ushering the King and Queen to their seats, the Dean of Westminster, Dr. Foxley Norris," in cope of cream and gold, with tho other Abbey clergy, returned to tho west door to await the bridegroom and his supporters, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of York, who arrived, according to schedule, three minutes before

tho bride. The Duke of Kent wore naval uniform, so did the Prince of Wales and tho Duke of York. Tho Ribbon of tho Garter added a splash of colour across the dark blue uniform. As Big Ben boomed out the hour of 11, the bride's procession reached the west door amid thundering cheers from those 011 the stands outside tho Abbey. People there could give vent to their enthusiasm, but the sanctity and dignity of the Abbey emphasised the solemnity of tho function about to take place, and no vocal demonstration was possible. The bride came with her father, Prince Nicholas of Greece, who wore 011 his uniform of dark blue the crimson sash of the Bath, which had been bestowed upon him a few days ago by the King in honour of the wedding. The procession was quickly formed. The Beadle whispered to the Princess, whose hand rested lightly in the angle of her father's arm. She glanced over her left shoulder and smiled assent to the Beadle's question, which obviously was "Aro you ready?" He gave a signal, and the procession—a vision of perfect beauty and grace in the centre —advanced up the long Nave, the Abbey choir leading. By the Unknown Warrior's Grave, which had to be passed on the way to the east, there was a halt. It was hardly perceptible. but was sufficiently long to allow the bride to leave a bouquet to be placed on the Tomb. Simple though this act. was, it was a tribute to the Greek as well as to British soldiers. "The Beautiful Princess" Slowly, but with perfect poise and dignity, the bride and her retinue passed forward. The bride will always be remembered as "the beautiful Princess." She looked exquisite in her gown, so essentially modern in the

simplicity of its style and the beauty of the material. There were no embroideries to break tho line or detract from the magnificence of the silver lame with its brocaded English rose. It was cut on princess lines, with it long, straight and rather liigh bodice. The flowing sleeves wdro turned back with broad cuffs of perfectly plain lame, and from tho shoulders fell a court train, nearly four and a-half yards long, of lame-brocade lined with silver. The bride's veil of old family lace had been worn by her mother. It fell from the becoming diamond tiara —the wedding gift of London merchants and bankers—in plain folds over her shoulders, and covered the greater part of the train, and over this again came the voluminous cascade of tulle. The King's diamond necklet was another ornament. In her bouquet of Hnrissi lilies, the gift of the Worshipful Company of Gardeners, was a spray of myrtle from the Royal gardens. The bride, whose height is good and who possesses graceful carriage, seemed to bo a foam of billowy tulle. Tho long train was ideally borno by Princess Elizabeth of York and Lady Mary Cambridge,-who looked like little fairies in their white tulle frocks belted with silver and their white socks with silver shoes. Striking Scene Whispered admiration was heard on every side as the graceful bride passed with dignified bearing to the head of the Sacrarium steps where the bridegroom took up his position at her side, and, sliding his hand into hers, gave her a reassuring squeeze of the fingers, which elicited a charming Binile in response. The bride handed her bouquet to the bridegroom, who passed it on to the Prince of Wales, who carefully laid it on the carpet by the King's chair. Every detail as planned had worked out and the picture was complete for the wedding ceremony. Grouped in the Chancel wero the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, their Croziers being held behind them, the Dean and Archdeacon of Westminster and all the canons of the Abbey. The dignitaries of the Greek Church nnd the Bishop of London remained in their stalls. After the dean had read the wellknown exhortation in a shortened and revised version the Archbishop of Canterbury, in a cope of white, handsomely worked with gold, took three steps forward and proceeded with the solemnisation of the marriage. After the vows had been pledged—and heard so clearly by people in New Zealand—the Duke gently placed upon his wife's finger the ring of gold, the material for which had been extracted from the Welsh mine from whence other Royal wedding rings had been taken.

Thus made man and wife, the Duke and Duchess of Kent passed to the Altar, with their little train-bearers. Here the service was continued with the " My dear bride " address delivered by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Following the final prayer and the singing of the National Anthem the procession passed into the Chapel of Edward the Confessor, where the register was signed. The Prince of Wales carried the bouquet to tho chapel. Splendid Finale

The return procession was a splendid finale to a wonderfully picturesque ceremony, the lovely bride smiling happily as sho passed her relatives and friends in tho choir stalls. The six bridesmaids, who had remained all tho time in the Nave, followed the trainbearers. And in duo course tho King and Queen, Prince and Princess Nicholas, the Prince of Wales and all the other Royalties left the Sacrarium, but not until after the departure of the Greek Church dignitaries. Large numbers of people viewed the scene from the Triforinni, and others were accorded glimpses from the Nave. The ceremony will always be remembered for its beauty and dignity. This Royal pageant brought a touch of colour into a drab November day, and a note of idealism into many hearts. When sho drove off for her honeymoon the Duchess of Kent wore a lastminute surprise present from the Queen in the form of a beautiful diamond brooch of modern design, which was given her at the wedding breakfast at Buckingham Palace. - In honour of the wedding the King and Queen ontertained the whole of His Majesty's itersonnl employees nt Windsor Castle, the Royal mews, the Royal gardens, farm and dairy, with their wives and children. Tho party was held in the Uo.val coneh-houso at Windsor Castle.