The Wedding of the Marquess of Worcester, Heir of the 9th Duke of Beaufort, and Lady Mary Cambridge, daughter of the Marquess of Cambridge (formerly the Duke of Teck) and Lady Margaret Grosvenor, at St Margaret’s Church in Westminster on this day in 1923, 100 years ago.
Shortly before the hour of eleven the bride, sunny and bonny, arrived with her father. The bridegroom had, of course, preceded her. Throughout that period the public waited patiently. At half-past eleven the peals of the organ, were heard, and the western doors were flung aside. There at once appeared the bride and the bridegroom (radiant and happy) followed by the King and Queen, other members of the Royal family and the distinguished guests in a long procession. The service was over, and the newly-married couple drove away amid the hearty cheers of thousands. The honeymoon will be spent Lowther Castle, the seat of the Earl Lonsdale. The arrival of the bridesmaids attracted much attention. They were six in number. Two tiny tots of our acted as train-bearers. They were Lady Rosemary Eliot, niece of the bridegroom, and Miss Constance Stanley, a daughter of Lady Mary Stanley. Miss Stanley readily yielded to the blandishment of the photographers, and posed with perfect nonchalance amid the clicks of many cameras.
The four adult bridesmaids were Lady Diana Somerset, younger sister of the Marquis of Worcester; Lady May Cambridge, cousin of the bride and daughter of the Earl and Countess Athlone; Miss Harford, cousin of the bridegroom; and Lady Kathleen Crichton, daughter the late Viscount Crichton and Lady Mary Stanley, cousin of the bride. The bridesmaids all wore daintily simple dresses of pink chiffon designed in petal fashion with quaint gold Medici caps. The skirts were made in petal form with several layers chiffon shading with charming effect, from pale pink to deeper rose. The bodices were straight long-waisted, and sashes of the same colouring were loosely knotted in front. They wore Dutch caps of gold net trimmed with shaded roses, and carried baskets filled with natural pink roses. They carried also gold and platinum purse bags of a size to accommodate a small handkerchief and powder puff. These were the bridegroom’s gifts to the bridesmaids. The children received gold fox brooches.
Royal and Noble Guests and Relatives in attendance included King George V and Queen Mary (the bride’s aunt wearing the Cambridge Pearl Pendant Brooch) as well as Queen Alexandra and Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia.
The couple became the 10th Duke and Duchess of Beaufort the following year, but remained childless. During the Second World War, Queen Mary, was evacuated to Badminton House, taking over most of the house and creating many changes. Both keen equestrians, the Duke and Duchess began the Badminton Horse Trials in 1947, during which the Royal Family used to stay with them. Close to the new Duke and Duchess after the Duke’s death in 1983, the Duchess continued to reside at Badminton House, occasionally sitting in the state rooms to answer questions from tourists, until she passed away in 1987.
Duchess of Beaufort’s Diamond Tiara | Pearl and Diamond Bandeau
