Thirty-nine years after the wedding of the century, take a trip down memory lane to the very '80s fairytale nuptials of Charles and Diana.

Today, July 29th, marks&nbsp;the 39th <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/alternative-wedding-dresses-millennial-rewear-sustainable-bridal-trend" target="_blank">wedding</a> anniversary of Prince Charles of Wales, heir to the British throne, to 20-year-old&nbsp;<a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/princess-diana-style" target="_blank">Lady Diana Spencer</a>&nbsp;at&nbsp;St Paul&rsquo;s Cathedral in London. Not only were the nuptials a monumental day in British history, but&nbsp;one of the most-watched&nbsp;weddings of all time.

Billed the &ldquo;fairytale wedding,&rdquo;&nbsp;excitement around the occasion spilled&nbsp;into the streets of London, as 600,000 citizens lined&nbsp;up hoping to get a glimpse of the bride and groom on their way from Clarence House to the Cathedral. The spectacle didn&rsquo;t end there, as over 750 million people from 74 countries also tuned in from their TV sets.&nbsp;

SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/princess-diana-style">Princess Diana&#39;s&nbsp;Most Iconic Looks of All Time</a>

fcd479fb7b237c29bdf5c231eca5cf15-1.jpg

The congregation was made up of 3,500 guests, including Nancy Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, the crowned heads of Europe, the Spencer family, important members of the British aristocracy, and many more.&nbsp;Without a doubt, this was the wedding of the century.&nbsp;

Diana was joined by&nbsp;bridesmaids and flower girls&nbsp;India Hicks, Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones, Catherine Cameron, Sarah-Jane Gaselee and 5-year-old Clementine Hambro (who is the great-grandaughter of Winston Churchill and one of Diana&#39;s kindergarten students,&nbsp;pictured below being carried through Buckingham Palace), who were&nbsp;dressed in almost as much taffeta and ruffles as the bride herself.

9191490f27343d73f0e5e3c0dcd3251a.jpg

JS69824264.jpg

Diana&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/valentino-couture-fall-2021-wedding-dresses" target="_blank">wedding dress</a> matched the spectacle of the day, as it was so big it could barely fit in the horse-drawn carriage. As one of the best-kept secrets in fashion, with even her own brother&nbsp;seeing the dress for the first time on the wedding day, the awaiting crowds fawned over the larger-than-life gown and the 25-foot train (the longest in royal history) trailing behind it.

Designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel&mdash;who also happened to make the dress Diana wore to her first public engagement&mdash;the gown was adorned with 542 sequins and 132 pearls, and was paired with a&nbsp;153-yard veil and 19th-century tiara.

The Spencer Tiara, a family&nbsp;heirloom gifted to Diana&#39;s grandmother, Cynthia Hamilton, on her wedding day in 1919, was also worn by Diana&#39;s sister, Lady Sarah, as well as Victoria Lockwood (who married Charles Spencer in 1989). The tiara&nbsp;represents the deep heritage of one of England&#39;s oldest aristocratic families, and&nbsp;helps cement&nbsp;the identity Diana embodied throughout her life, and legacy, as the people&rsquo;s princess.

1981 wedding by emanuel.jpg

da708631add0db4293e53fa0760361e7.jpg

gettyimages-112768221-1518563500.jpg

After the ceremony, where Charles and Diana shocked the world by&nbsp;leaving the word &quot;obey&quot; out of Diana&#39;s vows and deviating from traditional royal wedding protocol, the newly married Prince and Princess of Wales&nbsp;enjoyed&nbsp;a celebratory luncheon with 120 guests at Buckingham Palace before appearing on the balcony at 13:10 BST, delighting the crowd with a kiss (the kiss to begin all royal post-wedding balcony kisses).

Following this now-famous smooch, the wedding party ate cake (in fact, a total of 27 cakes were made for&nbsp;the occassion, with the official cake having been created by the Naval Armed Forces) before the royal couple rode away in their fairytale carriage to begin their eleven-day honeymoon cruise of the Mediterranean.&nbsp;

A Look Back at Princess Diana's Fairytale Wedding

Tags

Related Articles

Film & TV

Lucy Boynton of 'The Politician' is Blazing a Path for Herself

Fashion

Princess Diana Style: See Her Most Iconic Looks of All Time

Save The Date

Ellie Goulding's Wedding Dress Took 640 Hours to Make

Recommended posts for you

Fashion

These Timeless Luxury Accessories Were Made to Cherish for a Lifetime

Beauty

The Evolution of Rocker Hair

Fashion

Louis Vuitton Re-Opens in NYC With Five-Floor Extravaganza

Music

Tate McRae Announces 2025 Tour, Drops New Single

Fashion

Dior's Lady Art Project Returns With Stunning Artist-Made Bags

Pop culture

20 Rare Photos of Young King Charles III: A Look at His Earlier Life

Fashion

Skims Teams Up With Dolce & Gabbana for a Luxurious Collaboration

Fashion

Meet Tanya Taylor's Alter Ego: Delphine, a Muse for NYC Night Owls