Grace Kelly’s romance with Prince Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, is often described as a fairytale. The Hollywood actress, who had won an Oscar for her role in The Country Girl in the lead, met Prince Rainier in Cannes Film Festival 1955. She was at the time filming a Hitchcock movie called To Catch a Thief.
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Seven months later, Grace Kelly and her husband announced their engagement from Philadelphia, where she resides with her family. Grace Kelly was then married in the same year. Grace Kelly is now an American princess, her Serene Highness, Princess Grace, of Monaco. The royal wedding was covered with great interest, starting from the iconic lace-and pearl-covered wedding gown to her delicate Juliet caps to the less-known blush-colored and lace dress she wore to their civil ceremony. We’ve collected all the sweet details from their wedding, which were just as beautiful as it was back in 1956.
Everything about Grace Kelly’s Wedding To Prince Rainier
Grace Kelly’s wedding was no small event. The American actress, Grace Kelly, brought her family, along with bridesmaids and around 80 pieces of luggage, to Monaco aboard the ocean liner SS Constitution. She was welcomed by 23,000 of her loyal subjects. The royal family had to call in French riot police to handle the many reporters and fans who came to Monaco for this once-in-a lifetime event.
MGM Studios gifted her the iconic wedding dress.
The public was abuzz about the possibility that Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier would marry in 1956. Helen Rose, a costume designer who worked with Kelly on four of her films was awarded the honors. The bride was presented the stunning wedding gown by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Kelly’s movie studio. It is made from 125-year-old Brussels Lace, Taffeta and thousands of hand-sewn Pearls. The creation took six weeks and 30 seamstresses, many of them from the studio’s wardrobe department.
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Princess Grace chose not to wear a tie.
Grace Kelly wore a Juliet cap embellished with pearls and lace. She also wore a wreath of paper orange blossoms as a departure from tradition. The circular veil she wore was designed to not cover her face. This was particularly important for the 30,000,000 viewers who watched the event on televised. It measured 90 yards in length and was decorated with seed pearls and lace. Princess Grace chose to forgo a large bouquet and instead carried a small, more intimate bouquet of lilies in the valley down the aisle.
A good luck charm was kept by the bride.
Princess Grace made a sweet nod towards her husband-to be by gifting him a pair custom David Evins pumps. Prince Rainier III’s name and his name were engraved on the right shoe, while her name was written across the left. A copper penny was also placed in the right heel by the designer for luck. Grace Kelly chose to keep her heel at a modest 2 1/2 inches to avoid being too tall for the groom. (The elegant actress was a substantial 5-foot seven-inches tall.
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Hollywood’s A-list was on the guest list.
The event was grand, but Princess Grace and Prince Rainier brought all the glamour. Around 600 people attended the religious ceremony at Monaco’s Saint Nicholas Cathedral. This included movie stars Cary Grant, Gloria Swanson and Ava Gardner as well as high-ranking members of society such as Conrad Hilton and Aristotle Onassis.
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The couple was legally married when they got married.
A day before their fairytale marriage ceremony, Princess Grace married Prince Rainier in a private civil ceremony. It took place in the palace’s throne room. Although the ceremony was brief at 16 minutes, the bride did not miss the chance to dress up. For the occasion, the Academy Award-winning actress wore an elegant, champagne-and-pink, floral embroidered suit (which was, incidentally, also designed by Helen Rose). The look was completed with a Juliet cap. Kelly wore a Lanvin white silk Lanvin ballgown to the Monaco Opera gala that night.