The Wedding of H.R.H. Princess Madeleine and Chris O'Neill

Though Sweden didn't get a new prince this time, it got a radiant, and happy wedded bride and groom.  

  • H.R.H. Princess Madeleine and Mr. Christopher O’Neill with the bridal attendants. Photo: Ewa-Marie Rundquist, The Royal Court

  • Though Sweden didn’t get a new prince this time, it got a radiant, and happy wedded bride and groom as Prince Madeleine married Christopher O’Neill in a beautiful, lavish and surprisingly “folklorish” wedding with children wearing flower wreaths, and folk music. The ceremony took place at Slottskyrkan, the Palace Church in Stockholm, a beautiful, sunny Stockholm, and was held in Swedish and English, but predominantly in English, with the Crown Princess reading Saint Francis’ prayer in Swedish, while baby Estelle stole the show being cute and well-behaved.

  • Princess Madeleine and Mr. Christopher O'Neill with parents. Photo: Ewa-Marie Rundquist, The Royal Court

  • The gown
    Princess Madeleine wore a gown designed by Valentino, in pleated silk organza with applications of ivory-colored Chantilly lace. The top was in lace with a deep back, the waist was accentuated, opening up with vertical folds over a full skirt, which was finished with a four-meter (over 13 feet) long train. The veil was also in silk organza with borders of tulle covered with “point d’esprit” dots and small orange blossoms in Chantilly lace. The shoes (with very high heels) were in ivory-colored organdy with woven “point d’esprit” dots as well. The tiara is a private one, and it was adorned with orange blossom branches. The princess’ hair and make-up was created by Rick Ljung and Sara Denman.

  • Princess Madeleine and Mr. Christopher O'Neill. Photo: Ewa-Marie Rundquist, The Royal Court

  • The bouquet
    Princess Madeleine’s wedding bouquet consisted of classic garden roses and lily-of-the-valley (a favorite of the late Princess Lilian) as well as the traditional myrtle from Sofiero. All the flowers were white and the bouquet was bound in a round shape.

  • The Royal Wedding; families of the bride and groom. Photo: Ewa-Marie Rundquist, The Royal Court

  • Myrtle in the bouquet or in the hair?
    Princess Margareta, who in 1905 married Gustaf (VI) Adolf in St. George’s chapel at Windsor Castle in England, brought with her to Sweden a myrtle bush. It grew and was nurtured at first at Sofiero Palace and nowadays at Ulriksdal’s Palace. A branch from this bush has ever since 1935 in of form or another, been involved in royal wedding bouquets or in the hair of the royal brides. Princess Ingrid, who in 1935 married the heir to the Danish throne, brought a shoot of the plant to her new home country. And ever since then, the Danish royal family continues the same tradition as the Swedish, with myrtle from Princess Margareta’s original plant.

  • H.R.H. Princess Madeleine and Mr. Christopher O'Neill with families. Photo: Brigitte Grenfeldt, The Royal Court, Sweden

  • The wedding ceremony
    The officiants at the ceremony were Royal Court Chief Chaplain, Bishop Lars-Göran Lönnemark, assisted by the Vicar of the Royal Court, Reverend Michael Bjerkhagen. Christ O’Neill’s best man was his childhood friend Cedric Notz, currently living in Switzerland. The processional music was a traditional wedding march from Gotland, Marie Fredriksson sang “Ännu doftar kärlek” and a hymn from Church of England’s hymnbook was sung. Peter Jöback (currently the Phantom in “The Phantom of the Opera” on Broadway in NYC) sang “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”. The Bridal Recession was done to the Wedding March from Delsbo. At the left of the altar was Princess Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotta’s crown from 1778, the same crown that was present at the baptismal font at Princess Madeleine’s christening.

  • Nordstjärneorden / The Order of the Polar Star. Photo: Alexis Daflos, The Royal Court

  • Guests
    Apart from members of the Swedish royal family and the family of the groom, there was a long guest list that included the following, among others: Crown Prince and Crown Princess Frederik and Mary of Denmark, Prince Nikolaos and Princess Tatiana of Greece, Princess Theodora of Greece, Prince Philipos of Greece, and Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece, Princess Takamado of Japan, Hereditary Grand Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg, Prince Guillaume and Princess Stéphanie, Princess Charlene of Monaco, Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway, Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and her husband Mr Ari Behn, the Earl and Coutness of Wessex, England, and Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt.

  • Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotte's Crown. Photo: Alexis Daflos, The Royal Court

  • Order of the Polar Star
    Prior to the wedding, Chris O’Neill received the “Nordstjärneorden” or the Order of the Polar Star, by King Carl XVI Gustaf. The order is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Fredrik I of Sweden in February 1748, and was until 1975 intended as a reward for Swedish and foreign “civic merits, for devotion to duty, for science, literary, learned and useful works and for new and beneficial institutions”. After the 1975 reorganizations of the orders, the order is now only awarded to foreigners and members of the royal family.

  • Flower girls and page boys
    “Brudnäbbar” at the ceremony were Lillie von Horn, twin sisters Annais and Chloe Sommerlath, Louis and Chiara Abensperg und Traun and Jasper d’Abo.

  • To Drottningholm
    The guests went in boats and buses to the Drottningholm Palace, with the bridal couple traveling in cortege through Stockholm, waving at people who had come to see them, and then by boat.

  • The wedding dinner
    The menu looked like this:
    Swedish delicacies
    “Kalix löjrom”, roe of the small salmonid fish harvested specifically from the Bothnian Bay archipelago of the Baltic Sea in northern Sweden, with a spicy crème fraîche. Skagen emulsion with crispy rye bread, mustard herring covered in carrots, Matjes herring, eggs from Gotland with a foam of caviar and a small Västerbotten pie.

  • Butter-baked trout with steamed white asparagus, fried green asparagus, and marinated violet asparagus, tomato-and shallot compote in browned butter, horseradish, chive oil, and salmon roe.

  • Roast fillet of veal from Holmbergs Gård (on Gotland), with a mustard cover and sauce made of Astrakan cider. Carrot variation and roasted miniature cauliflower from Nobis gårdar.

  • “Pavlova” with Italian meringue, wild strawberry sorbet, and strawberry ice cream, white chocolate and fresh, wild strawberries.

  • Wine: Graham Beck Blanc de Blancs Brut, 2008
    Swedish schnapps or beer or Trimbach Riesling Vieilles Vignes 2009 Alsace

  • Pommery Grand Cru Millésimé 2005 Champagne

  • Auxey-Duresses 1:er Cru 2010 LA Chapelle Dom. Lafouge
    Sattlerhof Beerenauslese 2010 Südsteiermark.

  • Flower decorations
    The flower decorations were chosen to frame the wedding in a way that would hint at Swedish summer and give a feel of a Swedish “sommarhage” (a summery Swedish pasture).

  • The party
    The newly wed and their guests partied until five in the morning, Guns n’ Roses’ “Sweet Child of Mine” and Haddaway’s “What Is Love?” are said to have been played at full volume. Chris O’Neill held a sentimental speech to his bride, declaring his love and talking also about his late father, saying “if he had been here now, he would have loved Madeleine almost as much as I love her,” according to daily Aftonbladet. Others who held speeches were Crown Princess Victoria, Crown Prince Carl Philip, and the Swedish King. If, where, and when the couple is going on their honeymoon is not yet known.