“The King’s second son, the Duke of York, and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, youngest daughter of the Earl of Strathmore, were married at Westminster Abbey on April 26th, 1923. The bride drove with her father from [his home in] Bruton Street to the Abbey in a closed carriage, but on the return journey the crowds along Piccadilly and Constitution Hill, cheering and showering confetti, saw her radiant and smiling at her husband’s side. The two were acclaimed anew on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, where 123 guests attended the wedding breakfast.
The last act of Lady Elizabeth before her marriage was to lay her bridal bouquet [of roses] on the grave of the Unknown Warrior. The ceremony was performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Davidson, assisted by the Archbishop of York, Dr. Cosmo Lang. The bridegroom was attended by his brothers, [Edward] the Prince of Wales and Prince Henry“.
Text from cigarette cards printed in 1935 and 1937.
Prince Albert, Duke of York, was called Bertie by family and close friends even after he became king in 1937 when he adopted another of his names – George (VI). Like his father, George V, before him he was second in line to the throne and didn’t expect to become king. His father’s older brother died in 1892 so he had almost ten years to train for the job before his coronation, but Albert was thrown in at the deep end at a month’s notice when his brother, Edward, abdicated.
Princess Elizabeth, the current Queen of England and Prince Harry’s grandmother, was born on 21st April 1926. This family photograph might have been taken at the time of her christening in May.
past impressions 