Sunday, June 19, 2011

The wedding of Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg

the bride

All photos copyright Koenigs (not Koenig)

Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburgm, younger daughter of Princess Benedikte of Denmark, and Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, was married today to Alexander Johannsmann.

The religious wedding took place at the local church in Bad Berleburg.  The Lutheran service was officiated by Pastor Claudia Latzel-Binder, who baptised the couple's son, Konstantn Gustav Heinrich Richard, last December.

The wedding festivities began on Friday night with a barbecue for 230 guests at Schloss Berleburg, where the bride and groom and their son live.  The menu featured Danish beef, marinated potato salad, creamy pasta, scallop brochettes, tiger prawns, Tiramisu, Swiss double cream and a Danish cheeseboard.

This was an informal and causal event, where the men could wear jeans and open-necked shirts and the ladies wore skirts, summer dresses or pants.

There was also dancing and music, and the party ended after 1 a.m.  

Princess Nathalie and her father, Prince Richard, arrived at the church in a 1935 Rolls Royce Phantom 2 Sidelight Cabrio.  The bridegroom also arrived by car.  The guests staying at Schloss Berleburg traveled to the church by mini-bus.  

The bride and her father waited at the church entrance for several minutes as they waited for the arrival of the bouquet, which had been left at the schloss.

The bride's witness was her best friend, Emma Hindle, who traveled from England to attend the wedding.  Alexander Johannsman's best man was his best friend, Peter Loesser, who lives in Guetersloh, where Johmannsman was raised.

Princess Nathalie's gown was designed by Danish designer Henrik Hvlid. The dress was made from "heavy ivory satin with a silk organza lining."  The couple's monogram was embroidered at the bottom of the 3.2 yards train.  Her veil of Irish lace was first worn by the Princess' great-grandmother, Princess Margaret of Connaught who married Hereditary Prince Gustv Adolf of Sweden in 1905.
This veil was worn again in 1935 when Margaret's daughter, Princess Ingrid, when she married Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark.  The veil has also been worn by all three of Ingrid and Frederik's daughters, Queen Margrethe, Princess  Benedikte and Queen Anne Marie on their wedding days.

Princess Benedikte's elder daughter, Princess Alexandra, and Queen Anne Marie's eldest daughter, Princess Alexia, also wore the veil when they married.  The most recent person to wear the veil was Mary Donaldson when she married Crown Prince Frederik.

The veil was held in place by a diamond tiara, which Princess Margaret of Connaught received as a wedding gift.  The tiara was also worn on their wedding days by Queen Margrethe II, Princess Benedikte and Queen Anne Marie,  Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark.

One person who may never get to wear the veil is the American-born Carina Axelsson, who is the longtime companion of Nathalie's elder brother, Hereditary Prince Gustav of Sayn-Wittgensgtein-Berleburg.  This is due to Gustav's grandfather's will, which included several clauses about equal marriages and inheritance.  If Prince Gustav marries Carina, he will lose his inheritance.

The guests included members of the bride and groom's families, Danish and German nobles and members of Danish, Greek, and German royal families, including Queen Margrethe II (having just returned from a trip to Washington, D.C., and New York City), Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark,  Queen Anne Marie of Greece, Crown Prince and Crown Princess Pavlos of Greece, Princess Alexia of Greece, Prince and Princess Nikolaos of Greece, Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and her two children, Richard and Ingrid, the Landgrave of Hesse and his former wife, Princess Tatiana of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg,  the Hereditary Prince and Princess of Hesse, Princess Mafalda of Hesse, Prince and Princess Philipp of Hesse, Princess Elena of Hesse, the Hereditary Prince and Princess of Hohelohe-Ohringen,  Prince and Princess Stephan zur Lippe, Princess Christina of Sweden (the bride's godmother) and her husband, Tord Magnuson, Prince and Princess Christian-Peter of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, Prince Hubertsus of Sayn-Wittgenstein, Princess Marie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Olivier LeMaire,  Princess Natascha of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg,  Prince and Princess Otto-Ludwig of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Bereburg,  Prince and Princess Robin of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg,  Prince Bernhard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein and Katharina von Alvensleben, Princess Elisabeth of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein, Prince and Princess Georg of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein, The Prince and Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn, the Prince and Princess of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich,  Count Franz zu Solms-Laubach and Victoria Unterreiner, Counts Gustav-Albrecht and Karl-Georg and Countess Madeleine of Solms-Laubauch,  Maria Princess of Stolberg-Wernigerode, Count Hans-Veit and Countess Henriette of Toerring-Jettenbach, the Prince and Princess of Waldeck und Pyrmont, the Prince and Princess of Oettingen-Spielberg,Count Michael Bernadotte,

The couple were married in a civil ceremony in the Orangery at Schloss Berleburg on May 27, 2010, two months before the Princess gave birth to a son, Konstantin, on July 24.

A reception and a dinner dance for 370 guests was held under a marquee at Schloss Berleburg.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rhrxT5iiXg

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