Prince William and his princess-in-waiting will soon exchange vows, stoking the fantasies of countless girls who grow up dreaming of marrying their prince. But few royal weddings have been fairy-tale celebrations based on true love.
Until relatively recently, many royal marriages could best be described as a "strategic apparatus" arranged purely for diplomatic and political reasons, says Dr. Sandra den Otter, an associate history professor at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont.
"They were designed to forge diplomatic alliances, to symbolize the power and prestige of a nation, and to block the ascendency of enemies," she says.
Enough material for a boring documentary perhaps, but hardly the makings of an epic romance. Take Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales and older brother of Henry VIII, for example. He was just two years old when his father arranged his marriage to Catherine of Aragon in a bid to strengthen his kingdom through an alliance with the newly-united Spain.
The pair married in 1501. "There was a lot of public interest in that wedding and Arthur's father, Henry the VII, managed the pageantry," says den Otter. "Historians estimate about 20,000 Londoners - about half the city's population - gathered for the ceremony."
Alas, the marriage was quick, ending with the untimely death of Prince Arthur at age 15. Catherine later married his more famous brother, whose long line of wives included Anne of Cleaves, a German princess.
That union was yet another disappointment. "Henry VII expected an attractive bride because he had seen a miniature painting of Catherine but was sorely disappointed," says den Otter. "Their marriage was very short lived and eventually annulled. He went on to someone more attractive."
That's just one example of monarchs being forced to marry people they didn't love and had very little affection for, says den Otter. George IV, King of England from 1820 to 1830, married his cousin, Caroline of Brunswick in order to secure his father's help in overcoming his mounting debts.
"He described her as the 'vilest wretch this world has ever been cursed with,'" says den Otter. "When he embraced her for the first time, he retreated to the corner of the room and asked for a large glass of brandy. That marriage ended with a divorce and his attempt to strip his wife of her royal title.
"Interestingly, the public in London supported Caroline and connections have sometimes been drawn between her and Princess Diana."
Today, details of William and Kate's wedding are reported to a hungry public as soon as they become available. Yet even back in the day, the public gobbled up the pageantry of these often very public spectacles.
"For the British public, they often mattered more than the dry and changing texts of laws, speeches and constitutions," says den Otter. When Edward Albert, the future Edward VII, married Princess Alexandra in 1863, The Daily Telegraph ran day and night to reach the highest circulation the world had ever known - 207,000.
Though history is riddled with dire stories of unhappy royal marriages, there are also examples of highly successful unions. King George VI and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, featured in the Academy-award winning The King's Speech, is one such example.
"Their role in the Second World War - especially during the Blitz - helped cement a sense of unity among the enormous differences that were dividing the British public," says den Otter. "They were also successful on a personal level."
Of course, William and Kate's place in history has yet to be determined but many hope for a fairy tale ending.
Interesting royal wedding trivia:
- The traditional white wedding gown came into vogue because of one bride: Queen Victoria of England. Prior to her 1840 marriage to Prince Albert, it was common for brides to wear colourful or even black dresses that could be worn again.
- The biggest royal wedding of all took place on July 29, 1981 when Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer. The people of England were given a holiday in honour of the occasion and two million royal watchers lined the procession route travelled by Diana's carriage.
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