One of the highlights of most royal weddings is watching the bride and groom take to the Buckingham Palace balcony and share their first public kiss. 

It was a memorable moment of Princess Diana and Prince Charles’ wedding and the wedding of Kate Middleton and Prince William. But why didn’t Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have the same experience on their wedding day?

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle didn’t kiss on the Buckingham Palace balcony

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry tied the knot on May 19, 2018. While their nuptials certainly were royal in experience, their ceremony was more pared down than previous royal weddings.

Instead of choosing bustling London’s Westminster Abbey or St. Paul’s Cathedral, where his brother, Prince William, and parents, King Charles and Princess Diana, each tied the knot, Harry chose to have his ceremony at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.

Therefore, as Windsor is almost an hour and a half from London, Harry and Meghan would not have been able to present themselves as a newly married couple on the Buckingham Palace balcony. However, would they have been able to mimic the same experience at Windsor Castle?

Per Vogue Australia, they could not, as there isn’t a balcony at Windsor Castle appropriate enough to stage the kiss on. Therefore, the couple didn’t have that option.

So, where did Prince Harry and Meghan Markle share their first kiss?

Without a balcony for them to publicly display their affection for one another after taking their vows, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had to come up with a different way to share their first kiss after their wedding. They chose a sweet and sentimental way to express their feelings for one another.

At the conclusion of their wedding, Harry and Meghan kissed in front of the crowd on the steps of St. George’s Chapel. The crowds cheered them on.

However, the attendees were not the vast crowds that would have greeted the couple if they married in London. Around 1,200 members of the public were invited to greet the couple outside the chapel on the grounds of Windsor Castle.

Their position was achieved by the invitation of Harry and Meghan. These included charity workers, Windsor Castle community members, people from the royal households and the Crown Estate, and local school children, reported the BBC. Around 2,640 people were given access to the grounds for the wedding.

King Charles and Princess Diana were the first to seal their vows with a public kiss

In 1981, King Charles and Princess Diana were the first to seal their wedding vows with a public kiss. As the royal family acts restrained in public, this gesture endeared the couple to their followers.

The break from formality and royal protocol came in direct response to calls from the crowds waiting below the Buckingham Palace balcony. At the time, Charles was reported to have said to Diana: “I am not going to do that caper. They are trying to get us to kiss.” Then, she responded: “Well, how about it?”

This romantic gesture has become a defining moment of most royal weddings. These rare displays of affection afford the public a glimpse into each relationship.

Five years later, in 1986, Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson also had their balcony moment. The next romantic moment didn’t occur until 2011. Then, Prince William and Kate Middleton kissed after their wedding at Westminster Abbey.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been married for six years. They are parents to Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.

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