Two of Prince Harry’s ex-girlfriends were in attendance on Saturday at his wedding to Meghan Markle.
The royal wedding was a massive event, hosting hundreds of high-profile guests from around the world. Among them were Chelsy Davy and Cressida Bonas, both of whom have dated Prince Harry in the past. Davy turned a lot of heads in her head-to-toe navy blue ensemble. She wore a feathered fascinator on her head and a flowing cardigan over her dress.
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Bonas wore a striped pink and green dress along with her own matching fascinator.
Both women reportedly ended their relationships with Prince Harry due to the strain of being in the public eye all the time. Davy, now 32, was the prince’s first serious relationship. They met in 2004, and she even accompanied him to Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding in 2011. According to a report by PEOPLE, they are still on friendly terms to this day.
“I think we will always be good friends,” Davy told The Sunday Times in 2016. She also confirmed that the spotlight played a role in their break up.
“I found it tough,” Davy confessed. “It’s not something you get used to.”
The two exes filed into St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Town along with the rest of the guests at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday. Many viewers watched their expressions closely, assuming the surreal sensation of watching an ex-boyfriend get married.
“Wonder what’s going through Chelsy Davy’s mind?” tweeted one British journalist. “Harry loved her to bits and wanted to marry her but she didn’t want to be a Royal. Fascinating.”
Wonder what’s going through Chelsy Davy’s mind? Harry loved her to bits and wanted to marry her but she didn’t want to be a Royal. Fascinating. @globalnews @ETCanada
โ phil dampier (@phildampier) May 19, 2018
It wasn’t long before the exes, particularly Davy, became full-on memes circulating social media.
When your ex turns up to your wedding. #royalwedding pic.twitter.com/W9CyNF9Vtr
โ BBC Three (@bbcthree) May 19, 2018
“Love that Chelsea has turned up in BLACK,” wrote one person. “Hoping to see her marching up the aisle, drunk, mascara running down her face, carrying a bouquet of dead flowers, belting out It Should Have Been Me, just after midday.”
Love that Chelsea has turned up in BLACK. Hoping to see her marching up the aisle, drunk, mascara running down her face, carrying a bouquet of dead flowers, belting out It Should Have Been Me, just after midday. pic.twitter.com/Bh3WtPn4jK
โ Paul Lang (@rudemrlang) May 19, 2018
“There’s Chelsea Davy looking exactly like you’d expect any woman to look when attending her ex-boyfriend’s wedding,” quipped another.
There’s Chelsea Davylooking exactly like you’d expect any woman to look when attending her ex-boyfriend’s wedding. #royalwedding pic.twitter.com/UmTvakRTn9
โ Stephanie Faye (@StephanieEphani) May 19, 2018
Still, there was little doubt that Prince Harry’s commitment to Markle was genuine, as he stood stoically wiping tears from his eyes at the altar. The wedding, intimate by royal standards, housed only 600 guests inside the chapel. That is small compared to Prince William’s 2011 wedding to Kate Middleton, which saw 2,000 guests in Westminster Abbey.
Markle is now officially the Duchess of Sussex. Early on Saturday morning, Queen Elizabeth II conferred the title of Duke of Sussex onto Prince Harry so that Markle would obtain it when they married as well.
Contrary to popular belief, she will not officially hold the title of “princess,” though the term is often used for convenience.