After he and Meghan Markle exchanged their “I do’s” at the Royal Wedding on Saturday, Prince Harry was given the chance to speak at the lunch reception at Windsor Castle. he reportedly nailed it with a hilarious, heartfelt speech.
An attendee at the wedding said Harry went “off-the-cuff” and thanked everyone involved with making sure his special day went off without a hitch.
Videos by PopCulture.com
“He did all the ‘Thank you’s,’” a guest told PEOPLE. The guest said Harry also received a big round of applause after he first said “my wife and I.”
“It was very off-the-cuff, which was lovely,” the guest said. “He promised that all the Americans wouldn’t steal the swords and said, ‘Please, when you leave, be quiet as you don’t want to wake the neighbors,’ which was quite fun.”
The guest continued, “It was more than you would ever imagine it to be… It did feel like we were really part of their very special occasion. It just felt about the two of them, which was great.”
The lunch was the first of two receptions for the wedding, and was hosted by Prince Harry‘s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. All 600 guests were invited, although the evening reception at Frogmore House will be more intimate. Only 200 guests will attend this reception, which is hosted by Harry’s father, Prince Charles.
As for Charles, he also gave an emotional speech at the reception. A guest described it as “brilliant” in an interview with PEOPLE, and said Harry was “very emotional” while his father spoke.
“He ended it calling him, ‘My darling old Harry, I’m so happy for you,’ which was very sweet,” the guest said of Charles’ speech.
Charles, who also walked Markle down the aisle after her father was not able to attend, was also “happy to help out” with the wedding.
Harry and Markle will now be known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Markle will not officially be called a “princess” since she was not born into the royal family, unlike Prince William’s daughter Princess Charlotte. Prince’s wives are usually stylized as Princess through their husbands’ names, so Markle will be known as Meghan, Her Royal Highness Princess Henry of Sussex.
Markle is expected to break another royal tradition by speaking at the evening reception. She also broke with tradition by taking an altered vow, dropping the word “obey,” just as Princess Diana and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, did at their weddings. While the bride usually vows to “love, cherish and obey” in the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, Markle took a more modern vow.
Photo credit: Facebook/The Royal Family
