The royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle is finally here, and there are many ways to watch live early on Saturday morning.
Markle an Prince Harry’s wedding ceremony begins bright and early at 7 a.m. ET on Saturday, May 19. Most news networks are dominated by coverage of the event, but there are several other ways to watch as well.
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The Royal Family has a verified YouTube account, which is streaming the event live. The footage comes with little commentary, and possibly shows the most unfiltered look at the inside of the church as guests filter into St. George’s Chapel in Windsor.
To make it even simpler, the event is also streaming on Facebook. Unlike YouTube, the comments are enabled live on the Facebook stream, giving everyone in the world a chance to offer their congratulations to Prince Harry and Markle.
In the U.S., coverage on CBS News began bright and early at 4 a.m. ET. This allowed dedicated admirers to follow along as guests began arriving at Windsor Castle at 9:30 a.m. BST, British Summer Time, right up until the ceremony at 11 a.m. BST.
The wedding will take place at St. George’s Chapel, a picturesque location in Windsor Town. It holds 800 guests, leaving many well-wishers to stand outside in anticipation. This is considerably smaller than the most recent royal wedding — that of Prince William and Kate Middleton. They were married at Westminster Abbey in London, a church that held 2,000 guests.
The difference is no accident. Prince William reportedly needed a hold a larger scale and more elaborate ceremony because he is next in line to the throne. Prince Harry, by contrast, has less of a responsibility to the British people as a monarch.
Harry is currently sixth in the line of succession. He was bumped back one spot last month, when Kate Middleton gave birth to Prince Louis Arthur Charles. While Harry and Markle have all of the power and resources of the royal family behind them, they’re not obligated to hold as elaborate of a ceremony.
Of course, many are hoping to watch Markle walk down the aisle and see the happy couple say their vows. Perhaps equally coveted is a glimpse of the carriage procession. Prince Harry and Markle will take a 25 minute ride in a horse-drawn carriage through Windsor Town after the nuptials, giving the public a symbolic chance to meet the newest member of the royal family. People from around the world have reportedly camped out for days to get a good place to watch the carriage procession.
