When did William and Kate get married? Remembering the royal wedding on the couple’s 10th anniversary

Kate and William posed for pictures earlier this week at their residence, Kensington Palace (Picture: Chris Floyd/Camera Press)

On 29 April 2011, Kate Middleton became the Duchess of Cambridge when she tied the knot with the future king, Prince William.

The couple celebrate their 10th anniversary on 29 April 2021 and a lot has happened over the past decade.

Not only have the duke and duchess welcomed three children - George, seven, Charlotte, five and Louis, three - they have also visited over 30 countries and engaged in a number of charity campaigns.

The couple have now released two new photos to celebrate their anniversary, with William’s hairline the biggest giveaway that a decade has passed.

Here are the most memorable details of the royal couple’s big day.

How did the couple meet?

Kate and William got married after an eight-year relationship.

They met while both studying at The University of Saint Andrews. The duchess was thought to have famously caught his eye when he watched a charity fashion show that Kate modelled in.

In the second year of their studies, Kate and William moved into a flat-share together with other friends.

"We moved in together as friends because we were living together, we lived with a couple of others as well, and it just sort of blossomed from there really,"Prince William said of their blossoming relationship in the couple's official engagement interview.

Their relationship went public in 2004, with the pair pictured together on a skiing holiday. However, it was not until 2010 that the Prince popped the question on a trip to Kenya.

"We had a little private time away together with some friends, and I just decided it was the right time really," William said in their engagement interview.

He added: "We'd been talking about marriage or a while, so it wasn't a massively big surprise, but I took her up somewhere nice in Kenya."

Where did Kate and William marry?

The pair married at Westminster Abbey on 29 April 2011, with Kate accompanied by her dad, Michael Middleton, to the chapel.

The music during the procession was performed by the Westminster Abbey Choir, the Chapel Royal Choir, the London Chamber Orchestra and a fanfare ensemble from the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.

The floral decoration inside the chapel was the work of Shane Connolly, who also designed Kate’s wedding bouquet.

Who designed Kate Middleton’s dress?

The dress was designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. It was made of ivory satin and had a long-sleeved V-neck lace bodice and appliqued full skirt with box pleats.

The bodice was crafted from machine-made lace, manufactured in France and Britain. Floral motifs were cut from lengths of the lace and appliquéd by hand onto silk net by workers from the Royal School of Needlework.

The bodice included appliqued roses, thistles, daffodils and shamrocks to represent England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Her train wasn’t quite as long as Lady Diana’s 25-foot silk number, at only nine feet long.

Burton was chosen for Kate’s sister Pippa’s bridesmaid’s dress, which became one of the most memorable dresses of the day as it was white and not unlike a wedding dress.

Kate’s shoes were also a Burton creation.

The Duchess also wore a Cartier Halo Tiara, which was her “something borrowed”, as it was made in 1936 and purchased by the Queen's father, King George VI, for his wife Elizabeth three weeks before his accession.

The tiara was gifted to the queen - who was still a princess at the time - by her mother on her 18th birthday.

In keeping with tradition, Kate also had “something new”, custom-made diamond earrings given by her parents, and a blue ribbon sewn into the bodice (something blue).

Who was part of the bridal party?

Joining Kate and William as part of the wedding ceremony was her sister Pippa as maid-of-honour and his brother Prince Harry, as best man.

There were four bridesmaids and two page boys, including Lady Louise Windsor, the seven-year-old daughter of the Earl and Countess of Wessex and Eliza Lopes, the three-year-old granddaughter of the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla.

Margarita Armstrong-Jones, the eight-year-old daughter of Viscount and Viscountess Linley and Grace van Cutsem, the three-year-old daughter of the couple's friend Hugh van Cutsem, were also flower girls.

The page boys were William Lowther-Pinkerton, the ten-year-old son of William's private secretary, Major Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton and Tom Pettifer, the eight-year-old son of Princes William and Harry's former nanny, "Tiggy" Pettifer.

Who were the guests at the wedding?

There were upwards of 1,900 wedding guests in the chapel - including members of Lady Diana Spencer’s family, as well as David and Victoria Beckham, Elton John, Rowan Atkinson and Richard Branson.

Also in attendance were political and religious leaders, other royal families and members of the armed forces.

UK politicians included David Cameron and Nick Clegg, Alex Salmond, Boris Johnson and their wives.

Where was the wedding reception?

After the wedding, the Queen hosted a private lunch reception at Buckingham palace, where the bridal party appeared on the balcony and kissed twice.

The couple then drove back to Clarence House, where Kate changed into a strapless evening gown also made by Sarah Burton.

Their evening reception was held at Buckingham Palace, where the eight-tier wedding cake was revealed, decorated with Lambeth-piped sugar paste flowers.

British singer Ellie Goulding performed at the evening reception. The couple’s first dance was to ‘Your Song’ -a cover by Goulding of Elton John’s song.

The impressive cake was made of fruit cake and designed by Fiona Cairns based in Fleckney, Leicestershire. A tier of the cake has been served at each of their children’s christenings.

British biscuit maker, McVitie's, created a groom's cake from chocolate biscuit for the reception. The chocolate biscuit cake was made from a Royal Family recipe and was specially requested by Prince William.

The icebox cake is a favourite tea cake of the Prince, his late mother Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth II.

How many people watched Kate and William marry?

In addition to the near 2,000 wedding guests, the ceremony at Westminster Abbey was watched by 17.6 million people in the UK and two billion worldwide.

Over one million people also lined the streets of London to watch the carriage procession after their vows.

Did they have a honeymoon?

William surprised Kate with a private honeymoon in the Seychelles.

The couple reportedly stayed at an exclusive resort, consisting of 11 villas on the North coast of the East African island and surrounded by white sandy beaches.

George and Amal Clooney also stayed there following their wedding in 2014, while Salma Hayek also honeymooned on the island.