The wedding of Princess Mary (later Princess Royal), and Henry Lascelles, Viscount Lascelles (later 6th Earl of Harewood) took place on Tuesday, 28 February 1922, at Westminster Abbey. The bride was the only daughter of King George V, while the groom was a member of the Lascelles family.
Engagement
Mary and Lascelles's relationship began after meeting at the Grand National and at a house party in 1921. After being invited to stay with the royal family at Balmoral Castle and Sandringham House, he proposed to her on 20 November 1921 at York Cottage.
Wedding
Their wedding was held at Westminster Abbey, and attracted large crowds along the route between the abbey and Buckingham Palace. It was the first wedding of the child of a monarch to be held at Westminster Abbey since Margaret of England married John II, Duke of Brabant. Many spent the night on the streets despite the cold weather to catch a glimpse of the couple on the wedding day. Men wounded in the First World War were provided with special accommodations to view the procession. Queen Mary was accompanied by her sons Prince Albert, Prince Henry, and Prince George on her way to the abbey. The Prince of Wales was not present at the ceremony. The bride and the King made their way to the abbey in the Glass coach. The procession went along The Mall, passed Admiralty Arch and went down Whitehall. The Household Cavalry took part in the procession and the route was lined with battalions from the Grenadier Guards, Coldstream Guards, Scots Guards, and Welsh Guards, and the representative detachments of the London territorial divisions.
2,000 guests were invited for the wedding ceremony. There was "a stir and hurrying whisper" when Prime Minister David Lloyd George moved himself across the aisle to a prominent seat. Queen Alexandra arrived first, followed by Queen Mary and her sons, and ultimately the King and his daughter Mary. The service began at 11:30 a.m. and was conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Archbishop of York, the Bishop of London, and the Dean of Westminster. The Gold used for making the wedding ring came from a mine in Wales.
Vandyk took the formal photographs and Frank O. Salisbury was commissioned by the King to paint a picture of the ceremony at the abbey which took years to complete.
Music
Psalm 67 was sung to music by T. Tertius Noble. After the Archbishop of Canterbury's address the hymn "Praise, my soul, the King of heaven" was sung. Before the signing of the register the National Anthem was sung. The recessional music was "Wedding March" from A Midsummer Night's Dream by Felix Mendelssohn.
Attendants
The bride's attendants were: Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, daughter of the Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne Princess Maud, daughter of the Princess Royal and the bride's paternal first cousin Lady Mary Cambridge, daughter of the Marquess of Cambridge and the bride's maternal first cousin Lady May Cambridge, daughter of the Earl of Athlone and Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, and the bride's maternal first cousin and paternal second cousin Lady Diana Bridgeman, daughter of the Earl of Bradford Lady Mary Thynne, daughter of the Marquess of Bath Lady Rachel Cavendish, daughter of the Duke of Devonshire Lady Doris Gordon-Lennox, daughter of the Duke of Richmond
This was the first royal occasion in which Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, a friend of Princess Mary, participated, as one of the bridesmaids. She later married Mary's brother, Prince Albert, and became queen consort of the United Kingdom upon his accession in 1936.