Fashion

Fit for a Queen! The BEST hats in Royal Wedding history

Princess Beatrice isn't the only British royal who has a penchant for out-there headwear.
Loading the player...

When it comes to standing out a wedding, no-one can compete with the ever-fashionating British royal family.

From feathered fascinators to bright, bold bonnets that make your eyes pop (thank you very much, Princess Beatrice…), here are the most memorable glitzy hats, wacky toppers and jaw-dropping show-stoppers worn by the royals at their family weddings.

Starting with…

Obsessed with the royals? Like our Facebook page Now To Love Royals for the latest news on your favourite royal family members!

Sophie, Countess of Wessex

In 2011, the Countess rocked up to Mike and Zara Tindall‘s Edinburgh nuptials in a headdress that we almost confused with a bird in flustered flight!

Oh, and we couldn’t forget the time she fused feathers and faux-snake skin for one helluva head-turning topper for Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles’ wedding in Windsor in 2005.

Princess Eugenie

The Duke of York’s youngest daughter Eugenie added another 25cm of height to her 165cm stature with this fluffy fascinator. The Princess (albeit inadvertently) paid homage to the a Polish-crested chicken at Prince William and Duchess Catherine’s wedding at Westminster Abbey in 2011.

Princess Beatrice

Unlike Eugenie, big sister Beatrice loves to stand-out from the regal crowd at a royal wedding. Here, Princess Beatrice is unknowingly broadcasting Mike and Zara Tindall’s wedding to the world with her satellite-esque headpiece.

Then there’s the time she rocked up to the wedding of Peter Phillips and Autumn Kelly at Windsor Castle in 2018. Forget catching the bouquet – Beatrice would’ve had a tough enough time keeping an eye on these about-to-take-flight butterflies.

And just when we thought all was said/worn and done, Beatrice had to go and almost steal the show from the bride (AKA Duchess Catherine) with her bow motif cross between a mask and a hat. This taupe O caught so much attention, that Beatrice later sold it on eBay for $130,000 and donated the money to charity. Attagirl, B!

Princess Diana, Princess Margaret and the Queen Mother

Talk about a Royal trifecta! Here, Diana is giving us fishy feels with her carp-looking shade hat, while Margaret’s forgotten to take off her gardening hat before heading to Nicholas Soames’ wedding in Westminster in 1981. And hey! We’re not dissing – we’re loving her floral millinery… And so, too, does the Queen Mum. And she’s wearing a puffy, hydrangea crown to prove it.

Queen Elizabeth II

Long live this fashionable Queen! Where do we start with this monarch’s most memorable millinery moments?

Well, the lilac, feather accessory she wore for Prince Edward’s wedding to Sophie Rhys-jones in Windsor in 1999 was as delicate as it was classy.

Her aquamarine bonnet packed a pretty punch (we especially loved her blue floral garland attached to the back of the cap).

Catherine, the Duchess of Windsor

No wonder she has such impeccably perfect skin – Duchess Catherine is clearly all about sun protection, opting for a UV ray-blocking visor for Mike and Zara Tindall’s wedding. And instead of holding a bouquet of flowers, she smuggled them away in her fascinator. Modern royal fashion at its finest!

Princess Diana

Whether she’s stepping out in iridescent green… ^^

Or going against the fashion grain in a bright, (then) modern hue, Princess Diana’s commitment to stylish millinery is yet another reason why she’s one of our favourite stylish royals.

Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwell

Instead of going for a glitzy crown, Camilla opted for a quirkier, arrow-motif headpiece for her own Windsor wedding to Prince Charles in 2005. However, you do have to look at this fancy fascinator closely; it almost looks as if those blonde arrows are her hair!

Related stories