Prince William wanted Harry to marry in church near to where they both grew up in Gloucestershire
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Prince William wanted Harry and Meghan to marry in a small Cotswolds church according to the bombshell book by the Duke of Sussex. Prince William ruled out St Paul’s because it was too grand and suggested his younger brother married in a modest, historic country church near their childhood home in Gloucestershire, says Harry.
In the end Harry and Meghan decided against getting married in Tetbury and tied the knot in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in what turned out to be a major national event. More than 11.5million people saw it live on TV and 35 million caught up later on YouTube.
But it wasn't all plaining sailing and in leaked extracts from his memoir Spare Harry addresses a number of rumours about behind the scenes rows in the run up to his wedding on May 19, 2018. Although there have been reports of rows over tiaras and Princess Charlotte’s dress for some time, Prince William's role has never been discussed.
READ MORE: Duke of Sussex's autobiography, Spare: What have we learned so far?
The new book claims that Prince William, who was best man, vetoed his brother getting married in Westminster Abbey or St Paul’s Cathedral and suggested he and Meghan married in the Cotswolds. Details of the exact church in Tetbury have not yet been disclosed but the most likely would be the picturesque St Mary the Virgin in the town centre
Local to both Highgrove and the Princess Royal's Gatcombe Park estate, it was the church they attended when growing up and elegant spired building is used to hosting society weddings for the landed gentry in the Cotswolds.
Princess Anne’s stepdaughter Stephanie Phillips married there last summer and in December William, now Prince of Wales, attended the wedding of Rose Farquhar and George Gemmell, daughter of the former master of the Beaufort Hunt.
But even St Mary's might have struggled top cope with a star-studded royal wedding that cost an estimated £32 million, most of which went on security. Along with 600 friends, family and relations, the bride and groom invited 2,000 members of the public to watch from the grounds.
In Harry’s memoir which has been accidentally released early in Spain he is reported to have written: "We wanted to get married quickly. But the Palace couldn't seem to pick a date. Or a venue.
“While waiting for a decree from on high, from the nebulous upper regions of the royal decision-making apparatus, we went off on a traditional 'engagement tour. On our return from the trip I rang Willy, sounded him out, asked his thoughts about where we might get married.
“ I told him we were thinking of Westminster Abbey. 'No good. We did it there.' 'Right, right. St. Paul's?' 'Too grand. Plus Pa and Mummy did it there.' 'Hm. Yes Good point.'"
He says William then reminded him he wanted a small wedding and suggested Tetbury but Harry says this isn’t what they mean when they suggested something private. . He wrote: "In fact we wanted to explore. Barefoot in Botswana, with maybe a friend officiating, that was our dream,, But we were expected to share this moment with other people. It wasn't up to us."
According to Prince Harry, there were also “heated debates” on whether or not Markle should wear a veil for their ceremony as a divorced woman and Prince William, “was livid” that Harry refused to shave off his beard for the ceremony.
The couple started dating in 2016 and after they became engaged in 2017 they rented a cottage in the Cotswolds near the celebrity haunt of Soho Farmhouse. They eventually chose not to be working members of the royal family and moved to California in February 2021.
Some believe the Georgian gothic church in Tetbury is possibly the oldest site of Christian worship in Gloucestershire. There has been a Christian place of worship on the site of since at least 681 AD but the present church was built following the demolition of the medieval church in 1777.
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