@history.mae: Why did Queen Victoria choose to wear white? She wanted to support the English textile industry, the fabric was made in Spitalfields and the Lace in Devonshire. The high profile marriages of other British royal brides, such as Victoria’s daughter, Victoria the Princess Royal, and her daughter in law, Alexandra of Denmark, who both followed the traditions set by Victoria, helped to popularize white wedding dresses. Wearing white was quickly adopted by wealthy, fashionable brides in the 19th century and would be adopted by the general public in the 20th century (specially after the boom of the wedding industry in the 1950s). It was an uncommon choice prior to Victoria’s wedding because it was seen as impractical. White was difficult to keep clean and to repurpose later. Wearing white for your wedding was therefore seen as a status symbol. Less than a decade after Queen Victoria’s wedding, Godey's Lady's Book would incorrectly claim that white wedding gowns were an ancient custom reflecting a bride's virginity, writing "Custom has decided, from the earliest ages, that white is the most fitting hue, whatever may be the material. It is an emblem of the purity and innocence of girlhood, and the unsullied heart she now yields to the chosen one" #History #art

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Monday 05 May 2025 15:02:46 GMT