Guillaume & Stéphanie Married in Civil Ceremony

Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume and Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy were married in a civil ceremony held at Luxembourg’s Town Hall yesterday afternoon.

The couple were joined by their immediate families and witnesses as they walked through the streets of Luxembourg to the Town Hall from the Grand Ducal Palace. Well-wishers lined the route to greet the royal family, before the ceremony presided over by the Mayor of Luxembourg City, Mr Xavier Bettel. Guillaume answered “oui” (French) and Stéphanie “jo” (Luxembourgish), and the pair were legally wed. The party then returned on foot to the Palace, to prepare for the evening’s festivities.

In the evening to celebrate his son’s marriage, Grand Duke Henri hosted a gala banquet at the Grand Ducal Palace. This was attended by a number of the royal guests who will be at today’s religious ceremony, and they all brought out their bling. The gala is the first time that Countess Stéphanie has been seen wearing a tiara, the Grand Ducal Family’s larger diamond floral tiara, paired with a grey Elie Saab evening gown.

The Grand Duke gave a speech during the dinner, in which he spoke directly to both Guillaume and Stéphanie. Addressing them as his ‘dear Stéphanie’ and ‘dear Guillaume’, the Grand Duke spoke of how the two families had watched their love blossom, which gave everyone great joy. Grand Duke Henri paid tribute to the strength and courage his future daughter-in-law showed over the past two months, following the death of her mother, Countess Alix de Lannoy. “The fact that you have already endured the most difficult of ordeals has shown us that you are capable of strength and courage in the face of adversity,” he said before paying tribute to the late Countess herself: “Alix, for those of us fortunate enough to have known her, will always remain an exceptional person. From heaven above, she will watch over you, so that you, too, will be a united and exemplary couple, as were Alix and Philippe.”

Speaking to his son, Henri told him that, “your wife shall be, as your mother is for me, steadfast in her support of the difficult but oh so rewarding tasks which await you. We have every confidence in your judgement, but remember too that we shall always be there to support you.” The Grand Duke ended his speech by asking the guests to raise their glasses in toast to the bride and groom – “Long live the happy couple, long live Luxembourg!”

Join us in just under an hour’s time (11:00, Luxembourg local time) for the religious wedding ceremony!

Filed under Luxembourg
Tagged Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg, Luxembourg Royal Wedding 2012.