Prince Harry, Duchess Meghan attend his childhood friend's wedding
Just two and a half months after their own wedding, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attended the wedding of Harry's childhood friend Charlie van Straubenzee to Daisy Jenks in Surrey.
Van Straubenzee, one of Harry’s oldest friends from the Ludgrove school in Berkshire and along with Prince William, gave a speech along with Prince William at Harry’s Frogmore House wedding reception in May.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were spotted holding hands gazing adoringly at each other in Frensham England Saturday as townspeople and a slew of photographers camped out to get a photograph of the newlyweds.
Meghan, who turned 37 Saturday, waved to the excited crowds before greeting the couple’s friends while Harry joined the wedding party as best man.
Van Straubenzee and his older brother Tom are two of Prince William and Prince Harry's oldest friends; Tom also serves as Princess Charlotte’s godfather.
The royal brothers also are patrons of the Henry van Straubenzee Memorial Fund, which honors Charlie’s brother, who died in a car accident when he was 18 years old.
Princess Eugenie, the daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, and her finance Jack Brooksbank, who are also due to marry at Windsor Castle this October, also attended the wedding festivities.
Prince William and Kate had been expected to attend but did not make it to the wedding.
Meghan wore a color blocked navy Club Monaco dress and her go-to Aquazzura pumps with bows. She accessorized with a Philip Treacy fascinator, a favorite milliner of the royal family.
Prince Harry and Meghan, who have been spending their spare time at their country home in the Cotswolds, will be joining Queen Elizabeth shortly at Balmoral for the annual royal family summer visit to the Scottish Highlands.
Late this summer, Meghan is expected to return to the U.S. on a private plane to spend time with her mother and friends. Meghan has not seen or spoken with her father, who lives in Mexico, after he participated in a series of paid interviews and staged photos.
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex and Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, have had a busy summer of engagements, most recently participating in the Sentebale Polo Cup at the Royal Berkshire Polo Club last month in Windsor, U.K., to raise funds for Harry's charity. The charity seeks to assist the vulnerable HIV and AIDS-stricken children of sub-Saharan Africa with education training and resources.
This fall, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will make their first major royal tour to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga on behalf of Queen Elizabeth, the Foreign Commonwealth office, at the request of the host countries.
Prince Harry, who was recently named the Commonwealth Youth Ambassador, is expected to carry out a number of engagements in this new role. The couple will also attend the opening of the 2018 Invictus Games in Sydney, following their public coming out at the Toronto Invictus Games last year.
Next spring, Meghan and Harry are scheduled to make their first tour to the United States at the request of the U.K. Foreign Office and the British government.
Meghan is also expected to shortly announce her first charitable patronage as the fourth member of the Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Markle was known for her humanitarian work prior to meeting Harry, serving as the global ambassador for World Vision and working with the United Nations on women's issues.
At a forum in February to promote the royals’ charity work, Markle indicated her interest in women’s empowerment and gender equality; her first charitable patronage is expected to incorporate those themes.
The next year could also be one that brings an expanded family for Meghan and Harry, currently aunt and uncle to William and Kate's three young children.Meghan and Harry started talking about their next big milestone -- children -- in the months leading up to their wedding.
While at a royal engagement with Harry in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in March, Meghan gave a hint of what the future may hold for the young couple when they met a husband and wife team who make baby products.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex: A life in photos
Meghan Markle became a member of the British royal family after marrying Prince Harry.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle participated in a street dance class during their visit to Star Hub, a community and leisure center in the Tremorfa area of the city, Cardiff, Wales, in January.
Meghan pointed to the product range and said, "I'm sure at some point we'll need the whole [lot]."
Harry also alluded to children being in the couple's future in an interview last November.
"I think, you know, one step at a time," he said. "And hopefully we’ll start a family in the near future."
