Prince Henri, Count of Paris, and Princess Isabelle of Orléans-Braganza were married today in a brilliant ceremony in Palermo, Sicily, according to the report in the New York Times. Prince Henri is the son of the Duke of Guise, pretender to the French throne, and Princess Isabelle, his cousin, is the daughter of the former pretender to the Brazilian throne.
The wedding was "performed with great pomp and splendor" in the presence of European aristocracy and "representatives from most of Europe's reigning houses." Hundreds of 'legitimists' from France and Brazil also attended the festivities and "flaunted in their buttonholes their hope that monarchies may one day be restored in their countries."
The Duke of Guise's supporters lined the wedding route, offering cheers and "tremendous demonstrations" for the Count of Paris and his new bride. The "newly wedded couple," were "deeply moved" by the demonstrations, but also seemed "somewhat abashed by the cheering crowd, especially when some fell on their knees and kissed their hands."
The wedding ceremonies began at 10:30 this morning, when the bride and bridegroom, and their families, drove from the park of Auwale, where the Bourbon-Orleans palace is located, to the Archbishop's residence, across the square from the cathedral. They were followed by representatives from the Kings of Spain, Great Britain, Belgium and "fifty-four princes and princesses of the royal blood."
A procession gathered outside the Archbishop's door, and was headed by the Count of Paris and his mother, followed by Princess Isabelle and her father, and then the rest of the royal guests. The bride wsa dressed in a "gown of white silk embroidered with silver." The gown had long sleeves, "a high neck, and a skirt reaching to the ankles." A "priceless veil of Venetian lace some twenty feet long," was carried by two gentlemen-in-waiting. Over the veil, was a diamond diadem, a gift from the French legitimists, and a sprig of orange blossom. She also wore two necklaces and pearl earrings, and carried a missal.
The bridal gown was made for Princess Isabelle, by the royalist ladies in Lyons, France.
Prince Henri "was attired in morning coat and silk hat," and he had a gardenia in his buttonhole.
The bride and bridegroom smiled to the crowd as they made their way to the cathedral. At one point during the Roman Catholic service, Princess Isabelle "seemed deeply moved." She started to cry, and tears rolled down her cheeks "until the bridegroom's father comforted her by patting her shoulder."
Isabelle's "eyes glistened" when she signed the marriage registrar. Her witnesses were her cousins, Prince Pedro Henrique of Orleans-Braganza and Prince Adama Czartoryski, and the groom's witnesses were the Duke of Apulia, who is married to the Count of Paris' sister, Anne, and Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, who also represented King Alfonso XIII of Spain.
Weddings guests included the former Queen Amelie of Portugal, Prince and Princess Pedro of Orléans-Braganza, the Duke and Duchess of Puglie, Prince and Princess Christopher of Greece, Infanta Luisa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Infanta Eulalia of Spain, Prince Aage of Denmark, Prince Viggo of Denmark, Prince Erik of Denmark, Prince Adam Czartoryski, Prince August Czartoryski, and the Duke of Magenta. Sir Ronald Graham, the British Ambassador to Italy, represented King George V. He escorted the bride's aunt, Infanta Luisa.
King Vittorio Emanule of Italy sent an unofficial representation, which included his son-in-law, Prince Philipp of Hesse. The Italian sovereign wished to "avoid too great attenetion to those whose aim is to re-establish the throne in a friendly republic."
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