by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2017
Princess Madeleine of Sweden married Christopher O’Neill on June 8, 2013, in the Royal Chapel at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden.
Princess Madeleine’s Family
Photo: Kate Gabor/Swedish Royal Court
HRH Princess Madeleine Thérèse Amelie Josephine was born on June 10, 1982, at the Drottningholm Palace. Madeleine is the youngest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia (neé Silvia Sommerlath). King Carl XVI Gustaf is the son of the late Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, and the late Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Queen Silvia was born Silvia Sommerlath, of German and Brazilian descent, and is a descendant of King Afonso III of Portugal. She met the then Crown Prince while working at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. They married in 1976, marking the first time a Swedish sovereign had married a ‘commoner’. Princess Madeleine has two older siblings – Crown Princess Victoria (born 1977) and Prince Carl Philip (born 1979).
For more information about Madeleine see:
Mr. Christopher O’Neill’s Family
Photo: Swedish Royal Court
Mr. Christopher Paul O’Neill was born on June 27, 1974, in London, England. He is the son of the late Paul O’Neill and Eva Maria Walter. He has two half-sisters through his mother – Tatjana and Natascha; and three half-sisters through his father – Stephanie, Annalisa, and Karen. He holds dual citizenship from the United States and the United Kingdom.
Mr. O’Neill grew up mostly in London and Switzerland, later attending Boston University and Columbia Business School in the US. At the time of the engagement, he was a partner at the investment firm Noster Capital in New York.
For more information about Chris see:
The Engagement
Photo credit: Ewa-Marie Rundquist, Swedish Royal Court
Following a broken engagement in 2010, Princess Madeleine moved to New York to work for the World Childhood Foundation, a charitable organization founded by her mother, Queen Silvia. It was here that she met Mr. O’Neill and the two quickly became a couple. Their engagement was announced by the Swedish Royal Court in October 2012.
Protocol dictates that members of the Royal Family must be Swedish citizens, and may not be involved in positions of responsibility in business. Mr. O’Neill continued working and did not apply for Swedish citizenship. He requested that he not be granted any royal status or title. Princess Madeleine did not take on Mr. O’Neill’s name and remained HRH Princess Madeleine.
In April 2013, it was announced that the wedding would take place on June 8, 2013, in the Royal Chapel at the Royal Palace, Stockholm, followed by a dinner at Drottningholm Palace, the Royal Family’s home.
Pre-Wedding Dinner
Photo credit: Brigitte Grenfeldt, Swedish Royal Court
The evening before the wedding, The King and Queen hosted a private dinner at the Grand Hôtel in Stockholm for family and invited guests. The photo above was taken of the Royal Family with Mr. O’Neill’s mother and two oldest half-sisters, Tatjana d’Abo and Countess Natascha Abensperg und Traun.
Wedding Guests
Unlike the wedding of Crown Princess Victoria, Madeleine and Christopher’s wedding was not a State event. Therefore it was on a smaller scale, focusing on friends and family and not as much on government officials and foreign dignitaries. However, many foreign royals, members of the Swedish government, and the Diplomatic Corps attended the wedding. Below is a list of the families and foreign royals in attendance.
- HM The King
- HM The Queen
- HRH The Crown Princess Victoria
- HRH Prince Daniel
- HRH Princess Estelle
- HRH Prince Carl Philip
The King’s Family
- Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler
- Baroness Sybilla von Dincklage
- Mr Edward Ambler and Mrs Helen Ambler
- Mr James Ambler and Mrs Ursula Ambler
- HRH Princess Birgitta
- Mrs Désirée von Bohlen und Halbach and Mr Eckbert von Bohlen und Halbach
- Princess Desiree, Baroness Silfverschiöld and Baron Nicklas Silfverschiöld
- Baron Carl Silfverschiöld
- Baroness Christina Louise DeGeer and Baron Hans DeGeer
- Baroness Helene Silfverschiöld and Mr Fredrik Diterle
- Princess Christina, Mrs Magnuson and Mr Tord Magnuson
- Mr Gustaf Magnuson and Miss Vicky Andren
- Mr Tord Magnuson and Mrs Emma Magnuson
- Mr Victor Magnuson and Miss Frida Bergstrom
- Countess Marianne Bernadotte af Wisborg
- Countess Gunnila Bernadotte af Wisborg
The Queen’s Family
- Mr Ralf Sommerlath and Mrs Charlotte Sommerlath
- Mrs Carmita Sommerlath Baudinet and Mr Pierre Baudinet
- Mr Thomas Sommerlath and Ms Bettina Aussems
- Mr Tim Sommerlath and Miss Kristina Junghans
- Miss Guilia Sommerlath
- Mr Walther Sommerlath and Mrs Ingrid Sommerlath
- Mr Patrick Sommerlath and Mrs Maline Sommerlath
- Master Leopold Lunden Sommerlath
- Miss Chloe Sommerlath
- Miss Anaïs Sommerlath
- Miss Helena Sommerlath
- Miss Vivien Sommerlath
Christopher O’Neill’s Family
- Mrs Eva Maria O’Neill
- Ms Annalisa O’Neill
- Mrs Karen O’Neill
- Ms Stefanie O’Neill
- Mrs Tatjana d’Abo and Mr Henry d’Abo
- Miss Anoushka d’Abo
- Miss Celina d’Abo
- Master Jasper d’Abo
- Countess Natascha Abensperg und Traun and Count Ernst Abensperg und Traun
- Countess Milana Abensperg und Traun
- Count Moritz Abensperg und Traun
- Countess Chiara Abensperg und Traun
- Count Louis Cajetan Abensperg und Traun
- Mr Richard d’Abo
- Miss Maria Seferian
- HE Ambassador Rolf Nikel and Mrs Olivia Nikel
- Countess Felicia Abensperg und Traun
- Master Oliver MacNeely
- Mr Christopher Ramsay
- Miss Lucy Ramsay
Royal Guests
- Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Marie of Denmark
- Prince Joachim and Princess Marie of Denmark
- Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece
- Prince Nikolaos and Princess Tatiana of Greece
- Princess Theodora of Greece
- Prince Philippos of Greece
- Princess Takamado of Japan
- Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg
- Princess Charlene of Monaco
- Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway
- Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and Mr Ari Behn
- The Earl and Countess of Wessex
- Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
- Prince Andreas of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
- Hereditary Prince Hubertus and Hereditary Princess Kelly of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
- Prince Manuel and Princess Anna of Bavaria
- Prince Leopold and Princess Ursula of Bavaria
The Wedding Attendants
Photo credit: Ewa-Marie Rundquist, Swedish Royal Court
- Lillie von Horn
- Anaïs Sommerlath (daughter of Princess Madeleine’s maternal cousin Patrick Sommerlath)
- Chloe Sommerlath (daughter of Princess Madeleine’s maternal cousin Patrick Sommerlath)
- Chiara Abensperg und Traun (daughter of Mr. O’Neill’s sister Natascha)
- Louis Abensperg und Traun (son of Mr. O’Neill’s sister Natascha)
- Jasper D’Abo (son of Mr. O’Neill’s sister Tatjana)
The Wedding Attire
Photo credit: Ewa-Marie Rundquist, Swedish Royal Court
Princess Madeleine chose the Italian designer Valentino for her dress. It was made of silk organza and ivory-colored Chantilly lace, with a wide skirt ending in a four-meter train. Her veil was also silk organza, edged with tulle and small lace orange blossoms. Breaking with tradition, Princess Madeleine chose to wear the Modern Fringe Tiara instead of the Cameo Tiara worn by her sister and mother.
Mr. O’Neill wore a black tailcoat, with the Order of the Polar Star. Two days before the wedding, the King had created Mr. O’Neill a Knight Commander of the Order of the Polar Star. This order is only given to members of the Swedish Royal Family and foreign citizens.
Photo credit: Swedish Royal Court
The bride’s bouquet was a mixture of white roses with lilies of the valley and myrtle. The myrtle comes from a myrtle bush brought to Sweden by Princess Margaret of Connaught after her marriage to the future King Gustaf VI Adolf in 1905. Since the 1930s, royal brides have traditionally worn or carried a sprig of this myrtle at their weddings.
The bridesmaids wore simple white silk dresses with pale green taffeta sashes. They wore tiaras made of pearls and paper flowers and carried bouquets of lilies of the valley. The pageboys wore woolen green trousers, and white jackets detailed in green silk taffeta and silver braid.
The Ceremony
The wedding took place on June 8, 2013, in the Royal Chapel at the Royal Palace in Stockholm. The chapel was adorned with floral arrangements of delphiniums, pink and white peonies, white lilacs, foxgloves, and lilies of the valley with beech leaves and cow parsley. To the left of the altar stood Prince Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotta’s crown, dating back to 1778. The same crown stood near the baptismal font when Princess Madeleine was christened. It sits on a cushion from the wedding of King Gustav IV Adolf and Frederica of Baden in 1797.
The ceremony was conducted by Bishop Lars-Göran Lönnermark, Royal Court Chief Chaplain, assisted by Reverend Michael Bjerkhagen, Vicar of the Royal Court, in both Swedish and English. Once the Queen was seated (as the last guest to arrive), the Groom processed into the chapel with his Best Man, Mr. Cedric Notz.
King Carl XVI Gustaf then walked his daughter down the aisle, as Mr. O’Neill fought back tears. He met them and escorted his soon-to-be wife to the altar. During the ceremony, the Crown Princess gave a reading in Swedish, while Mr. O’Neill’s sister gave one in English. Two soloists performed, again alternating between the two languages. Finally, they were pronounced husband and wife and processed from the chapel.
Following the ceremony, the newly married greeted the cheering crowds outside the Chapel. They then departed by carriage, driving through the streets of Stockholm en route to Riddarholmen. From Riddarholmen, the couple and their guests boarded three boats to travel to Drottningholm Palace for the wedding banquet.
Photo credit: Zimbio
The Wedding Banquet
Photo credit: Swedish Royal Court, Jonas Ekströmer/Scanpix
The wedding banquet was held at Drottningholm Palace at 8 pm. It was a private event and not televised like the wedding banquet of Crown Princess Victoria in 2010. Once the guests and the bride and groom arrived, a group photo was taken on the steps of the palace before proceeding inside for the banquet. The guests enjoyed the following menu:
Swedish delicacies
Kalix vendace roe in a cone, with lemon and piquant crème fraîche,
Skagen emulsion with crisp rye bread, mustard herring in a carrot coating,
pickled herring terrine, egg from Gotland with Drott caviar foam
and miniature Västerbotten cheese pie
Butter-baked salmon trout with boiled white asparagus, fried green asparagus,
marinated purple asparagus, and tomato and shallot compote
with browned butter, horseradish, chive oil and salmon roe
Roast fillet of veal from Holmberg Farm
with Västervik mustard coating and Astrakan cider sauce,
carrot variation and roasted mini cauliflower from Nobis Farms
Pavlova with Italian meringue, wild strawberry sorbet
and strawberry ice cream, white chocolate and fresh wild strawberries
Wine
Graham Beck Blanc de Blancs Brut 2008
Swedish schnapps and beer
or
Trimbach Riesling Vieilles Vignes 2009 Alsace
Pommery Grand Cru Millésime 2005 Champagne
Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru 2010 La Chapelle Dom. Lafouge
Sattlerhof Beerenauslese 2010 Südsteiermark
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