Meghan Markle Wants Mom Doria Ragland To Walk Her Down The Aisle, Other ‘Unconventional’ Wedding Surprises
Meghan Markle wants her mother, Doria Ragland, to walk her down the aisle and give her away on her wedding day, one of several “unconventional surprises” the soon-to-be Princess has up her sleeve for the big day.
An anonymous “insider source” close to the Royal Couple tells Us Weekly that Prince Harry is on board with the things Meghan plans to do at her wedding, many of which aren’t exactly the norm when it comes to Western, Christian weddings – royal weddings in particular.
“The day of the wedding itself will certainly hold a few unconventional surprises. Don’t expect a royal wedding by numbers. They want to involve their friends and family as much in as much as possible throughout the day.”
The tradition of the father giving away the bride harkens back to the days where women were considered the property of their fathers, to be then given (in a literal sense) to their husbands, according to The Spruce. Most modern brides have long since removed the tradition from its historical baggage and regard it more as an homage to the relationship between father and daughter – at least, in culturally Christian weddings in the West.
Regardless, Meghan Markle is having none of that. She’d rather have her mom, yoga instructor, and social worker Doria Ragland, “give her away.”
Doria Ragland: Meet Meghan Markle’s mother and Prince Harry’s prospective mother-in-law https://t.co/mC0YAZe9QP pic.twitter.com/gSsqNuAUe3
— Harper’s Bazaar UK (@BazaarUK) November 27, 2017
Don’t conclude from this that Meghan and her dad, Thomas Markle, don’t get along. Although Meghan’s relationship with at least one member of her family – her half-sister, Samantha Markle – is strained (to put it mildly), she and her dad are just fine. This according to none other than Samantha herself.
“I’m sure [our dad] wants to walk her down the aisle. I know he wants to do it. He’s a shy guy now, he’s a quiet man, but he’ll speak when he feels it’s appropriate. He gave me permission to say how happy he is, but he’ll talk when he’s ready.”
Of course, whether or not the Queen, or whoever it is that makes decisions like this, will allow Meghan to buck tradition and have her mom walk her down the aisle remains to be seen. Although the tradition can be seen as patriarchal and outdated, it’s been a part of every royal wedding that anyone can remember. And the British Royal Family is nothing if not traditional.
Meanwhile, Meghan has other tricks up her sleeve, so to speak, for unique and non-traditional elements of her wedding. And Harry, who himself is not known to be a slave to tradition, is on board with them.
“Harry has never been one to follow instructions and both he and Meghan are extremely independent individuals. I wouldn’t imagine for one second that they plan to sit back and be told what to do — and they won’t.”
Already the couple has shown, time and again, that their lives aren’t going to be dictated by the traditional restraints of royalty. Just yesterday the Inquisitr reported that the two jetted off to Monaco for New Year’s Eve – flying in the Economy section of a commercial British Airways flight (they tried their best to disguise themselves). A generation ago the idea of Royals flying commercial – in Economy, no less – would have been unthinkable.
Unfortunately, the source is not revealing what other ways Meghan is planning to buck tradition and shake up her wedding.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will tie the knot on May 19.
