Meghan Markle’s 2018 wedding veil represented 53 Commonwealth countries with embroidered flowers.
The five-metre silk tulle veil was designed by Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy. Its embroidered flora formed part of a deliberate symbolic design: each Commonwealth member country was represented by a distinctive plant or flower. A California poppy was also included for Meghan’s birthplace, and wintersweet represented Kensington Palace’s grounds.
The number 53 referred to the Commonwealth’s member countries at the time of the wedding. It is sometimes confused with the number of flowers or with the number of nations represented by the broader ceremony, but the specific veil concept was 53 country emblems.
Meghan married Prince Harry at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, on 19 May 2018. The veil’s botanical embroidery made it one of the most overtly symbolic royal wedding accessories of the modern era.