Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson are married in society wedding

The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson shared a kiss after their society wedding ceremony at Chester Cathedral. Prince William , who was an usher at the lavish ceremony, smiled alongside his friend William van Cutsem as they left the historic cathedral in Cheshire for the nuptials of his old friend Hugh Grosvenor. The 7th Duke, 33, universally known as ‘Hughie’ to aristocratic friends, is estimated to be worth £10.42billion ($13.2bn), making him the richest man under 40 in Britain.

He is the godfather to William’s son Prince George and Prince Harry ‘s son Archie. But while William played a major role at the service among 400 or so expected guests, Harry has remained in California. Olivia, 31, looked stunning in her wedding dress and blue shoes as she arrived at the 11th-century cathedral just before midday. After the happy couple sealed the society wedding of the year with a kiss and guests including the Prince of Wales departed the cathedral, an orange fire extinguisher was let off by Just Stop Oil protesters.

The ill-timed stunt was met with a chorus of boos by outraged members of the crowd, with one describing the activists as ‘idiots’. The sound of jeers quickly turned into cheers as the extinguisher was snatched away by police officers and the two silver-haired female protesters were restrained.

The bespoke embroidery design on the bride’s gown and veil was hand drawn by Emma Victoria Payne, featuring floral motifs and edgings from the Olivia’s great great grandmother’s veil from around 1880. The bride is wearing the Faberge Myrtle Leaf Tiara made for Grosvenor brides to wear on their wedding day. It has been in the Grosvenor family since its creation in 1906. Olivia’s bouquet was made of flowers picked from the gardens of the duke’s family home, Eaton Hall.

Princess Eugenie was among the hundreds of guests at the wedding, while the Princess of Wales – who has been out the spotlight as she undergoes preventative chemotherapy – was not expected to attend. Shortly before 11am, coachloads and minibuses of excited guests began arriving and filing into the side door of the Cathedral. As they rounded the corner, many smiled and waved back to the crowds lining the streets, who were cheering their arrival.

William, dressed like others in morning suit, smiled as he exited a black minibus to head towards the building. Guests joined the long queue snaking into the Cathedral, waiting to be shown to their seats by Prince William and the other ushers. Harry, who would have been expected to attend today’s service, has chosen instead to stay in California . Miss Henson arrived at the Cathedral just before noon in a vintage 1930 8-litre Bentley owned by the Grosvenor estate.

At around 12.30pm, two silver-haired Just Stop Oil fanatics threatened to ruin the joyous occasion by using fire extinguishers to spray powder paint in the direction of the wedding party, which included the Prince of Wales, as they left Chester Cathedral. The protesters were quickly removed from the crowd by police as onlookers booed. They were named by JSO as Polly, 73, a care worker from Norfolk, and Sheila, 69, a former NHS nurse from Bristol. Barbara Williams, 81, from Cheshire, who was standing next to the protesters in the crowd, said: ‘I feel a bit shaken after it. We were standing next to them all day.’

Her friend Andrea Machin, 56, added: ‘They were already here when we arrived at 7am, they had shopping trolleys with them. ‘Everyone was watching the bride and groom and then we just saw orange and they had what looked like a fire extinguisher with them. The police realised quite quickly what was happening and pulled them out. One of them said it was for her grandchildren. It happened just as William was coming out of the door.’ Rhona Dalziel, 57, said: ‘One of them had been reading a Richard Osman book. It’s bizarre.’

As Prince William left the cathedral and made his way into a large black Mercedes with the rest of the wedding party, a member of the cheering crowd shouted ‘best wishes to Kate’. William thanked the man by raising his hand and waving. After the ceremony finished around 1pm, guests were due to enjoy a lavish reception with a lemon wedding cake at the Grosvenor family seat, Eaton Hall, just outside Chester. The Duke will pay for free ice cream, gelato and sorbet for Cheshire locals from three local independent cafes so they can join in the celebration. Photos from this morning show excited royal fans forming a crowd outside the cathedral ahead of the Church of England ceremony starting at midday.

The fans started gathering at 6am this morning, hours before the ceremony was due to start. Maths tutor Catherina Rhodes, 59, of Chester, said: ‘It’s an exciting day. I have always loved the royal family especially the Queen. I was taken down to Buckingham Palace when I was aged six. My uncle worked at the stables and helped teach the Queen to ride. Since then I was entranced by the royal family.’ She added: ‘It’s great for the city.’

Pharmaceutical trainer Helen Jackson, 55, said: ‘I went for a drink in the Grosvenor hotel last night and saw Princess Eugenie having a drink. So I know she’s going to be here today. It’s fabulous for […] Chester. I came to see the royals when the Queen and Megan Markle came here just before.’ Pensioner Ann Beck arrived at 8am. She said: ‘I wanted to come to support the family as they are from Chester and of course the royals.’

A staggering 100,000 flowers have been planted throughout the city – all paid for by the Duke – which will be donated to charity following the ceremony. This week a floral arch was constructed around the huge West Door of the 1,000-year-old Cathedral in the heart of the city. On a road into the city near the entrance to the Grosvenor Hospital, staff dressed a pair of mannequins in suit and wedding dress with photos of Hugh and Olivia’s faces attached.

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