Prince William Draws Crowds—and Protesters—to Britain’s Most Exclusive Wedding

Most couples would probably be a little upset about being utterly upstaged by a lowly usher at their wedding—but when that usher is the future king of England, you’ve kinda brought it on yourself.

Crowds of royalists flocked to the British cathedral on Friday where Prince William attended the wedding of his old friend, Hugh Grosvenor, and Olivia Henson. The Prince of Wales had been asked to be an usher at the ceremony by the billionaire Duke of Westminster, while Prince Harry—who is also close to the duke—was conspicuously absent from the event.

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Grosvenor, a godson of King Charles III and one of Britain’s richest residents with an estimated $13 billion fortune, is reported to have come to a civilized “understanding” with Harry about why it would be best for him not to attend amid his ongoing beef with William.

The feud put the groom in the somewhat awkward position of having to plan how he would navigate their royal rift on his big day. It’s especially difficult given that Grosvenor is the godfather of William and Kate Middleton’s son, Prince George, as well as Harry and Meghan Markle’s son, Archie.

The Princess of Wales, who has been out of the public eye since her cancer diagnosis, did not attend the ceremony. King Charles, who is currently also being treated for cancer, and Queen Camilla were also not present after traveling to France for the D-Day commemoration ceremonies in Normandy on Thursday.

Still, William wasn’t the only royal among the 400 guests invited to the occasion hyped as the society wedding of the year: Princess Eugenie was also spotted at Chester Cathedral in northwest England where the nuptials took place.

Others who showed up were less welcome. As the newlywed Duke and Duchess emerged from the church, climate activists sprayed powder paint from orange fire extinguishers into the air from the crowds of wellwishers outside.

Video shared online of the incident showed police quickly snatching the canisters away from the demonstrators who were audibly booed by thoroughly disappointed royal fans. Activist group Just Stop Oil claimed responsibility for the disruption.

Grosvenor, now formerly referred to as Britain’s “most eligible bachelor, inherited his title and staggering fortune following the death of his father, Gerald, in 2016. He is reported to have been introduced to Henson, who works for an ethical food company, in 2021. They dated for two years before Grosvenor popped the question at his family’s 11,000-acre country estate, Eaton Hall.

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