London: It was the moment the whole world had been waiting for. Prince William's bride drove away from the Goring Hotel in London with her father Michael yesterday as Kate Middleton.
She left Westminster Abbey not long after as Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge and wife of the heir to the English throne.
Relatively relaxed
Prince William looked relatively relaxed when he arrived at the Abbey with best man and brother Prince Harry. He chatted with relatives on the Spencer side before other members of the Royal family and his bride-to-be arrived.
Throngs of well-wishers packed the wedding route, waving Union Jacks and holding up home-made placards with personal messages for the couple. The millions who had waited patiently since sunrise (and many who had slept on the pavement overnight) cheered with gusto as first the Princes, Prince Charles and the Queen and Prince Philip drove the short distance to the historic venue.
Bells started pealing as the groom entered the Abbey, and continued until the service started.
The crowd started to chant, "We want Kate, we want Kate", and they didn't have to wait very long before they caught their first glimpse of the country-girl-turned-Duchess.
Tears of joy
Seeing her daughter walk down the aisle was too much for mother Carole Middleton, who shed more than a few tears of joy at the sight.
As Prince William committed to his Kate and she became his Duchess, the crowd outside cheered at the top of their lungs. Prince William fumbled slightly with the ring, getting it stuck at his new wife's knuckle but afterwards everything went smoothly. The Bishop of London gave the wedding sermon.
King, queen of creation
"In a sense, every wedding is a royal wedding with the bride and groom as king and queen of creation, making a new life together so that life can flow through them to the future," he said at the pulpit.
"Marriage should transform, as husband and wife make one another their work of art. This transformation is possible as long as we do not harbour ambitions to reform our partner. There must be no coercion if the spirit is to flow; each must give the other space and freedom," the Bishop who also confirmed Prince William, said. He then read a prayer that the couple wrote together.
Waves of wellwishers
Leaving the Abbey as husband and wife after signing the register, a crowd of hundreds of thousands from across the world greeted the happy couple as the wedding party entered the gates of Buckingham Palace. When safely inside, the huge waves of wellwishers waving flags and calling their names waited patiently for the family to appear on the balcony.
A roar overhead and all eyes went upwards as a Lancaster, Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft flew over the Palace in celebration, followed by two Tornado and two Typhoon jets.
"Kiss, kiss, kiss," the crowd chanted. And there in front of the world's watchful gaze, the couple took their first kiss as husband and wife, Duke and Duchess.
