Today in History—February 10: The Bride Wore White (for the First Time)

On this day in 1840, Queen Victoria got married…to her cousin, Albert. He was the second son of a foreign duke—and the love of Victoria’s life.

Their matchmaker was also in the family: The pair’s shared uncle, King Leopold I of Belgium, first floated the idea the year that his niece and nephew both turned 12.

Victoria and Albert met at Victoria’s 17th birthday party in 1836. The soon-to-be queen instantly developed a crush, praising Albert in a letter to Uncle Leopold: “He is so sensible, so kind, and so good, and so amiable too. He has, besides, the most pleasing and delightful exterior and appearance you can possibly see.”

Albert’s second visit came a few years later, after things had changed at Buckingham Palace. Victoria, now queen, wasn’t in a rush to share her political influence with a husband. But a few days with Albert, still in possession of his “delightful exterior,” made it clear: She couldn’t live without him. Victoria proposed, and Albert—who was just as enamored of Victoria as she was of him—accepted.

Their wedding was one of the most lavish Britain had ever seen. Royals typically married in low-key, private ceremonies, wearing official state robes—but not Victoria. In a bid to increase her popularity, which had sagged for reasons both of her own making (court scandals, political factions, her choice of a German prince) and things entirely beyond her control (a public still uneasy with a young female monarch), every facet of the 300-person event was publicized. That included, of course, her bridal outfit. Victoria wore a white satin gown that featured delicate British-made lace, a wreath of orange blossoms, and an 18-foot-long train (which her bridesmaids struggled to shepherd down the aisle).

Victoria set two trends that day. First was the white dress—not chosen for the symbolic meanings of purity and wealth that would later be attached to it but because she liked the simple style (and wanted to nod to the struggling British lace industry).

The second? No British royal married in private ever again. The 1.9 billion people who tuned in to watch Prince Harry marry Meghan Markle have Victoria and Albert to thank.