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Duchess of Cambridge wears Queen's pearls as royal family gather to celebrate 70th wedding anniversary

Duchess of Cambridge was wearing the Queen's Four Row Japanese Pearl Choker - Paul Grover for the Telegraph
Duchess of Cambridge was wearing the Queen's Four Row Japanese Pearl Choker - Paul Grover for the Telegraph

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were celebrating their platinum wedding anniversary at a special party at Windsor Castle, surrounded by their children and grandchildren.

More than 100 guests gathered in the State Apartments to toast the royal couple, who wed 70 years ago in the historic surrounds of Westminster Abbey.

The monarch and Philip's eldest son and heir the Prince of Wales and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall were among those present, as were the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who are expecting their third child, and Prince Harry.

Pregnant Kate was wearing a black lace dress, and the Queen's Four Row Japanese Pearl Choker, while William and Harry were in smart black tuxedos and bow ties.

The Castle's opulent State Apartments were closed to visitors during the day as preparations were put in place for the special black tie reception and dinner to mark the milestone.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip pose for a photo in celebration of their platinum wedding anniversary - Credit: Getty
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip pose for a photo in celebration of their platinum wedding anniversary Credit: Getty

The royal family were out in force for the celebration. Philip's German relations the Margrave of Baden and his brother Prince Ludwig of Baden had also reportedly travelled to the UK for the anniversary party.

Charles has just returned from a busy tour of hurricane-ravaged Caribbean islands, while the Duke of York is also back in the UK after an official visit to Mexico.

The Countess of Wessex, the wife of the Queen and Philip's youngest son the Earl of Wessex, and a favourite of the monarch, is overseas on a royal visit to Bangladesh, so missed the occasion.

Ladies in waiting who have served Elizabeth II for decades were understood to be among the guests, along with long standing friends of the royals.

Earlier, the Queen presented the Duke with a rare honour as an anniversary present - a touching gesture seen as her recognition of the devotion Philip has shown through the decades, supporting her publicly and privately.

Prince Charles arrives for the Queen and Prince Phillip's 70th wedding anniversary celebration - Credit: Heathcliff O'Malley
Prince Charles arrives for the Queen and Prince Phillip's 70th wedding anniversary celebration Credit: Heathcliff O'Malley

The monarch privately appointed Philip a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) for services to the sovereign.

Philip, 96, retired from his public role in the summer after years of royal duty alongside the monarch.

He is the longest serving royal consort in British history, and the Queen, the nation's longest reigning monarch, is the first to celebrate a 70th wedding anniversary.

Awards in the Royal Victorian Order are made personally by the Queen and bestowed independently of Downing Street.

Actress Joanna Lumley arrives at Windsor Castle - Credit: Heathcliff O'Malley
Actress Joanna Lumley arrives at Windsor Castle Credit: Heathcliff O'Malley

The Duke is already a Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter (KG), a Knight of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle (KT) and a Knight Grand Cross of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (GBE).

Now with his GCVO he has four UK order of chivalry breast stars. The last UK citizen to equal this was his uncle Lord Mountbatten of Burma.

Elizabeth II was a 21-year-old princess when she married her consort Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten on November 20 1947 at Westminster Abbey.

The fairy-tale royal wedding was a morale booster in the tough years that followed the Second World War and millions of people tuned in to listen to the ceremony on the wireless.

Prince Harry arrives at Windsor Castle with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge - Credit: Paul Grover
Prince Harry arrives at Windsor Castle with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Credit: Paul Grover

The young princess wore a Norman Hartnell dress made of duchesse ivory silk-satin which was hand-embroidered with more than 10,000 pearls and crystals.

Wartime leader Winston Churchill summed up the occasion as "a flash of colour on the hard road we travel".

Less than five years after the royal wedding, the Princess became Queen on the death of her father George VI.

Together, the Queen and Philip have celebrated the Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilees of the Queen's reign, and faced ups and downs over the years including the breakdown of three of their four children's marriages, and the backlash which followed the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.

With their family growing year by year, the Queen and Philip are preparing to welcome their sixth great-grandchild in April - a sibling for Prince George and Princess Charlotte of Cambridge.

Princess Anne arrives at Windsor Castle - Credit: Heathcliff O'Malley
Princess Anne arrives at Windsor Castle Credit: Heathcliff O'Malley

Bells at the historic Abbey in central London rang out in tribute on Monday, with a full celebratory peal lasting around three hours and 20 minutes.

The Queen and Philip attended thanksgiving services at the Abbey to commemorate their silver, golden and diamond wedding anniversaries, but the couple wanted this occasion to be private, without a public commemoration.

Prime Minister Theresa May sent her congratulations, while other messages came from the Women's Institute, of which the Queen has been a member longer than she has been married to the Duke, joining the Sandringham branch as a princess in 1943.

In 2007, on their 60th anniversary, the Queen bestowed the Royal Victorian Chain upon the Duke as a sign of her affection.