Meghan Markle and Prince Harry marry as millions watch

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex, emerged from St George’s Chapel, Windsor after a wedding ceremony that dusted down royal tradition and injected gospel energy.

The couple served up many surprises, including the bride’s dress, and the fact she would be making a speech at the evening reception.

The secret of what she would wear managed to keep until the former actor, 36, stepped from her Rolls-Royce bridal car on to the steps of the chapel at Windsor Castle. A study in simple elegance in white silk with a stunning train, it was by the British designer Clare Waight Keller at the French fashion house Givenchy.

“You look amazing,” Harry whispered as he caught first sight of her. “Thank you,” she replied.

The bride’s African-American roots were referred throughout a service that put diversity at its heart. There was gospel music. There was the energy of the Chicago-born preacher, the Most Rev Bishop Michael Curry, who delivered his memorable address on the power of love with fist-pumping vitality, invoking Martin Luther King Jr and the resilience of faith during slavery.

His voice soared above the colourful banners of the Garter knights and echoed around the last resting place of British sovereigns through the centuries. Eyes widened and guests exchanged smiles. This was certainly not traditional royal wedding fare. “We gotta get y’all married,” he finally told the couple as he brought the the 14-minute address

Asked about his sermon after the service, Curry, the first black presiding bishop and primate of the Episcopal Church, said: “It was a real joyful thing because there was a sense in which you had the fullness of the church represented in many respects.”

He said the wedding had brought everybody together: “That happened today, in different ways, different songs, different perspectives, different worlds and all of it came together and gave God thanks.”

“You could feel the electricity, the reverend was sensational ... it was probably the best wedding I’ve ever been to. It will go down in history,” the rugby player James Haskell, who was among the guests, said later. The American actor Josh Gad tweeted: “Watching the Brits watch an American preacher do his thing in Windsor is giving me a life right now. It’s like watching Metallica do a concert at the Old Globe.”

A box office guest list of 600 put Hollywood stars alongside royalty. The actor George Clooney and lawyer wife Amal, the queen of the talk shows, Oprah Winfrey, and the queen of the tennis courts, Serena Williams, sat in the historic quire opposite the Queen, Prince Philip and a full quota of senior royals. Markle’s close friends the Canadian stylist Jessica Mulroney and the fashion designer Misha Nonoo got VIP seats.

The actors Idris Elba, Tom Hardy and Carey Mulligan were spotted, along with the chatshow host James Corden, David and Victoria Beckham, Sir Elton John and Markle’s co-stars in the US legal drama Suits. Sporting heroes included the former England rugby union international Jonny Wilkinson. Harry’s former girlfriends Chelsy Davy and Cressida Bonas were also there.

Ten bridesmaids and pageboys – aged between two and seven and including Prince George and Princess Charlotte – accompanied her as she walked through the nave of the 15th-century chapel. Only when she reached the quire did she take the arm of Prince Charles, acting as a last-minute stand-in to give her away in the absence of her father, Thomas Markle Sr, 73, who is recovering from a heart procedure in Mexico. “Thank you, Pa,” Harry murmured to him.

Throughout Harry, in the frock coat uniform of a major in the Blues and Royals regiment, looked more nervous than his bride, who showed no sign of stage fright. He had arrived with Prince William, his best man, who was similarly attired.

The mother of the bride, Doria Ragland, 61, a yoga instructor and social worker from Los Angeles, who had accompanied her to the church in the bridal car, smiled throughout. As they filed in to witness the signing of the registers, Charles offered Ragland his arm.

Symbolism was woven into almost every aspect. The bride’s bouquet of spring blooms contained several flowers from their garden handpicked by Harry. Forget-me-Nots were included in memory of his mother, the late Diana, Princess of Wales. Myrtle, from a plant grown by Queen Victoria, was incorporated as is traditional with royal brides.

Her five-metre-long silk tulle veil was trimmed with hand-embroidered flowers from the 53 countries of the Commonwealth. Two personal favourites were added: wintersweet, which grows in their Kensington Palace gardens, and California poppy, the state flower from the bride’s place of birth. It was held in place by the Queen Mary diamond-and-platinum bandeau tiara – lent specially by the Queen.

After the service, the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex emerged into sunshine on the chapel steps. “Do we kiss?” she whispered discreetly. “Yeah,” Harry replied.

The couple then made their way through Windsor’s streets in an Ascot landau pulled by four Windsor grey horses, and accompanied by a guard of the Household Cavalry, plumed and polished with breastplates and helmets gleaming.

Tens of thousands of spectators had lined the route. Windsor put on its best face, with three miles of bunting and thousands of flag-waving fans. Outside the castle grounds fans had travelled from far and wide. “There are people here from Italy, Belgium and Switzerland. It’s been great,” said Thomas Defois, who travelled from Paris on Friday and slept overnight on the street.

As the carriage finally pulled into the gated grounds of Windsor Castle, Harry appeared to say to his new bride: “I’m ready for a drink now” – at least, according to a lip reader.

Inside St George’s Hall, where the Queen was hosting a lunchtime reception, there was Pol Roger Brut Reserve non-vintage champagne and a selection of wines for him and weddings guests to enjoy with canapés and bowl food. Sir Elton performed at the request of the groom.

Guests were said to be moved to tears as the Prince of Wales and newly married Prince Harry gave speeches at the lunchtime reception.

Harry was applauded as he referred to Meghan as his wife, just a short time after the couple were wed.

Suhani Jalota, founder of the India-based Myna Mahila charity, described the speeches as “lovely”.

She said: “Some people were even crying. I think it was just a very, really nice atmosphere to be in where everybody felt really loved.

“Essentially, it was just about how Harry was as a child and growing up. And now just about the couple and how beautiful they are together. So, I think it was just about their personalities and how they gel really well together.

“He was talking about his wife and you know everybody was clapping because it was the first time he was using that term for Meghan, so it was really nice.”

Meghan has been a strong supporter of the charity, which works with women in Indian slums to provide affordable feminine hygiene products. Jalota said: “She really knows her stuff (about the cause). She’s not in it just because it’s trendy but really because it matters.”

Charles was due to host a more intimate dinner for 200 guests at nearby Frogmore House in the evening.

Thousands of miles away in Mexico, Thomas Markle Sr was reportedly watching on television. “My baby looks beautiful and she looks very happy. I wish I were there and I wish them all my love and all happiness,” the celebrity website TMZ reported him saying.

He had, all too sadly, missed a moment. His daughter had entered the chapel as Meghan Markle; she had left it as HRH Princess Henry of Wales, the Duchess of Sussex, Countess of Dumbarton and Baroness Kilkeel. She had claimed her place in history.