Kate Middleton and Prince WilliamPRINCE William and Kate Middleton will pay a touching tribute to Princess Diana today – when their wedding service will feature a hymn played at her funeral.
The couple have selected the final hymn from Diana’s 1997 funeral to be the first sung in Westminster Abbey by their 1,900 guests.
Two billion people worldwide will witness how William’s late mother remained at the forefront of his and Kate’s thoughts as they planned their special day.
The rousing Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer was also chosen by William and brother Harry in the Guards Chapel on the 10th anniversary of Princess Diana’s tragic death in a Paris car crash.
Friends and family will join the royal couple to sing the emotional and inspiring words to the Welsh tune just before they say their vows in front of the Archbishop of Canterbury.
And in another tribute, bride Kate will make her three-and-a-half minute walk down the aisle to the dramatic sounds of Sir Hubert Parry’s anthem I was Glad, which was played at Charles and Diana’s 1981 wedding.
William has told close friends and royals he is sure his mother will be there in spirit today, wishing him and Kate happiness.
Along with brother Harry he has publicly vowed never to forget her.
Princess DianaA palace source said: “There is no doubt that as he stands at the altar with his bride, William will be thinking of the mother who had enormous influence on him. Diana would be 49 by now and it is deeply disappointing to him that she is not around to see him marry or that she never met Kate.
“But William is determined not to dwell on that because he knows this is Kate’s big day and nothing must be allowed to spoil that.”
The last time William was in the Abbey for a state occasion was after he was part of the slow and painful procession behind his mother’s coffin aged just 15.
With Harry, father Prince Charles, grandfather Prince Philip and Diana’s brother Charles Spencer, he walked with head bowed as thousands of mourners looked on in silence.
But today, the crowds lining the streets will be cheering wildly as William makes his way to marry Kate.
Singer Sir Elton John, whose song Goodbye England’s Rose – a reworking of his Candle in the Wind hit – was the most emotional moment of Diana’s funeral, is one of the few celebrity guests invited to the wedding.
And he said: “I can’t imagine at that young age having to walk in the public, following your mother’s coffin.
“And the next time we’re in the Abbey it’s to see him walking up the aisle with a beautiful woman, the love of his life. I think it’s the most joyous result and I’m sure Diana would be very, very happy about it.”
William has said he gave Kate Diana’s sapphire and diamond engagement ring as a way of “keeping her close to it all”. And the Mirror told last week how he took his fiancée for a poignant visit to his mother’s grave on the Oval island at the Spencer family ancestral estate in Althorp, Northamptonshire.
In their choice of wedding music, Wills and Kate have also selected a hymn and three songs in recognition of the support given to them by Prince Charles and Camilla.
Love Divine, All Loves Excelling, by Charles Wesley, was performed at Charles and Camilla’s blessing at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, in 2005. Three of the seven orchestral pieces played by the London Chamber Orchestra as the guests take their seats are also from Charles and Camilla’s wedding.
Prince CharlesA St James’s Palace spokesman said: “It’s a personal touch to the couple – an acknowledgement of William’s father and the Duchess of Cornwall.”
Kate spent hours listening to music on her iPod and also sought advice from Prince Charles. His hand can be seen in the inclusion of William Walton’s Crown Imperial, which was played at the coronation of George VI – husband of his beloved late grandma, the Queen Mother. It will be played as the couple leave the Abbey as husband and wife.
There is also a strong nod to Wales in the couple’s final musical decisions.
Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer – from the Welsh tune by John Hughes with words by William Williams – is best known today as the Welsh rugby anthem Bread of Heaven. Love Divine, All Loves Excelling is set to the Welsh tune Blaenwern. In honour of the North Wales island where they have set up home, William and Kate have also chosen a work by modern composer Paul Mealor, who has a studio on Anglesey.
But their final hymn is about as English as is possible – the stirring and popular Jerusalem, a poem by William Blake set to music by Sir Hubert Parry and arranged by Edward Elgar.
A variation of the traditional English folk song Greensleeves by Ralph Vaughan Williams will feature as well, and William and Kate have also commissioned some new music to add a modern twist to the day.
Special fanfare Valiant and Brave – after the motto of William’s RAF Search and Rescue No 22 Squadron – was composed by Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs, the Force’s principal director of music.
The 30-second celebration will be sounded by seven trumpeters and one drummer from the Central Band of the RAF as the bride and groom prepare for their procession to the Great West Door after they marry.
Kate’s brother James, 23, will be making the only reading of the service.
In what is sure to be a nerve-racking moment in the spotlight, he will tell the congregation and TV viewers: “Let love be genuine”.
A hymn for Diana
Guide me, O thou great redeemer,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty,
Hold me with thy powerful hand;
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven
Feed me till I want no more;
Feed me till I want no more.
Open now the crystal fountain
Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through:
Strong deliverer, strong deliverer;
Be thou still my strength and shield;
Be thou still my strength and shield.
When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death, and hell’s destruction
Land me safe on Canaan’s side:
Songs of praises, songs of praises,
I will ever give to thee;
I will ever give to thee.
Words by William Williams
Download the Daily Mirror's 'Wills & Kate A Royal Love Story' souvenir mobile app for iPhone, iTouch, iPad or Nokia smartphone here
No comments:
Post a Comment